There’s a great deal to be said for creating a fabulous brand. A brand that immediately evokes an emotion in its audience. A brand that has real identity, knows where it sits, knows where it doesn’t sit, and feels comfortable with the world around it. I almost see these brands as … | Continue reading
People will often hear the term 3D modelling and immediately think of a big-budget Hollywood film. This is true especially thanks to the current onslaught of superhero films, where there’s barely a scene without a large CGI robot or a huge spaceship breaking through the clouds on … | Continue reading
Every year Brand Newsroom host Nic Hayes runs a series of events, called Meet the Media, around Australia’s capital cities. It’s a fantastic concept that allows brands to meet journalists and editors from major media outlets and find out how they can work with them more effective … | Continue reading
Before you go ahead and create a corporate video, there are a few points to consider. If you can answer these questions before you do anything else, then the whole process will be a lot easier and seamless for both you and the production company making the video for you. Who is t … | Continue reading
When I was a cadet reporter things were still distinctly analogue, so my editorial calendar was kept on a notepad, a week to a page. It was crude, but efficient. I had planned out in front of me, for as many weeks ahead as practical, precisely what I needed to write for each week … | Continue reading
The marketing and advertising industries are awash with awards, but are they worth the time, effort and fanfare? The Brand Newsroom team takes a close look at the value of awards to an agency and, more importantly, to the client. Here are some key take-outs: Awards are run by p … | Continue reading
I’m mindful that in any conversation about virtual reality (VR) and 360 video, there is always a range of knowledge, experience and understanding, and thus it must begin with a definition. “Talking about virtual reality is like dancing about architecture.” – Chris Milk. Virtu … | Continue reading
What compels us to share one item online but not another? There’s no black and white answer, but there are several crucial factors at play. Let’s first look at the content that rose to the top last year. Doing the hard yards for us, BuzzSumo examined 2016’s most shared content ac … | Continue reading
We’ve come a long way from the days when “media monitoring” involved a ream of paper clippings and transcripts turning up on the boss’s desk each morning. Technology has changed everything. Media monitoring has evolved into “media intelligence”. To help us understand what that ca … | Continue reading
When was the last time you attended an event and no one mentioned social media? Every conference organiser’s dream is to trend on Twitter or get a buzz going across social media. From the opening remarks, we’re encouraged to tweet, snap photos and promote the conference in real t … | Continue reading
It breaks my heart, every single time. The public perception of journalism is often a poor one. People tend to think of pushy foot-in-the-door TV reporters berating dole bludgers and dodgy builders or tacky magazines making up stories about royal babies or fat-shaming celebrities … | Continue reading
Today, James and Sarah discuss how to get one of your most important business service provider decisions right — choosing a marketing agency. Whether it’s a PR firm, an advertising company, a content marketing agency or any other communications supplier, what questions should you … | Continue reading
You may have seen the incredible footage recently of the American physician who was forcibly removed from a United Airlines flight. He’d done nothing wrong apart from not complying with a request to vacate his seat so United staff could fly instead. The video via ABC News is here … | Continue reading
It first came to prominence in the gaming world in the 1990s, but virtual reality is a product whose time finally seems to have come. Marketers the world over are embracing the technology in the hope of redefining customer experience. So, how can we use it? First some terminology … | Continue reading
TrackMaven has released its latest Marketing Leadership Survey and, worryingly, it suggests brands and their marketers are still hung up on vanity metrics, rather than metrics linked to a return on investment. More than 70 per cent of marketers said attributing social and content … | Continue reading
I know that it’s April 2017, and 2016 seems like a distant memory, but this is the perfect time to look at the most popular news articles from last year. After all, the slowpokes have had the opportunity to read November and December’s content and we’ve had time to have a good lo … | Continue reading
BNR’s producer, Dan Hatch, joins Nic Hayes and Sarah Mitchell to take a deep dive into what’s going wrong with the media these days — from credibility, accountability, shrinking newsrooms and falling advertising revenues to fake news and “churnalism”. Here are some key take-outs: … | Continue reading
Over the past two years I’ve been principally involved in writing close to twenty content marketing strategies with Lush Digital. Each strategy seeks to accomplish different business goals, and each strategy addresses different organisational challenges that have thus far prevent … | Continue reading
If you go down to a park or a beach you may come across the buzzing sound of a drone flying overhead — under the control of a vlogger, a camera operator or perhaps a lucky kid who received a very nice birthday present. Drones have really taken off in the past 18 months or... | Continue reading
The team discusses innovative and cost-effective marketing tips for start-ups. How can start-ups approach marketing to ensure they get a return on investment? And is there anything big companies can learn from how these newer enterprises promote themselves? Here are some key take … | Continue reading
So I tried Snapchat. It was a bit like that time I tried snails in a fancy French restaurant – a fiddly, awkward and wholly unpleasant experience that left me wondering how on earth so many people could be raving about it. Now, I’m the first to admit I’m a bit of a social media.. … | Continue reading
Since we started making corporate videos at Lush back in 2008, there’s been one major shift that seems to outweigh everything else: Length is really important. We began with three-and-a-half minutes, but tolerated four. We lopped that down to three, then to two and now, with the … | Continue reading
I remember a time not too long ago when blogs were viewed in a fairly negative fashion. They were considered a hobby, a place where regular folk could mull over the issues close to their heart while sitting at home in their pyjamas. It was not all that uncommon for blogs to be vi … | Continue reading
For the past two weeks Australians have watched a PR disaster unfold. A video called “Keeping it Light” (made for the Bible Society), featuring two conservative politicians drinking Cooper’s Beer and discussing same-sex marriage, sparked outrage in the community. Jamie Wilkinson … | Continue reading
Some people court controversy. It’s how they make their living. They like upsetting people, stirring up trouble and making headlines. And good luck to them; at least if it all goes wrong they generally experience the consequences directly and personally. But when you’re a brand — … | Continue reading
It’s hardly news we’re in a crisis of trust. According to the Edelman Trust Barometer 2017, we’re currently experiencing an implosion of trust. Every day we’re treated to headlines about fake news, alternative facts and failing media organisations. So what can you do to combat th … | Continue reading
Lush Digital’s senior producer, Ian Bignell, joins James and Nic to dissect the Department of Finance’s “Game Changers” video — which has gone viral for all the wrong reasons. Where did they go wrong? And how do you ensure your corporate video delivers for you and doesn’t turn yo … | Continue reading
It’s a simple truth: Blogging, and blogging regularly, still works for business. It’s easy to get distracted by social media channels, apps, and whatever concept is the centre of the latest marketing buzz — virtual reality, perhaps. But when it comes to engagement, sometimes keep … | Continue reading
What’s best practice when it comes to sharing bad or difficult news? What are the strategies to employ? Is honesty always the best policy? What do you do if you’re caught unawares by circumstance? Here are some key take-outs: People try to avoid making bad news public in case it … | Continue reading
“Hey guys, I’m just heading downstairs for my Paleo pear and banana bread, would you like to join me?” And so begins three of the most awkward minutes in recent video production memory. The production in question is the $4000 dollar “Game Changers” campaign by the Department of … | Continue reading
Writing is one of those tasks a lot of people hate to do. They sit there staring at the blank page, unable to start, knowing what they want to say but unable to put it in words, finding ways to distract themselves, and getting themselves into a muddle. If that’s you, I have a nea … | Continue reading
John Kapos is a Sydney chocolatier, known to thousands of Snapchat users around the world as Chocolate Johnny. He was an early adopter of Snapchat and he joins James and Sarah today to talk about how the platform has transformed his business. Here are some key take-outs: Snapchat … | Continue reading
So you’ve found yourself saddled with a boring topic. You’re certainly not alone – all writers have had a less-than-stellar subject matter on their hands at one point or another. However, I would argue that there are very few universally dull topics — simply because everyone is i … | Continue reading
PR Warrior Trevor Young joins James and Sarah to discuss whether it ever OK to publish your content on someone else’s platform, like Medium or LinkedIn Pulse. What are the risks of “building on rented land”? Is it always better to publish on media you actually own, like a blog? … | Continue reading
Last week I played a game of golf. It was a beautiful sunny day. The palm trees swayed in the breeze as I teed off from the first hole, nestled between a small mountain and the ocean. Where was I? The boardroom of the Lush Digital offices! Well, occasionally it’s our boardroom — … | Continue reading
Thinking about expanding your brand into a new territory? If you’ve had success in your current market, a strategic move into a new territory could increase the revenue of your business by double or more. Content marketing is an excellent tool for demonstrating the equity, credib … | Continue reading
The Super Bowl is America’s biggest sporting event and it has the world’s most expensive advertising slots — so we normally see some wonderfully creative ads. But this year we also saw far more brands using the platform to make a political statement — especially about President T … | Continue reading
One of the last things I want to hear a client say when talking about a video production is that they “want it to go viral”. When I think of viral videos, I go straight to things like Psy’s Gangnam Style and Charlie Bit My Finger. They are both great videos that got people to... | Continue reading
Over the last decade or so I have lost count of the number of corporate videos I have made. You know the ones: There’s a nice opening logo sequence, the talent comes on-screen, and then occasionally it cuts away to some other footage to reinforce the message being delivered and h … | Continue reading
With the invention of “influencer marketing”, product placement has jumped from the silver screen to the smartphone screen. But now, in Australia, the free-for-all is over. New advertising standards mean from next month brands will have to disclose their influencer marketing deal … | Continue reading
Companies spend whole marketing budgets on the way their company looks, but how many pay attention to how their company sounds? In my twenty-something years of recording and producing voiceovers for local, regional, national and international corporate clients, I’ve often been as … | Continue reading
When researching for a content marketing strategy, how do you ensure you’re accessing authentic information about your audience? On a recent content marketing program for a trucking firm, content marketer Stephen Dupont remarked: “Sure, it’s easy to ask in an online survey or a F … | Continue reading
Is attack marketing ever a good idea? Does launching into your competitor — or perhaps a politician or someone you disagree with — ever work for a brand? James, Nic and Sarah take a close look at where attack marketing wins and where it fails. Show Notes Here are some key take- … | Continue reading
If brevity is the soul of wit, then there’s nothing amusing about most business writing. Our old friend Shakespeare would be disappointed. We’re due for a scolding from Winston Churchill and Dr. Seuss. One of the most effective things you can do to improve your writing is to do a … | Continue reading
Where you advertise says a lot about your brand. It speaks to your geographic location and your target market, for example. But it also tells the public about your brand values. So, what does it say when your advertisement turns up on a fake news site? Or on a hyperpartisan site … | Continue reading
So far this month here in Australia, we’ve seen a TV ad from Meat and Livestock Australia that celebrates Australia’s multiculturalism, a billboard depicting two girls in hijabs celebrating Australia Day has caused an uproar and Target has included a Muslim family and a young gi … | Continue reading
There’s something intimate about listening in to a conversation between a good interviewer and a fascinating subject. It’s why radio is still such a fabulous medium and, I believe, it’s why podcasts have proven to be so successful, too. They stimulate the imagination in a way tha … | Continue reading
If you’re part of a team writing for a corporate blog, you might feel sometimes like you’re thrown in the deep end with writing tasks. Even for our own blog, it’s not uncommon to hear members of the Lush team ruminating about whether or not they’re qualified to give advice on a c … | Continue reading