We recently received a rather innocuous email from a speculative “up and coming” web designer, which we thought was a worth discussing here as an example of how not to use email marketing.

First of all, the email rather oddly requested our name and address so that they could send their business card to us. The email also contained a link to an underwhelming and rudimentary portfolio website. Not a great impression for someone selling their design ability.

Despite ending up in our company spam folder, the email was instantly noticeable because it had several hundred email addresses in the CC field, listing every web design agency and related business in the Newcastle area.

So far, so unremarkable. We receive tens of similar emails every single week, although they’re almost always done with more self-awareness and panache.

Then a reply from one of the many recipients – copied to everyone on the original list – helpfully pointed out some of the shortcomings to the approach. Shortly after that another reply explained how the freelancer had allegedly stolen their design and entered it into a competition. As the morning went on, more and more emails dropped in from others who had suffered the same fate, or avoided it by quickly ascertaining that he perhaps wasn’t what he claimed he was. More emails appeared simply expressing amusement at the haplessness of the whole thing.

In short, just about everything that could go wrong with this particular mailshot did go wrong, to the extent that the sender wouldn’t be able to even speak to anyone on the list, let alone work with them.

Besides the obvious issue of publicly contacting people who you’ve previously offended, this example highlighted some fairly basic and easily avoidable slip-ups.

• Bulk CC lists. No-one wants to be contacted via CC as it literally indicates that they’re not the primary recipient. When the CC field contains lots of email addresses this sense is worsened massively. It shows that the message is general and imprecise, and therefore not really worth attention. It’s a rare piece of email marketing that doesn’t go to lots of people, but the CC field is not the place to list all of the addresses.

• Unusual, time-consuming request. In this case, the request was for a name and address to send a business card to. Asking for a director or HR contact isn’t a particularly unusual thing in itself, but it is typically done via a phonecall. Sending a generic email asking the recipient to go to the bother of replying, to receive a business card of all things, is staggeringly outdated. Email marketing should be all about the benefits to the reader, tempting them into action with something that’s worthwhile to them.

• Less than impressive offering. All other mistakes aside, the email contained a link to the designer’s portfolio website, giving one last hope of redemption to the whole sorry incident. A portfolio website is a chance to shine, to show off your abilities. However the website in this case was, at best, sub-standard. To compound things further, the list of services on the website included various advanced level and cutting edge technologies – which the sender plainly wasn’t conversant in. There’s so much choice out there today for everything, that whatever you’re offering needs to stand out somehow.

• Spelling, grammar and presentation flaws. When an email contains such errors as regularly using a lower case letter for “I” and the incorrect form of “their”, it suggests that the sender is either incredibly careless or isn’t capable of the most basic rules of writing. This is an elementary turn-off for the reader.

Email marketing, as we say time and time again at Green Media, is a very powerful form of advertising. Arguably the most powerful when you consider potential reach, precision targeting recipients, cost and return on investment. It forms the basis of many successful businesses entire marketing strategies.

When it’s done right email marketing can;

• Grow your business and amplify brand awareness
• Keep your customers happy with regular communication
• Highlight promotions, sales and offers precisely when needed

We’ve used email marketing for all of these things and more, for companies ranging from some of the biggest automotive manufacturers in the world to innovative local small businesses, and we’ve always achieved the right results.

If you’d like to have a chat about email marketing for your business, drop us a line on 0191 232 8088 or email info@green-media.com

Gaming giant Nintendo is set to announce the successor to its successful Wii console at next month’s E3 event, revealing the specifications of the machine that will follow the 86m selling phenomenon.

With rivals Sony and Microsoft staying silent on their next-generation plans for now, Nintendo is effectively the first of the trio to break cover, which is a bold strategy and one that hasn’t always proven to be the right one in the gaming industry.

The story of Sega – and specifically its ill-fated Dreamcast console – should serve as a precautionary tale to Nintendo, highlighting the potential pitfalls that can come with being the first to show your hand.

The Dreamcast Nightmare

Having earned its spurs in the nascent industry with the Master System, MegaDrive and Saturn consoles, Sega made its bid to strike a crushing first blow of the next generation, releasing the Dreamcast in late 1998. The new console was undoubtedly ahead of its time; with advanced graphical capabilities, online play (DreamArena) and a novel LCD screen insert for controllers. What could go wrong?

Well, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, having been beaten to the punch, used Sega’s early release as an opportunity to refine and perfect their offerings against the Dreamcast, and released the Gamecube, Playstation2 and Xbox respectively. This created an unusually saturated market with more choice than ever for consumers.

The early release of the Dreamcast made the console appear to be an older, less appealing proposition for buyers… and its fate was effectively sealed.

With customers increasingly opting for the newer alternatives, the Dreamcast lasted just three years against the competition, falling several years short of the expected lifespan of the console. The official discontinuation was announced in 2001 after months of falling sales. The failure had near-terminal repercussions, and Sega never recovered as a hardware manufacturer. The Dreamcast was the last console it produced, with the company moving solely into software publishing, where it remains today.

So, despite getting in first, despite the genuine innovations and despite the technological ability of the machine being on par with its competitors, the Dreamcast debacle almost killed the company.

While such an outcome would be perhaps unthinkable for Nintendo this time around, Sega’s dramatic fall from grace will not be far from their minds as the release of the Wii’s successor draws nearer.

Apple’s long-awaited white iPhone 4 has been released this week, but perhaps the biggest related story is the way that Apple broke the news.

With a single word – “Finally” – Apple displayed a self-deprecating humility that many feel has been distinctly absent from the way the company usually presents itself. It was a bold decision to go with this, as it represents Apple holding its hands up and admitting it has made a mistake.

We wrote on Green Notes back in October 2010 that the white iPhone 4 delay showed an unexpected vulnerability from Apple, and mused that it could have a wider impact on the way that the company was perceived in the future.

In the mere six months or so that has passed since we published that article, Apple has released the second generation of the tablet platform-defining iPad, achieving record sales figures and typical hype. The original black iPhone 4 has continued to sell well globally, bringing on board a second network carrier in the US and impressive new capabilities through an OS update. Just this week a report claimed that the company’s phenomenal cash reserve could support the whole operation until 2018, even if it didn’t make another penny from now on. The Cupertino juggernaut hasn’t slowed down, despite the white iPhone 4’s continued elusiveness.

With this ongoing success in mind, the tone of the ‘Finally’ announcement certainly wasn’t a given. Apple could have comfortably heralded the release as the latest in a long line of wonder products and carried on regardless. But it didn’t. It acknowledged the massive delay, and almost apologetically pushed the white iPhone into the fleeting limelight.

So, while the white iPhone 4 won’t break any sales records, it may well have given Apple a PR lesson that money can’t buy.

Logos are one of the most powerful and valuable pieces of design that a company can own. As modern symbols, they appeal to audiences on face value, relying on the immediacy of image to communicate core messages. Some companies also incorporate cleverly hidden messages within their logos, using visual tools, such as optical illusion. Logos that require a certain level of discernment endure as designs that serve companies well for decades. An inventive logo can instantly bolster a company’s reputation, as an emblem of ingenuity.

Instead of word play, the flexibility of image becomes the designer’s new toy, where creativity is allowed to showcase its intellect. Conceptual logos tend to win the admiration of consumers, in a memorable demonstration of originality.

Some logos that play with image:-

Marriage logo: Here, an unassuming font becomes a central pillar to the creation of an image. The letter ‘R’ that already exists side by side in the word ‘marriage’ is resourcefully reversed to form what looks like two figures facing each other, a couple, presumably saying their vows. By recognising the creative potential that lay in the shape of letters, ‘Marriage’ is set apart from its competitors.

Although the two letters do not form a perfect or detailed representation of a bride and groom, it is enough to hint at the outlines that still allow for the text to remain legible. A certain sense of imagination is required, which are the key elements that make it so engaging and memorable.

Piano Forest logo: Both parts of this company’s name are included in its logo and are effectively spelled out in an image that cleverly doubles up as both piano keys and a forest of trees. The black trees on a white background create a silhouette of trees on a daytime sky of bright white, as well as depicting the black and white outline of a keyboard. It does not particularly matter that the keys on the piano are not straight and a little rugged as the leaves of the trees cross over into the piano image or that the trees are contained by the horizontal lines that make up the edge of a piano, because our eyes tend to make allowances. It actually serves to blend the two images together, as we flip back and forth between them in visual merriment.

Black Cat logo: Again, the black and white colour combination works well to stick in the mind of the viewer. White text on a black background horizontally spells out the company name, ‘black cat’. At a second glance the logo depicts a pair of feline eyes staring out of the inky darkness, made from the letter ‘c’ that appears in both words, positioned side by side. The black background means that the outline and other features of the cat are concealed, so that the mystique that is so heavily associated with black cats is maintained.

Amazon.com logo: This famous logo shows a yellow arrow underneath its name and depicts a smile for many. It was of course intended to be a smile that reflected the happiness of its customers but it also served another purpose. Its position is of high importance. It stretches from the ‘a’ to the ‘z’ underneath ‘Amazon’, which represents the wide range of names and products it delivers, from a to z. They utilise the ‘a’ and the ‘z’ that already exists in its name to demonstrate the designers keen eye, lateral thinking and resourcefulness, which are all at the heart of many conceptual logo designs.

Toblerone logo – For many this famous logo of a Swiss mountain seems self- explanatory and one dimensional in terms of its concept. The mountainous region of Switzerland, where Toblerone chocolate originates is identified, so that the connection is affirmed in the consumer’s mind. However, the mountain hides a secret, amongst its brown rocky shapes, is a bear on its hind legs, appearing in the negative space. This is because Toblerone originated in the Swiss city of Bern, rumoured to mean ‘City of bears’. Sentimentally, the history of this company is embedded in its logo, as Toblerone pays tribute to its humble origins, while endearing its customers.

Logos that test our imagination and contain multiple dimensions will nearly always outshine logos that symbolise a single facet of a company’s identity. Even if a logo seems initially uninspiring, a hidden message will elevate it to the esteemed heights of a consumer’s consciousness. Next time you dismiss the merits of a logo, look a little closer.

The globe-straddling coffee behemoth Starbucks has launched the latest incarnation of its logo this week, in a move that demonstrates a suitably tasteful evolution of the brand. Unlike clothing giant Gap’s ill-fated rebrand last year, Starbucks has taken the step seamlessly, producing a subtle update that takes the brand forward without drastically changing the logo’s look. While the move contains a host of changes across the company, it’s naturally the logo revision that catches the eye.


As the world’s largest coffee-shop chain, the ubiquity of the Starbucks logo on the high street has ensured a familiarity that comes with only the most successful brand identities. Love it or hate it, the logo is instantly recognisable to most consumers in 2011.


However, despite this all-conquering dominance the Starbucks logo itself has always been a complex affair, markedly lacking the simplicity of other instantly-recognisable classic motifs such as McDonald’s ‘Golden Arches’ or Coca-Cola’s flourishing bespoke font. The core of the Starbucks logo is the enigmatic ‘Siren’, a crowned goddess character depicted with detailed flowing hair and two mermaid tails. Although the feminine figure is undoubtedly a complicated sight, a pleasing symmetry retained a strict order in the design. Notably, the elaborate image was circled with a bold ring coloured in the trademark green and white, containing the capitalised brand name.


Perhaps it’s testament to the quality of design that such an intricate and arguably bizarre logo could successfully support the company’s meteoric rise through the decades.


So, what’s changed with the Starbucks logo? Well, the Siren is still the centrepiece – but now she is alone, without the surrounding ring and brand name. Notably, the Siren’s colour scheme has switched from black and white to green and white, a move than ensures an innate and automatically recognisable continuity in the brand. In losing the wording, Starbucks is quietly acknowledging how effective the Siren is on her own. In short – no words are needed anymore.





As well as the imperious design decisions on display, Starbuck’s explanation of the development has also been expertly handled – refreshingly free of the hyperbolic corporate-speak that riddled Gap’s doomed attempt. Delegated to a specialist – their Senior Creative Manager – the explanation was straight-forward and interesting, delivered with a warmth that showed not just the careful creative process behind the change, but also a love for the brand. The extreme sensitivity of the work was also evident – remember this was the alteration of a brand that has essentially seen the company rise from being a local market trader to an undisputed international giant. As was fitting, the designers clearly approached the work with respect, and a determination to stay true to the original intentions.


Of course the success or failure of the change will only really be decided in the coming months and years – it’ll be rolled out during March – but with such an expertly executed implementation it could well end up being considered a master-class in the evolution of a logo.

It’s a well-established fact now that copywriting is a central factor in good quality SEO, and a regular flow of well-written copy is essential in achieving and maintaining strong positions on your target keyword searches.

There are thousands of low-cost copywriting solutions available online, some charging as little as £2 or £3 an article. Many of these cheap content provider services available online use writers who aren’t proficient in English or, even worse, automated computer programmes to generate copy. Both of these inevitably produce dreadfully unreadable copy that can actually damage your website in various ways.

Search engines use increasingly sophisticated algorithms that assess the quality of copy on a website, going far in excess of weeding out the traditional ‘keyword stuffing’ of years gone by. Any poor quality copy these days is identified and judged as such, and the website is marked as a low-end offering – hardly the impact needed for first page rankings.

From the real world user perspective the impact can be even worse – as reading nonsensical copy doesn’t exactly create a positive experience. Rather than enticing the reader to visit the website again, it will likely result in them never coming back.

So, far from being a ‘bargain’, with cheap copy services you’re effectively paying to negatively rank your site with search engines and turn off your visitors in the process – precisely the opposite of what copywriting should be achieving.

Good copywriting for SEO comes as a result of several factors working together.

1)    An in-depth knowledge of the subject
2)    Strong writing ability
3)    An awareness of the search engine requirements

Here at Green Media, copywriting has been one of our core services from day one, and over the years we’ve developed a team of experienced and effective professional writers who can deliver the copy that your website needs to perform.

Every single copywriting project begins with a comprehensive investigation of your company, what you’re looking to achieve, and the competitive playing field online. Only after these elements are known and understood can the process of writing actually begin. This preparation enables our writers to produce top quality copy that works to boost your search engine performance and delight readers.

If you’re looking to improve the copywriting on your company website, whether it’s with blogging, article writing or even a complete site rewrite, we’ve got the ability to provide what you need. We’re also adept at copywriting for brochures, flyers, email marketing and other corporate materials.

To find out more about our copywriting services, take a look at our Words that Work brochure, visit our website or call 0191 232 8088.

The story of Apple’s almost mythical white iPhone 4 took another twist this week when the company reluctantly admitted that the release date had slipped again, this time to a hesitantly vague ‘Spring 2011’. The announcement was the latest in what has been something of a PR rollercoaster for Apple. The timeline of the product can be pinpointed with highs and lows – the now-infamous stolen prototype, the fever-pitch first weeks of the release, record opening sales, ‘Antennagate’ snowballing, the ‘Antennagate’ explanation press conference and free case program, ‘Antennagate’ losing momentum, more record sales, and now, the news that the white iPhone will be delayed yet again.

The latest white iPhone 4 announcement throws up five questions that go to the heart of Apple’s product philosophy, PR and ultimately brand identity.

1) Why has it been delayed so long?

Apple isn’t saying anything officially further than unspecified “manufacturing difficulties beyond its initial expectations”, but the rumour mill has generated one or two reasonable suggestions.

An early but enduring rumour spoke of rapid discolouration of the white plastic used in the phone. While the iPhone 4 body has a glass front and back which would protect against grubby fingers, surfaces and pockets prematurely aging it from the outside, the rumour spoke of components heating the unit to the point where discolouration occurred from the inside out.

A more recent, and perhaps more feasible suggestion online talks about the white plastic compromising photography performance by allowing excessive light exposure on the lens. Either way, the “difficulties” have obviously proven to be especially difficult, hence the stretched-out delay.

2) Will anyone want one now?

A white iPhone 4 has an immediate visual appeal, with a clear reminiscence of the earliest, most beautiful iPods, so there was a definite market of buyers ready and waiting with open arms.

However, the established product cycle of the iPhone is a clear twelve months, with an early summer release taking place since the very first version. So, with Apple now saying it’s on for a spring launch, the white iPhone 4 will have at the very most three months as a top-of-the-line product. Being unavailable for nine of the twelve months in which it is most desirable is catastrophic. Assuming the pricing stays premium there will be a vastly reduced number of buyers willing to part with the cash to buy one, with a new model just around the corner.

3) Why has Apple got the PR so wrong on this?

Apple’s PR machine, equally respected and derided, is without a doubt one of the most successful media operations going, in any commercial industry. A press event earlier this month, which revealed the relatively modest new MacBook Air models and an incredibly limited preview of next year’s OS update, sent the tech press into speculation meltdown in the seven days between the initial announcement and the event itself. The reason for this is because Apple is a past master of creating buzz, hype and even mystique around the products it creates. Apple events are just that – ‘events’, no matter what they ultimately result in.

So, with such mastery over the art of essentially controlling both press and public opinion, why has Apple’s handling of the white iPhone 4 degenerated in such a way? Well, it’s worth remembering that Apple hasn’t lied. A release date slipping, even to this extent, isn’t exactly unheard of in the consumer electronics industry. The official reason for the delay, despite being infuriatingly hazy, is an indisputable fact – manufacturing difficulties are clearly the cause. The problem, in essence, is that there is seemingly such a high demand for a product that is unavailable to buy. This would still be the case if the company explained the hold-up in more detail, it wouldn’t change the fact that you can’t buy the thing.

Effectively, Apple has fallen victim to its own hype machine.

4) How will it play out?

At this point in time there seems to be two possible outcomes to the white iPhone 4 tale, neither of which will be remotely palatable to Apple. Scenario one; the phone is released next Spring with the hobbled sales potential of a product that appears a few months before its successor. Scenario two; Apple admits defeat and publicly cancels the device. The latter is the more intriguing of the two.

With the ‘Antennagate’ press conference in July, Apple (or more specifically, Steve Jobs) demonstrated how an out of control backlash could be turned into something of a PR win. A public culling of the white iPhone 4 couldn’t possibly have the same potential, so a similar staged ‘performance’ wouldn’t be expected. A more likely outcome in this scenario would be a carefully-phrased press release, perhaps even distributed around the same time as some positive news to dampen any backlash.

5) Will there be a lasting effect on Apple?

Put in perspective, the white iPhone 4 delay is a minor affair. It of course wasn’t the sole model of the iPhone 4. It wasn’t even expected to be the most popular of the two models. Anyone who wants an iPhone 4 can buy one, just not in white – hardly a deal-breaker. Sales figures of over 14m to date tell their own story.

However, the delay may have damaged the brand in some subtle ways.

For a company that prides itself on technological innovation, the fact that simply making a product in white has proven to be such a headache should be highly embarrassing, whatever the reason turns out to be. It’s mildly ironic that the colour white has created a stumbling block for Apple. The modern generation of the company was effectively reborn with the iPod – originally a white device – and white casing has become a signature appearance on the flagship MacBook and iMac computers. White really shouldn’t be such a mystery to Apple at this stage.

The incident may also dent the aura surrounding Apple’s live events and the unquestioning way in which Steve Jobs’ proclamations are received by the public at large. When Apple products are showcased in such a desirable fashion, it naturally leads to urgent demand. Demand that needs supply. If there’s a chance that any future super-devices announced at these events could be delayed in such a way, then the allure of the whole process begins to fade a little. Losing the ‘magic’ of the live events would be the first step to subduing the hype, which Apple can’t really afford to happen.

American clothing giant Gap has decided to abandon its new logo after a matter of days, amid almost universal criticism. The new logo was revealed last week, instantly sparking a wave of disapproval on Facebook, Twitter and elsewhere online, resulting in the change of heart.

Company President Marka Hansen’s opening explanation of the new logo – published after it was released on the website – was riddled with corporate-waffle, including the dubious belief that the graded blue square “honours our heritage”, which got the whole process off to a bad start. The situation worsened as the week progressed, with the initial dismay evolving into something closer to ridicule as more commentators latched onto the story.

Perhaps the tipping point came with tech-blogger John Gruber’s devastatingly succinct advice; “Sell your Gap stock.”

So, Gap has gone back to the old logo and essentially apologised for the whole affair.

The incident highlights a few interesting points;

The power of social media

The platform for the vast majority of the opinions expressed on the new logo was of course the major social networks, primarily Facebook and Twitter. Gap openly invited such participation, with its own official Facebook page asking customers for feedback, and (slightly oddly considering the new logo was already chosen and live) a crowd-sourced design process. Had the protestations come mainly from paper-based outlets I doubt that we would have seen such a quick reaction from the company. A drip-feed of criticism through traditional channels would have been far easier to shake off than the 24/7 deluge that social media enables.

The power of a familiar brand identity

A brand identity is more than simply a logo. It represents everything about a company, from the top to the bottom, from the CEO to the staff on the front-line. It is the ‘voice’ of a company, and it is how it choses to present itself to the world. Perhaps most importantly in a commercial setting a brand identity absolutely needs to represent something that the customer can relate to and wants to ‘buy into’. The new Gap logo, while definitely insipid and uninspired, did seem to succeed in bringing the company into the 21st century. It used a form of the Nimbus Sans font, which has a clear and current appeal. The old logo – now reinstated as the existing logo once again – is incredibly dated, with a serif-heavy Pall Mall font. Launched over two decades ago, it now seems wilfully, almost proudly, outdated. Although a great deal of the furore over the switch centred around the perceived poor design of the new logo, the powerful familiarity of the old brand also played a part. Without reaching the heights of, for instance, Levi Strauss’ red tab, with which a brand becomes defined and beloved, the Gap logo does have something of an immediately recognisable appeal. The company may have underestimated what it already had in this regard.

The willingness of a major company to backtrack

Maybe the most surprising part of this story is the fact that Gap performed a u-turn. It shows that for all the bluster about ‘heritage’ and changing the face of the company, it still considers customers and their opinions as valuable enough to feature in such high-level decisions. It is this point that is likely to ‘save’ Gap from the incident triggering some sort of terminal tailspin that some have predicted.

When a company is so determinedly customer-focused and is willing to adapt so reactively to what the paying public wants, it certainly doesn’t have any problems with its priorities.

After more than a decade at Hoult’s Estate in Walker we’re excited to say that we’re on the move. Based in Ouseburn Valley, our new offices are at the heart of a thriving and rapidly developing business and social community which we’re looking forward to becoming a part of.

Just a five minute drive from our current offices towards Newcastle city centre, we’re also easier to access than ever for visiting clients.

Our new address is;

Unit 2

Maling Court

Union Street

Newcastle upon Tyne

NE2 1BP

Many companies have a hard time understanding how best to use social media to promote their business online. It’s not that the principles of Facebook, Twitter and the others are difficult to grasp – they’re not – but, the real business potential can be a lot harder to fathom out. Since social media marketing works differently between businesses depending on what their aims are, there are no guarantees that what works for one will work for another.

That’s the beauty of social media, it’s flexible enough to accommodate an incredibly varied range of marketing approaches and still deliver success. It’s not a strict medium.

An uncomfortable fact of today’s commercial world is that people no longer trust messages from companies, on the whole. This makes marketing an increasingly precision process where even the most meticulously crafted promotions risk failure.

What people do trust is word-of-mouth recommendations, and this has always been the case. These recommendations come from fellow customers (or potential customers) and they come with an inherent credibility that companies can rarely match in their own communications. Social media is the biggest opportunity for word-of-mouth recommendations, well, ever. It has a worldwide span, it’s instantly accessible to anyone from anywhere, it’s permanently available, it’s accumulative and it all leads back to your door.

Word-of-mouth has grown from local to global, and it’s going on right now in tweets, Facebook posts, blogs and forums. Failure, refusal or just a straight-forward inability to get into social media for business marketing is tantamount to ignoring the latest incarnation of the most effective form of advertising of all-time. Is that something your business can afford to do?