The Western Creative Blog

“Western Creative rocks! My name is Chuck Woolery and I approve this message.” OK maybe not a direct quote, but definitely within the realm of possibility!

Here’s a spot we did for our client Ocean Potion, starring game show legend Chuck Woolery. Chuck is a regular around our office, and we’ve partnered with him to form Chuck Woolery Signature Products, a preferred QVC brand and the leading outdoor spokesman on QVC!

The Western Creative blog has been on hiatus for a while due to our overwhelming workload as of late. The economy is in the dumps, especially here in the Motor City, but our agency is still going strong. That’s quite a feat if you take into consideration the downsizing of many of the big ad agencies out there. BBDO here in Detroit just announced a 22% cut in their workforce in anticipation for the Chrysler-GM merger. Due to the fact that our advertising agency is not tied to the auto industry at all has been our saving grace. We’ve had some nice wins in the past couple months with regards to TV ad success and bringing on new clients. We just added one of the largest online jewelry retailers to our clientele, just in time for Christmas and the Valentine season. While it’s no doubt that 2009 will be tough for all businesses small and large, be aware that a down economy is still a great opportunity for advertising. Economic downturn just means adjusting your marketing strategy since no one in business can afford to wait it out and be stagnant. With a sound strategy and winning creative there are dollars still out there to be won. Take us for example, our agency earnings have more than doubled in the previous 12 months, despite this global crisis. Don’t let this recession take control your business - your competitors may be pulling back and it might be your best opportunity to take control of your entire industry!

- Andy Herrold is an Internet Marketing Analyst at Western Creative. WCI is a full-service advertising agency specializing in consumer packaged goods, founded byMark Young in 1996 in Redford, MI.

American households spend forty-three hours per day with media. That’s a shocking number for certain. While it may sound difficult to achieve, the reality is the typical household has several media consumers, many of whom participate in the phenomenon known as media duality: the act of using more than one form of media at a time.

The term phenomenon might be an understatement. Studies show that 77-percent of Americans use the Internet and television simultaneously. This means most people use multiple media concurrently, at one time or another ­– though not necessarily all of the time. (Additionally, the number of people who watch TV while reading magazines or other print media is over 70-percent.)

The tendency is to believe that younger people, aged 18 to 24, would display this behavior more, but the fact is the statistics reflect habits of a wider age group, the coveted 18 to 49 demographic. Further breakdown within the demographic reveals that women are more likely than men to vote or respond to a contest, while men are more likely to check out web information.

All in all, both genders show a propensity to investigate product information and offers seen on TV. And according to a recent survey by the American Marketing Association, over one-third of all adults watched a TV show and then immediately engaged in a related website to vote for a contestant, enter a contest or watch bonus scenes.
So what does all of this mean to you? It means advertisers cannot look at any single medium in a vacuum. We must consider all media, how they affect and interact with one another, and how to leverage multiple media for the most impact at the lowest cost.
Because our audience is highly likely to have a relationship with us through multiple media outlets, consistency of message is more important than ever. We must make sure that every advertisement you deliver is consistent in look, feel and message, so each impression builds on the previous one. (Of course, there is an exception: if you are advertising to different demographic groups, you may be better served to tailor messages to each group.)

Ultimately, most consumers need to see an advertisement 3.7 times before they fully understand it; and there is no indication that every impression must come from the same medium. By taking advantage of people’s media duality habits, we can build a wide-reaching campaign that helps us reach the impression goal more quickly and cost effectively.

The result is a more powerful brand – and more business for you.

- Mark Young is the chairman of Western Creative. Western Creative is a full service ad agency based in Redford, MI specializing in consumer packaged goods.