1220 Pickens Street
Columbia, SC 29201
ph 803.765.1133
fx 803.252.6410
info@adcoideas.com
Aug20
Check this out!
You know you’ve arrived when your work is the subject of an editorial cartoon. We love The State’s award winning cartoonist, Robert Ariail and encourage him to discover the many hot spots in our great city (in case he really thinks the only thing hot about Columbia is the temperature).
Aug14
ADCO produced this video to announce the launch of “Famously Hot.” It isn’t a TV spot or a commercial of any kind. It’s just a little promotional video that we used to get people excited about Columbia’s new tourism initiative. Watch and (hopefully) enjoy.
Aug12
If you’re searching for the scoop on Columbia, SC: Famously Hot, look no further. Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions.
Question. Who is The Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports & Tourism (MACST)?
Answer. MACST is the parent organization of the Columbia Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center, and the Columbia Regional Sports Council.
The Columbia Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau mission is to strengthen the area’s economy by marketing and selling Columbia, its accommodations, restaurants, facilities and attractions as a destination for meetings, conventions, tradeshows, special events and leisure travel.
The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center mission is to provide a first-class venue offering superior operations management and state-of-the-science amenities for the successful coordination of meetings, conventions, tradeshows, entertainment and other special events utilizing the facility.
The Columbia Regional Sports Council mission is to strengthen the area’s economy by marketing and selling Columbia as a premier destination for sporting events and partnering with local sports organizations to grow and develop existing events.
Q. What is the purpose of the new Columbia marketing campaign?
A. The new campaign’s purpose is to attract more conventions and meetings, sporting events and leisure visitors to our area.
Q. Isn’t it bad to say that Columbia’s hot?
A. Columbia’s heat is legendary and the “Famously Hot” campaign takes that heat and puts a powerful twist on it. In this campaign, the “hotness” of Columbia refers to our happening nightlife, sizzling cuisine, fiery music and arts scene, and our sultry spirit. Additionally, our climate is a plus as we are a year-round destination. Hot also speaks to our progress; we’re moving forward.
Q. How did you develop the new marketing campaign?
A. The Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports & Tourism partnered with industry and community leaders, individuals who market the area and ADCO, a local strategic, creative and interactive agency to work through a brand identity process. More than 40 individuals each donated time to this team effort. Over the course of several meetings, the team examined Columbia’s strengths and weaknesses; determined what sets us apart from the competition; and selected the words that best describe our city. Working through that process, the team came to consensus on the essence of Columbia’s identity—The New Southern Hot Spot.
Q. How was “Famously Hot” chosen for the new marketing campaign?
A. The team defined Columbia as the new southern hot spot. “Columbia, SC. Famously Hot” rose to the surface as being unique, differentiating and attention grabbing. Competition among destinations for conventions and meetings, sports events and leisure travel is intensely competitive. To be successful a campaign must cut through the clutter of advertisements. The goal was to design ads that were cutting-edge and unique. “Columbia, SC. Famously Hot” grabs the reader’s attention, as does the photography that is different from the generic photos that other destinations use in their ads.
Q. Why does the campaign slogan just cite Columbia and not the Midlands region?
A. According to destination branding experts and research conducted by the Destination Marketing Association International, visitors do not distinguish between the city and its suburbs. As Eric La Brecque, a brand expert based in San Francisco, stated, “Political boundaries are irrelevant to tourists.”
Q. Was it a smart investment to spend $75,000 for this campaign?
A. MACST invested in more than a campaign. “Famously Hot” is the foundation for this campaign that also includes a strategic marketing plan for customer service delivery. Tourism is a $1 billion industry for the Columbia region and supports 12,000 area jobs that provide services, products and amenities for visitors. Tax paying households save $675 a year due to the economic impact of tourism in the state. This is an intensely competitive marketplace and for Columbia to be a player, we must break through the clutter with a comprehensive campaign, which will be carried to our target audience through advertising, Web development and direct marketing.
Q. Where does this funding come from?
A. The Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports & Tourism is a private, not-for-profit corporation funded primarily by revenue generated by visitors through the accommodations tax.
Q. What is behind the design of the “Famously Hot” logo?
A. The goal of the marketing campaign is to create awareness for Columbia, SC as a destination for conventions and meetings, sports events and tourism. We made the words Columbia, SC prominent in the ad for that reason. The flames are not just a literal representation of heat, they are also symbolic of the spirit and energy of our community and a metaphor for all we have achieved and are yet to accomplish—a shining beacon for all to see. The three flames are symbolic of the three components of The Authority (Conventions & Visitors Bureau, Convention Center and Sports Authority) as well as our three rivers. The colors in the flames move from hot to cool which correspond to the word play used in the campaign—Famously Hot; Surprisingly Cool.
Aug12
You’ve been waiting for months to know what would replace “Where Friendliness Flows,” and we’re proud to announce that your wait is finally over. The new campaign for the Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports, and Tourism (MACST) is…drum roll please…
This campaign theme–Famously Hot–will be incorporated into all of the MACST’s marketing efforts, which will target regional and national convention planners, sports event planners and leisure travelers. The campaign theme was selected because it’s unique, differentiating and attention grabbing. It takes Columbia’s legendary heat and puts a powerful twist on it, referring to our happening nightlife, sizzling cuisine, fiery music and arts scene, and our sultry spirit.
All of us at ADCO are so excited to launch this new campaign with MACST, but we want to know what you think! Please comment on this blog entry to give us your thoughts. Also, be sure to check out the exclusive article by The State newspaper.
Aug03
I just read a great article by Jean Pascal Mathieu in this month’s OMMA magazine. Titled, “Ads Are on the Run,” it discusses how consumers deal with advertising.
Mathieu asserts, “Here’s the new reality: Consumers deal with the media onslaught in one of two ways. One, they’re simply tuning out the message–because it’s not the right message, sent at the right time, in the right way. Or two, they’re taking the message and posting it to the social network du jour because it was sent at the right time, in the right way and in a manner that was appropriate to them.”
Translation: Consumers are bombarded with all forms of advertising so they’ve stopped paying attention any time we bombard them with material that is not useful. So rather than trying to dazzle consumers with the next flashy thing, we should be focusing on sending them a useful message that hits them at the right place and time.
What’s Mathieu telling us? We need strategy. Great creative can’t get the job done on it’s own; it needs the guiding hand of strategy to dictate audience, key message, and medium.
In the world of advertising agencies, this is what separates the men from the boys, so to speak. A lot of people can create work that looks good, smells great, and feels wonderful–but doesn’t increase your revenue. Only the best create work that speaks to your audience in a meaningful way–and accomplishes goals.
The next time you’re looking for an agency, don’t just glance at the pretty pictures in the portfolio. Ask for the success stories. Demand to see results from clients who have trusted the agency to combine great creative with well-rounded strategy. Only then can you be sure you’re getting a partner that knows how to communicate with the right people at the right time and place.
Jul25
Did you know that firms with four letter names (like ADCO) are 29% more likely to be successful than companies with fewer or more letters?
That’s actually not a real statistic. I made it up to make a point: numbers are a powerful way to grab attention and add credibility to your claim.
In fact, I just received an email from the Direct Marketing Association with the following quick fact: “Using numbers and statistics to support your claims improves response by an average of 32.9%”
That’s 100% true.
Jul18
A couple of nuggets of knowledge about SPAM from the Director of Internet Marketing (aka, the Queen of Email; aka, the Fighter of SPAM).
1. When you view an email in your preview window of Outlook, Apple Mail, or another mail reader, you’re opening the email–at least in the mind of the spammer who sent you that email. That’s right, when spammers send you an email, and you view it in your preview window, they do cartwheels because they know you’re a real person with a real email address who they can keep spamming to improve their open rates. Good for spammers, bad for you. Word to the wise: Be careful using the preview screen to read email, or you’ll become an even bigger target for spammers.
2. The auto-response message that tells everyone who sends you an email that you’re out of the office on vacation in Aruba goes out to EVERYONE, including spammers. Replying to spammers is, in short, a bad idea. So… if you get a lot of SPAM in your inbox, think twice about the auto-response.
Jul16
This month, Real Simple magazine has a a list of a words to add to your vocabulary from “The Daily Candy Lexicon: Words That Don’t Exist but Should.” At ADCO, we’re all about words so we thought we should share some of our favorite “not really words.”
But keep in mind, these aren’t real words…just words that really should exist.
crappuccino (n.) A poorly made coffee beverage that costs upwards of $4.
mapquestionable (adj.) Word describing directions provided by MapQuest that somehow caused you to drive in an enormous figure eight.
mouse trap (n.) An internet purchase that looks a lot different upon arrival than it did in the picture.
yellular (n.) The loudness adopted in response to a bad cell-phone connection in the misguided hope that talking louder will actually improve it.
Feel free to add to this list by commenting. We always welcome feedback — especially when it makes us laugh!
Jul08
All of us at ADCO are proud to announce the launch of the Carolina Alumni Association’s new website. Check it out here.
Although we didn’t program or develop the site, we partnered with the company and the developer to design the new look. Our design ensures brand consistency, user-friendly navigation and intuitive organization so that the site appeals to its broad range of audiences.
Jul02
As we begin a new month, I thought I’d share a little-known fact: July is National Ice Cream Month. That’s right, in 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month. He also designated the third Sunday of the month (that’s July 20 this year) as National Ice Cream Day. Why? Because he considered ice cream a fun and nutritious food, and he called all people of the United States to celebrate and observe this special day and month with “appropriate ceremonies and activities.”
Now, in honor of National Ice Cream Month, see if you can match each ice cream brand with its correct slogan. Correct answers can be found here.
Brand:
Haagen-Dazs
Baskin Robbins
Blue Bell
Bruster’s
Dairy Queen
Slogan:
Treat yourself
We eat all we can and we sell the rest
Something different
Made like no other
31 Flavors