Brands are experiences. More accurately, the sum total of a lot of small experiences with a company, product or service make up the public’s collective perception of a given brand.

So when we set off on our merry way to craft a campaign for a client, we aim for a big idea that can permeate all of the small (and sometimes seemingly insignificant) interactions that people have with our client’s brand. For instance, we just launched a campaign for a hotel/casino. After birthing the idea, we built out executions from the inside-out, down to the room keys. Every touch point is an opportunity to engage in a conversation.

This is what turns people into fans. You have to connect in a meaningful way, and if you can create an emotional bond, you’ve got a fan.

Agencies do a really bad job of this, for the most part. Don’t we all say the same thing? “We’re a full-service agency blah blah blah.” I’ve always been puzzled why agencies are so categorically bad at doing for themselves what they presumably do well for their clients.

So when we rebranded ourselves (has it been 18 months?!) as Red Square Agency, we took great care to establish as many points-of-personality as we could. The office space, the web site, the blog–all very important. But we wanted to push further. We have a line of Red Square merchandise, we have Red Square beer (served in our in-office Red Square Bar) and we broadcast “ironically commercial-free” radio on WRED on our web site. Now we’re playing around with social media as a means to communicate our agency brand in new ways.

We’re having fun with it. But here’s where it gets really  fun.

Our merchandise is free. You can hit our site, go to the store, pick out whatever and we’ll send it to you. We’ve been getting a steady amount of traffic and merch requests, and Tuesday we read this on Twitter:

“So … @redsquareagency has proven to me that they’re, w/o reservations, the most awesome agency in the world. Ask me why.”

Wow. A few minutes later he posted:

“The proof of the awesomeness of @redsquareagency is coming soon. For now, go to http://redsquareagency.com and tune into WRED. It’s smexy.” (FYI. “Smexy” as defined by Urban Dictionary is “smart and sexy.” Or “smart and Mexican.” Whichever.)

Then he reveals:

“This is why @redsquareagency is rad: Red Square Surprise.”

Double wow. Or, as our ACD Diana Nichols says, “you can’t buy this stuff.” We believe that smart brands engage with people. When they do that, they earn loyal fans. Looks like we have a few of our own. Kinda cool. Freaky. But cool.

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With the real estate market in a pretty epic slump, how are realtors selling property? Some of them are getting smart and turning to tactics typically utilized for smaller consumer goods.

Yesterday at the office, while I’m running around like a mad man, someone tosses me a package. “It was hand delivered for you.” Okay, I’ll check it out. Inside is a message from a prominent real estate developer in the area, and to paraphrase:

Here are the keys and gate opener to a corner town-home unit in our latest downtown development…use it as a crash pad when you are working late and are too tired to drive over the bay…it’s got everything you need.

My reaction: wow, this guy is smart.

The developer knows that I spend a crazy amount of time at the office, not leaving most nights until 10 pm or later, and he knows that I make the commute over Mobile Bay. While it’s not a bad drive, facing it at midnight can be less than fun.

This is a great example of a down market forcing some back-to-basics marketing techniques. Product sampling has been around forever, but giving someone the keys to a condo is a bit different than passing out free cans of Red Bull. In this case, it’s an old-school tactic that feels innovative.

I’m going to check this place out next week. If the dude stocked the fridge, he may have just sold a condo.

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Color fascinates us. People often associate different colors with various words or phrases, all very subjective. Everyone has their own perceptions. Benjamin Moore just produced a site with AKQA, and it asks people to assign colors to different words or phrases. What is the color of your imagination? What is the color of rock n’ roll? What is the color of love?

Visitors select a word or phrase, then choose a color and have up to 140 characters to write their color story. What an awesome way to interact with a brand in a relevant and personal manner. And the retail tie-in is super tight without being too in-your-face.

Why is it the most powerful ideas seem to be the simplest?

Enjoy: Paint with Ben.

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