“We’re excited to become more involved with ASAE in 2013. Initiatives that involve apps, responsive web design, branding and magazine redesigns are initiated or impacted by association marketing, membership and communications professionals. Strategic changes require an agency partner that sees the big picture but can deliver on the goals. Come by booth 109 for a ‘shot of creativity’ and share your MM&C challenges.”

Will we see you there?

The MM&C Conference is designed to help association professionals find inspiration, new ideas, and methods to create a powerful blend of marketing, membership, and communication tactics. If you’re interested in gaining information specifically tailored for the association industry, then MM&C is the conference for you.

For more information on the conference, available sessions and exhibitor showcase, visit the conference website. Let us know if you’re planning on attending MM&C this year, as we hope to see you there.

The webcast, Customizable App Solutions for Your Agency’s Mission, is geared toward a government audience. It will focus on how agencies can leverage Adobe DPS to create customizable apps that engage both internal and external audiences.

Attendees of the webcast will:

• Review how Adobe DPS can help agencies meet the goals set forth by the Digital Government Strategy release in May 2012
• Be introduced to the customizable app solution Adobe DPS and its key capabilities
• Learn how apps fit into an agency’s digital strategy and align with major business objectives
• Takeaway some examples from the success of the Marines magazine tablet app, the official publication of the U.S. Marine Corps

Join us on Wednesday, May 29^th at 2:00 pm EST to learn what DPS can do for you. Visit the webcast registration page for more details and to register for this complimentary webcast.

We invite our clients and friends to support our first ever “Not So Silent Auction.” Bates Creative employees are donating items for the auction in order to support this effort. The items will be auctioned off and promoted through our social media channels. All money raised from the Not So Silent Auction will be donated to the Capital Area Food Bank.

How can you support this effort? Stay tuned for our social media posts and make a bid on our donated items or donate directly.

Facebook    Twitter    LinkedIn    Google +

Attending MAX? Try to stop by the DPS Agency Spotlight on Monday, May 6th, at 2:00 pm.

If you aren’t able to make the session, come see us at our sponsor exhibitor booth in the Community Pavilion.

Each year SPD celebrates the best in editorial design in print and digital media, with the winning designers, photographers, illustrators and journalists being honored at the SPD Awards Gala. In addition, the winning work is published in the SPD Annual, a hardbound publication circulated to members of SPD and sold on Amazon.

We’re honored to receive the recognition from what is known as the world’s most prestigious editorial design competition. Every design that leaves our studio is a collaborative effort. During weekly critiques the design team weighs in on comps, giving designers an enlightened angle to move forward with for the design. We feel that this collaborative effort is something that sets Bates Creative apart from other design agencies.

Other publications named SPD Merit Winners include: Billboard, Dwell, Fast Company, National Geographic, Sports Illustrated, and Wired. A full list of winning publications can be found on SPD’s website.

Bates Creative is proud to officially announce Erik Hansen as the agency’s new Creative Director, joining the team in December 2012.

In his new role, Erik will lead the Bates Creative design team, ensuring clients’ ideas and goals become a reality through design. His distinct combination of design thinking and analytical judgment are used to deliver unique solutions to differentiate, disrupt, validate or springboard businesses in their respective markets.

Erik also brings his public-speaking experience to the Bates Creative team, regularly speaking in the DC area on design thinking, branding, and non-traditional design career paths. As an Adjunct Professor at George Mason University and Boston University CIDA, Erik taught Corporate Design and Branding, sharing his passion for the future of the industry with students.

President of Bates Creative Debbie Bates-Schrott is thrilled for what Erik’s addition to the Bates Creative team means for the company, saying,

“Erik brings solid leadership experience in both the creative and the business side of agency work. Add that to the inspiration he brings to the design team everyday and it’s quite a win for Bates Creative and our clients.”

Erik has already begun to contribute to the Bates Creative blog and is an avid user of Twitter, you can follow him @thinkBates.

Prior to joining Bates Creative, Erik was the founder and creative strategist for Think Monumental, a boutique ideation, branding, and creative agency in Washington DC. Erik was also the previous director of marketing and brand strategy for the American Society of Interior Design, where he led the repositioning of the organization and led all national marketing, brand strategy, communications, and advertising efforts.

We were thrilled to hear the news that our client Heifer International’s World Ark tablet app was nominated a 2013 min Best of the Web Finalist.

min’s Best of the Web Awards is the industry’s top honor in the digital space, recognizing outstanding Web sites and digital initiatives among consumer and b2b magazines. World Ark is a finalist in the digital magazine category, among its competitors: WIRED, dash magazine, Ebony.com, EE Times, Golf Digest, Golf Magazine, and Popular Science. The Best of the Web Awards will be announced on April 15, 2013, at the Grand Hyatt in New York City. We’ll be there for the announcement.

Heifer International was the first development nonprofit to launch a magazine tablet app, speaking to the organization’s drive to push innovative initiatives.

Heifer writes about the launch and award nomination in its blog,

“In December 2012, we launched an interactive tablet edition for iPads and Androids that incorporates news from the field, facts about development work around the world and ways readers can get involved, along with dynamic, gorgeous design by the talented screen wizards at Bates Creative…We’re hopeful this nomination will help us spread the word about the brilliant and hardworking Heifer project partners that we feature in each issue”

We’ll be waiting on the edge of our seats for the award winners to be announced. Our Director of Business Development Heather Shelton comments on World Ark’s nomination saying,

“Have you seen this app? If you haven’t seen for yourself why this is a min finalist you should download it and check it out. Heifer International does amazing work around the world and has the stories and imagery to prove it. At Bates Creative we’re thankful that the technology such as Adobe DPS exists to help bring a publication like World Ark to the world’s attention as a min finalist.” 

Join us on March 13^th at 6:30 pm as our Creative Director Erik Hansen talks about “Building Brand Awareness by Design” with the Baltimore chapter of the American Marketing Association.

Building Brand Awareness by Design

Attention spans are contracting, commercials are filtered, messages have a character limit and the competitive landscape is increasingly cluttered.

The greatest weapon we have is design.

“Design is not limited to the styling of cars or the planning of buildings. It can determine the success of any man-made object, process, or experience.” - Neumeier, Marty. “Metaskills: Five Talents for the Robotic Age.”

In order to build awareness, motivate action and build loyalty, companies and organizations must have a compelling story to engage their constituents. With rapidly evolving communication channels, design is the red thread that ensures the experience from the inside-out is consistent, memorable and fosters the goals of the brand.

From trade association to consumer products, there are endless opportunities to differentiate and deliver value – but only design will give brands personality and a visual language that builds a community of advocates, ambassadors and champions to stay relevant. Attendees will leave this event with answers to the following questions:

• What is design (thinking)?
• What drives brand experience?
• How to evolve and manage a visual language?

Registration for the event can be found on AMA Baltimore’s website. We hope to see you there!

Date: Wednesday, March 13^th
Time: 6:30 – 8:00 PM
Location: Alizee (Inside the Inn at the Colonnade)
4 West University Parkway
Baltimore, MD 21218
Parking at the Inn at the Colannade will be validated for this event.

Interested in taking your print publication digital like Marines? Join us on Thursday, February 28^th, at 2 pm EST. Bates Creative President, Debbie Bates-Schrott will lead a webcast hosted by Adobe Government at Carahsoft. The webcast, “From InDesign to Adobe DPS: Tips for Planning Your First Publication Tablet App,” will strengthen attendee knowledge on how to strategically plan for success.

During the one-hour webcast, Debbie will share her deep understanding for designing and developing for the fluid and flexible medium that is digital publishing.

Attendees will leave the webcast with these key takeaways:

• Goal setting
• Measuring success
• Key capabilities of the Digital Publishing Suite tools
• Content strategy for your app and how it’s different from print and web for your publication
• Learn to think in screens, not pages
• What the right amount of interactivity is for your app

Don’t miss the opportunity to register for this complimentary Carahsoft webcast.

You can also learn the latest digital publishing statistics in Bates Creative’s Digital Publishing Infographic, be sure to download and share.