Archive for the ‘Events’ Category

Picture of the Week :: Riding Strong (and in style!)

Posted August 4th, 2011 in Blog, Events, Picture of the Week | No Comments

It’s interesting how certain businesses can get put in a “box”. (Read: “They only design websites.” “Their salads are great but I wouldn’t order a steak there.” “I didn’t know they planned weddings AND corporate events!”). It’s great to have a niche, but it can be challenging to overcome a business “stereotype”.

That’s why one of the thing that we love about being a part of the Elements team is that there is really no project that we can’t handle, large or small. If it can be designed or marketed, we can do it!

A recent example: a couple of months back, our clients at Green Seed Group asked us to design a bicycle uniform for the CT Challenge, a bike ride fundraiser benefiting cancer research held last weekend. Here is Team Green Seed sporting their cool new unis designed by yours truly.

Celebrate Good Times, Come On!

Posted August 2nd, 2011 in Blog, Events | No Comments

Lately, we have found ourselves with lots to celebrate here at Elements.

Last Friday, we went out to the Owenego Beach & Tennis Club to celebrate a few occasions – including, but not limited to: Moving to our new office location (and celebrating how far we’ve come since then), Amy’s birthday/Ben’s fiancée Kelly’s birthday, the end of a busy week, the dog days of summer, and more. (Apologies for the low light – we tried not to disturb our neighboring tables with a flash.)

And, because we’ve been so busy, we didn’t get a chance to post this picture of Amy celebrating her birthday a few weeks back.

What have you been celebrating this summer?

Giveaway Friday :: Happy 4th of July

Posted July 1st, 2011 in Blog, Events | 4 Comments

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Ahh, there’s nothing like the feeling on a Friday afternoon before a long holiday weekend (especially when the forecast looks BEAUTIFUL!)

This week’s giveaway is a Gourmet S’mores Kit from Planet Marshmallow – the perfect kit to enjoy fireside with family and friends.

To enter, leave a comment matching the below-listed holiday weekend plans with each Team Elements member (hint: there’s five each for Amy, Ben and Chelsea). The closest guesser will win the deeeeelicous s’mores kit!

take a backroads ride with the windows down • book hotel for vacation • work on my porsche • bake a strawberry rhubarb pie • run at least 10 miles • read elle magazine cover to cover • go swimming somewhere • plan a bonfire party • catch some fireworks while sitting on a blanket • finish learning a song the piano • family cookout • make watermelon salsa for the first time • take my first yoga class • catch up on reading • meet a relative for the first time

For a bonus entry, share your plans for the 4th with us on Twitter @elementsdesign or on Facebook. Happy 4th of July from the Elements team…let freedom ring!

Eventful :: CT Business Expo, June 9, 2011

Posted June 14th, 2011 in Blog, Events | No Comments

Amy Graver moderating "Social Media Strategies" panel at CT Business Expo, June 9, 2011

Last Thursday, Amy and I spent the day in Hartford at the CT Convention Center attending events and meeting up with friends at the CT Business Expo. We spent some time connecting with colleagues new and old via Twitter, following the hashtag #ctbexpo and ramping up to have a great day at the Expo. And great it was! The educational seminars were so great that we hardly had time to venture onto the Expo floor (except to grab a quick bite from Panera’s booth.) One of our favorite things to do is to stay up-to-date on the latest and greatest in marketing. We learn so much from our friends and colleagues and this year’s business expo was no exception.

Meeting with friends after the panel

Meeting Twitter friend and blog follower Steve Raccagni (@drumsanddesign)

Of course, we learned lots more, but here are just a few are a few nuggets of information that you can take with you if you didn’t attend the Expo — and we highly suggest saving next year’s date (June 7th, 2012).

  • If you’re not on YouTube, get on there. Set up your channel and name your videos with detailed titles. Video has a 50x better chance than text of appearing on the first page of Google results. Most people don’t optimize their videos and channel, so if you do, you’ll be ahead of the game.
  • Google Analytics are a very valuable tool. If you haven’t already set them up on your site, don’t delay! Knowing how users are viewing your site, where they’re coming from and how long they are staying will help you make important decisions about format, design and content.
  • Build customer loyalty through seemingly unimportant administrative tasks. Phone calls, voicemail recordings, invoices, mailing labels and countless other touch points are what can make your brand excel beyond the competition.

Gary Holmes (@gariphic) and Amy meet in person for the first time

Before & After {Update} :: Planet Marshmallow

Posted April 26th, 2011 in Before and After, Blog, Events | No Comments

You may remember seeing our B&A post on Planet Marshmallow, a handmade gourmet marshmallow company based out of New Hampshire. Well, a few weeks ago, I took a trip to my home state and visited Planet Marshmallow’s booth at the Made in New Hampshire Expo. The minute I walked in the door, I was thrilled to see the beautiful logo we designed emblazoned across t-shirts, banners and packaging. The Planet Marshmallow team had the best spot in the house right near the main entrance. I daresay their booth was one of the busiest, as they handed out toasted (yes, toasted) full size samples of all their marshmallow flavors. Their crowd was second only to New Hampshire native Stonyfield Farm, who was also giving out free product samples.

After making my way around the room (didn’t want to interrupt the flow of newly converted Planet Marshmallow fans) I finally had the opportunity to meet Kristi Buttler and Heather Cox, PM co-confectioners in person. (Yes, that’s right – we managed to design a logo that they loved without actually having met with either Kristi or Heather beforehand.)

Well wasn’t I just flattered and overwhelmed when Heather, and then Kristi, started to tear up and tell us how much the logo means to them and how it was just what they had imagined but didn’t even know they wanted. I have to say it was the first time that a client had cried about work that Elements did – and it was such a touching moment to know that the work we do as a team really has significant impact on the businesses that we help every day.

And, I was excited to learn that people had been asking where they could purchase Planet Marshmallow shirts, and they were only meant to be designed for the team to wear at the Expo to help with awareness.

 

For more on Planet Marshmallow, visit their website or follow them on Facebook and Twitter. And, their chocolate chipotle marshmallows will be featured in the 32nd Annual Sports Emmy Awards Official Gift Bags on May 2!