Love Up Logo

Whether you’ve been completely spoiled already today, got some amazing plans for tonight or even woken up to the usual empty doormat, Happy Creative has the perfect Valentine’s Day game that everyone can get involved in!

It’s called ‘Love Up Logo’ and it’s just a bit of fun for this romantic of all days.

All you need to do is use the Happy logo in a ‘loving’ way and show it to us.

You could take a photo on your phone of a logo that you’ve positioned within a lovely bunch of flowers?

How about scribbling a poem on a letterhead or invoice containing our logo?

You might even want to give our logo a little kiss and take a photo?

Whatever you decide to do, please send us in your efforts and we’ll post them up on Twitter, on our blog, Facebook and we might even put a couple of the best ones on our website.

It’s not just for our lovely clients, friends or suppliers, all of the Happies have had their own turn at ‘Loving Up Our Logo’.

See what you think of our efforts below:

Here’s Happy Emma’s lovely take on our compliment slip!

Here’s my effort – how cute is his cupid drawing?! Definitely an old romantic, me…

Happy Marilia has gone for a very Happy theme with her sunshine inspired logo:

Happy James’ had a go – you can tell who our Creative Director is can’t you?!

Happy Tom is our designer – a bit of a cheeky effort, but still very loved up!

Happy Debbie’s idea is very Blackpool inspired – a very nice take on it, Deb!

And finally, Happy Mike has showed his artistic side – very nice Mr Emmett!

You can be as creative as you like with this – the more weird and wonderful the better! And the ones with the most loving thought behind it will be kept permanently on our website! Don’t worry though, we’ll Tweet every single entry we get, as well as posting it on our Facebook wall.

If you don’t already follow us, you can join us on Facebook by clicking here  or Twitter here .

You can send us your entries either by emailing them to hello@happy-creative.co.uk (use subject line ‘Love Up Logo’), you could tweet them to us, or post them up on our Facebook wall. It’s up to you!

In case you haven’t got anything with our logo on, we’ve attached an image of it below. Feel free to print it off, cut it out, draw on it, Photoshop it, kiss it, but most of all…love it!

Happy Valentine’s Day! We can’t wait to see your ideas!

The Happy Bunch.

Time, excess and Hydro-Power

Mike Shift, January 29^th 2062

…………………in the year 2062, Mike Shift recalls some historic marketing snapshots from the good old days………

It’s been a long time. It’s been a long journey.

I witnessed the deconstruction of a capitalist society. I survived the ‘triple-trough’ twenty years depression. I stood in the streets and cheered as the ribbon was cut on Fylde’s very own ‘Hydro-man,’ second only to Sydney’s great 2360ft winged, ‘Hydromida Four.’  I’m getting tired now.

I am Mike Shift. I have 3 daughters. I live in Blackpool. The year is 2062 and I want to share a secret.

It was back in 12’ when I pencilled the breakthrough on the flipside of a paper napkin in what was then, Costa Coffee.

Social media pulls on our human instinct to bond. The instinct to feel popular through numbers, sometimes big numbers. The hugely popular business forum at the time was that old dinosaur, LinkedIn. Quite an innovation and hugely successful in those days. We laugh now with hindsight. How did we all get taken in? Basic instinct even foiled this innocently intended model – the greed for numbers again prioritising over quality. You’re probably nodding at this point. If not, you are feeling a tad uncomfortable with yourself for ‘accepting’ that connection you didn’t really know – just to add an extra point to your tally. Don’t worry, we all did it. Silly us. That’s just how it was back then. LinkedIn almost got it right, setting their capped ‘visible’ limit to 500 connections. We now know that was too high. Despite this, we still all pursed the numbers glory. Evidenced in Linkedin’s own study, on what they referred to as the ‘real referral quantum’ in 14’.  Basically, 44% of ‘connections’ transpired to be (as linkedin described) ‘probably unknown. Our quest for self-appraisal still dominated. Excess and greed flirted with us again. Quality and signature relationships were indeed sparse.

In 15’Happy Creative stormed the market with their viral, award winning ‘LinkedIn-it-to-win-it.’  We seized and bottled-up this universal quest for numbers and created a league table for companies to submit their ‘sales by campaign.’ Strict policing ensured fairness and compliance. The beauty lay in its simplicity. This bolted directly onto the existing LinkedIn V3.2 platform. A no brainer for LinkedIn – they just sat back and watched the show. And their numbers rose exponentially. Happy Creative went from strength to strength. We did regret self-enforcing our own position in the tables. Naturally, the Premiership was the place to be seen (or in the US, the ‘world-series’).

Looking back, Happy Creative were communally trapped in the bubble of zero’s. I recall trumping ‘Google’ in Time Magazine’s most innovative brand awards back in 21’. The Sony vs Lenovo wars really ensured longevity though. Sony published their $3bn, 6 month return on the 5D interactive ‘smell screen’ campaign – we couldn’t believe it. It cost us £2m in audit fees just to verify the claims pre-submission. Lenovo responded, naturally. Tip tap! Tip tap! 11 years they held the number 1 and two spots.

In 26’ Karen Lamberet, the then President made our next stratospheric leap. Behind every brilliant campaign, stood a brilliant marketer. This formed our next concept bolt-on. Soon, Philps (Nike), Gordez & Pickeley (Saatchi) were locked head-to-head. This had become both a drivers and constructors championship.  For years it played out. When we eventually bought LinkedIn in 31’ we had the whole ‘manic media’ sown up. We let it play out. And then ‘it’ happened.

The crash.

Had we not learned from the excessive spend that thrust us into our previous trough? No. Why? We forgot? Again. This time it was for real. Capitalism degenerated overnight. Money became meaningless and worthless……….

……………58’ was a new birth for a better future. Water was the new currency. It worked. It was wet – but it always flowed. Hydro-this and hydro-that. It flooded our greed and washed away the parasitic human flaw – numbers. It was the purest and most transparent delivery.

Happy Creative amended their pinnacle ‘univers-a-net’ platform with one single shot – and it re-shaped everything. We introduced the ‘intrinsic value quota’ into the tables. In a flash, Sony perished to the 2^nd division. The tables were competitive as this model was based on the value and return you got from your investment. A little forgotten abbreviation over the past 5 decades (ROI). Happy Creative even banished their own rules and joined in the fun. We nestled in the premiership from 59’ and haven’t looked back. We offer the most innovative, unique creative, conceptual design for a competitive price – ROI. We cover all digital, strategic and even guerrilla elements of marketing. We do this at a fair price, offering the most value in the market – statistically proven.

Karen, James, Emma, Tom, Russ, Debbie, Marilia, Gareth, Simon and myself have all had our day. We enjoyed it. We did it our way. Any regrets?

Well……….yes…….just a tiny one.

If I had known what I know now, that little column on the end may have made everything a whole lot different. Have I learnt anything? Yes, of course. If you’re looking at a potential agencies wondering  if they can facilitate a good ROI for your next campaign – make sure you look closely at the correct column. Take your time and study wisely. And of course, connect to Happy Creative – it’s your future.

Merry Christmas, everyone!!!

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/KwrABmD6wHv9ztyR?cmpid=ey_fb_self

Click on the link above to watch something funny: some of the Happies singing especially for you! In true Christmassy spirit, the Happies went out for a lovely Christmas meal last night, where we also exchanged our Secret Santa gifts. I don’t even have to tell you that we had a great laugh, do I? Think handmade biscuit tins, Burnley FC books, giant mouses and snugs, just to give you a hint! We had so much fun!

Enjoy the festivities and have a great Christmas and a fantastic New Year, everyone!

99 Problems but a Tip Ain’t One!

I recently spent a much anticipated day with my daughter with a planned afternoon in Cheshire Oaks. We hastily headed to Pizza Express for some much needed sustenance (having eaten a frugal breakfast) before heading on to the retail outlets. The question arose at the time of payment about whether we would leave a tip, with the waiter pointing out two different coloured buttons on the credit card machine which indicated yes or no. Whilst he hovered patiently at our side, I felt compelled to press the green button to include a tip but eventually pressed the yellow button for “no”. My reason for this was that though the meal had been enjoyable and tasty, we hadn’t received exclusive waiter service and had needed to request cutlery and then side plates for our starters. We eventually decided upon leaving a 15% cash gratuity of our own accord.  I think we left the tip because we felt it was expected and we didn’t want to feel mean, it certainly wasn’t for excellent customer service.

Interestingly, that evening,  I read an article about the renowned multi-millionaire rapper and music producer Jay-Z, who recently  left a $50,000 tip for waiters at the release party for his ‘Watch the Throne’ album at Miami’s Fontainebleau resort. My humble gratuity offered at “Pizza Express” really  pales in comparison to this display of ostentatiousness! Apparently, the ‘Otis’ rapper – who teamed up with Kanye West on the new record, spent a grand total of $250,000 on champagne alone at the party. Further reports indicate that at one point during the celebration, four muscle-bound men reportedly carried in a golden ice bucket holding 20 bottles of Armand de Brignac “Ace of Spades” champagne, a prestige champagne, rated the best in the world.

A witness to the celebrations is alleged to have exclaimed: “It takes two people to serve the champagne due to the size and weight of the bottle alone !”

Unfortunately, neither Jay-Z’s wife, Beyonce Knowles, nor Kanye, who collaborated on the album could appear at the party and therefore enjoy the lovely bubbly as the former was performing in New York and the latter was out of the country.

I don’t know if this is the highest tip ever left at a restaurant but other celebrities have similarly shown their gratitude in the form of a generous tip. Earlier this year, Johnny Depp thrilled staff at a British pub when he left $1,150 in tips, and in February actor Brendan Fraser left a $60 tip after getting a $16 pedicure!

Jessica Simpson is also known for her generosity, leaving a $300 tip for the $500 bill at New York Italian restaurant Lavo, accompanied by a note to her waitress, which read: “You were amazing and make this world a better place, Love Jess.” I wonder what the waitress thought when she was handed that at the end of her shift?

 A tip or gratuity (according to Wikipedia) is a voluntary extra payment in addition to the advertised price of a transaction and that such payments and their size are a matter of social custom and are made at the discretion of the patron. In a restaurant environment, good customer service is often rewarded with a small gratuity. Throughout the course of the meal, a relationship has been formed and hopefully the customer will leave very happy indeed. This will hopefully result in positive feedback about the restaurant to others, who may then want to try it for themselves and in their turn become repeat customers.

In our experience at Pizza Express on that afternoon, we felt that failing to give an adequate tip when one was clearly expected may have been considered miserly. Yet the customer service wasn’t great and that is what I would have expected to leave a tip for. I don’t know what your own experiences are but it is interesting isn’t it I mean, I always leave a generous tip where I feel that the service has been considered and attentive but when a tip is just expected or taken for granted I feel compelled not to leave one.  If that seems unethical or a faux pas then I will have to accept that because then again, I’m not Jay Z am I? Oh, and by the way, Champagne is my favourite tipple….not that I have ever sampled what I am sure are the delights of a bottle of Armand de Brignac….. nor am I ever likely to I suspect!!

My work experience at Happy Creative

We had an apprentice in the office last week and, before he left, he wrote a piece for our blog about his experience. Check it out below… (by the way, Reece, a 15 year-old student, is a great and talented guy, an absolute pleasure to work with and yesterday we received a lovely parcel of cupcakes from him as a present! Awww…)

 

My name is Reece, I am from Carr Hill High school and I have just spent a week at Happy Creative for my work experience. When I first arrived at Happy, I didn’t know what to expect. However, I did learn that the people who work there are exactly what the label says on the box: Happy! The awkwardness that I thought I would encounter for the first few days did not occur as everyone is extremely nice, friendly and helpful.

I did not realise how different Happy were to other marketing companies, as my stereotypical thoughts on businesses, in general, were that they were plain boring, but a great atmosphere surrounds Happy, that shows many unique ideas: ones that I did not expect marketing companies to have. Happy use unique tools  to introduce the company, the Happy Team, and their achievements to prospective clients, which I found very different and clever.

Since my arrival, I have been given many different tasks such as looking at other design and marketing companies and seeing what makes Happy Creative unique as well as doing research for and taking part in two Happy Storms. I have also looked over client briefs for recent Happy projects and given some of my own input. I have luckily been able to study and write pieces of journalism, this report of my week here being one, as well as designing logos and the putting together of some ideas for a magazine task.

I have thoroughly enjoyed my week spent here at Happy Creative, which has left me with a lot of experience of the work environment but I can say with full confidence, my time here has been Happy!

Have yourself a ‘Happy’ Christmas

Thanks to our very talented designer Tom.  Here is a specially commissioned Christmas message for you all… have a very Happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year.  Whatever you do, make it Happy!

The Year Ahead: A client view

With 2011 rapidly approaching we asked some Happy Creative customers about their views of the upcoming year and some top tips for the year ahead.

Teresa Deeney, Head of Marketing – Napthens LLP

Here at Napthens Solicitors we are looking forward to the year ahead.  It is looking very positive.

Our focus in 2011 will be on making sure we have a solid business strategy in place to take us forward over the next few years. 

We’ll be working closely with our clients – both businesses and individuals - to ensure we provide excellent service standards, and also identify what we must do to meet future needs – new services, how we deliver our services, use of technology etc. 

So, a year of consolidation and a time to put in place the plans and infrastructure that will keep Napthens competitive and support business growth for years to come.  

Teresa Deeney is Head of Marketing at Napthens LLP, one of Lancashire’s leading solicitors.  They were recently awarded Law Firm of the Year at the Downtown Preston Lancashire Business Awards.

Ian Brookes, Visionary – DNA People

 Ten things for your agenda in 2011 for You, Your Organisation and Your Customers:

You – make a difference

• Life’s too short to go unnoticed, so do something today that makes a difference.

• Think in the now – why am I doing this? What does success look like? Chase success, not money

• Vision without execution is hallucination. Life rewards people who take action – 20% thinking, 80% doing

Your Organisation – build a breakthrough team

• Culture eats strategy, so set the bar high – create a culture of expectation

• Build velocity within your people – go for energisers and lose the energy sappers

• Avoid organisational anorexia – focus on milestones, avoid millstones and tombstones

Your customers – shock ‘em, in the nicest possible way

• Live in your customer’s world, sit their side of the table

• E-marketing – engage, experience, enhance, emotion

• Delight your customers – rise to the occasion, always be there for them

Motto for 2011

The difference between the competition and me….is Me

 Ian Brookes is the founder of DNA People, a business that provides thought provoking coaching and consulting services to energise individual, team and organisation growth aspirations and performances.

About Us

Hello and welcome to Happy Creative.

Here at Happy we genuinely love what we do, and we’d love to do it for you.

Now we may be lovely people (other people’s opinion, honest) but we’re also smart enough to know that you need to make the most out of every penny in your marketing budget.

And that’s when we’ll really make you smile.

As an integrated creative and marketing agency we follow a very simple formula – producing brilliant creative communications – on brief, on budget and on time.

But that’s just what we do. What really makes our clients smile is the way we do it.

From our North West base in Blackpool, we’ve produced successful campaigns for the public and private sectors, international corporations, national companies, SMEs and new business start ups. For all these clients we’ve always delivered outstanding results with a keen eye on cost control, and an enthusiasm that makes working with us a real pleasure.

Give us a call, or drop us an email. we’d love to hear from you.

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