There have been a lot of new hires and promotions at Karsh\Hagan recently. The account team has been great about updating the blog with news about hiring Lindsay and Amy. In creative, we’ve been less diligent. Here’s a quick run down of the news.

Becky Ferguson, who was our ACD, was promoted to CD/Broadcast & Video.

Charlotte Isoline joined us as Creative Strategist. She was at McClain Finlon before this. Here’s a link to her LinkedIn profile.

We hired Hugo Meyer as a senior designer. He comes to Karsh\Hagan after several years at agencies such as The Richards Group and McClain Finlon.

And finally junior art director Brian Suter, who came to our attention due to his outstanding work in the NDAC’s Next Creatives program, and senior writer Kathryn Bass are both freelancing here full-time for the next three months.

Hopefully we’ll post some more information about these folks soon. Right now, we’re just happy to have them.

Thanks…

At the beginning of Thanksgiving week, even though this has been a tough year, we are thankful for all we have.  We need to remember that this is the USA and we all need to get our “mojo” back.  We have a lot.  We give a lot.  Let’s look forward.  As the bumper sticker I saw this morning says…”bark less, wag more.”

- Pasquale (Pocky) Marranzino
Chairman/CEO

While you’re sitting at your desk this evening… on that wonderful chair of yours… pondering the events of the day, have a look at this video from Wallpaper magazine….

Here at Karsh\Hagan, we have been promoting ourselves and our clients through social media more and more. We are using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, YouTube, and Flickr. Therefore, this article resonated very well with us. We hope you enjoy it as well!

A big question out there these days is: What is the ROI of Social Media? Or the ever popular how do I measure the ROI of social media?  Often when I get this question it’s appropriate for me to retort: “What’s the ROI of your phone?”  Other times it’s not appropriate to respond with this answer, which, if done in the wrong tone, or place, can win you a free punch in the face.  Then there are the naysayers that adamantly proclaim, “We aren’t doing social media because there isn’t any ROI.”

Matt Nasi and the Wolfpack

We thought we’d drop a line telling you about a rockin’ (softly) show this weekend at the Toad Tavern in Littleton. Karsh’s very own Matt Nasi and the Wolfpack (Kerry Healy and Jeff Winger) will be co-headlining the night with Melanie Susuras Band starting around 9:30pm. Tickets are on the long kitchen table and will get you $2 off of the staggering $5 door. That’s a recession special of $3 and reasonably priced beverages. It’s a big show for him and we hope you can make it out to the Burbs. Rock on!

More info at myspace.com/mattnasi or a toadtavern.com

in⋅te⋅grat⋅ed

1. combining or coordinating separate elements of marketing communications so as to provide a harmonious, interrelated whole: an integrated ad campaign.

2. organized or structured so that constituent units function cooperatively: an integrated concepting session.

3. having, including, or serving members of different racial, religious, and ethnic groups as equals: an integrated multi-lingual ad campaign.

4. Sociology. of or pertaining to a group or society whose members interact on the basis of commonly held norms or values, as in our staff, and we actually like working together.

5. Psychology. characterized by integration and a way of thinking.

We at Karsh are integrated.  From the way we think, to how we act, to where we sit in the agency.  By combining all disparate parts, we are as one.

A quick snap from today’s video shoot for American Crew.

Just once…

I want to be able to enjoy a magazine, web article, TV program, or event without constantly analyzing the advertising media placement.  I can only wonder what it’s like to be the average consumer who sees advertising without the filter of a discriminating media professional.  As a media person, who plans and buys media for a living, my job defines how I view the world.  And at times, that can be very frustrating and distracting.

I can’t read a magazine without analyzing which advertisers have full pages vs. spreads, or which ones have placements far forward or near relevant edit (a food advertiser in the recipe section).

I was at a recent Bronco’s game and lost concentration on the play because I was so busy looking at the LED signage around the stadium and marveling at how many food/restaurant advertisers were paying sponsorship fees only to have their messages diluted by competitive clutter (I remember McDonald’s and Red Robin, but there were at least 3-4 others running back-to-back that escape my memory).

I go nuts when I see a bad outdoor buy obviously made by an out-of-town agency that doesn’t know the market or didn’t map out the locations.  Recently I chuckled to myself when I saw two Charles Schwab billboards on opposite corners facing one another.  (The chuckle was primarily because Schwab’s competitor TD Ameritrade is our client!)  The best was when I saw several Spanish language boards from the same national advertiser in a non-Hispanic neighborhood. 

If two competitive ads run in the same radio or TV pod, I’m half-way tempted to call the station and request a make good on behalf of the advertiser, even if it’s not my client!  That’s how programmed I am to analyze every ad I see.

I’m sure this phenomenon is true for other professions as well, both in the ad business and beyond.  Our production manager probably cringes when she sees a bad printing job, and I’m sure our art director critiques bad layouts and our copywriter poor writing each and every day.  If I were in the hospitality or food industry, I’m sure I would analyze every aspect of my stay in a hotel or meal in a restaurant.  Perhaps if I were an actor, I would not be able to enjoy movies for movies’ sake.  Or it would be the same if I were a musician, author, speaker, teacher, chef, doctor, politician….the list goes on.

After 20 years in the business, I suppose I am stuck being the critic.  But that doesn’t keep me from wishing I could be an average consumer – marveling at the sheer creativity of my favorite brands instead of worrying about whether the ad ran in the “first 20% of the book” or “above the fold.”

TRACY BRODERICK
VP \ Audience Planning

I am an intern here at Karsh\Hagan on the Account Services side and my time here is about halfway through. To anyone reading this, I would always suggest some sort of internship if you’re looking for experience. That is exactly what you are going to get here at Karsh\Hagan; the experience you need to both decide on which career path you want to take and how you want to get there. Don’t get me wrong, I loved school and felt that I had some truly great classes with great professors who brought both real world experience and great enthusiasm to the mix. However, I soon found that there is no substitute for the real deal, and Karsh\Hagan is the real deal. Here, as opposed to other places, they have a dedicated intern program which aids you in learning about agency processes. As well, they definitely keep you busy, which is a good thing, with the number of clients and projects they have. I have found in between brainstorm sessions, ping pong matches and tear sheet quality reviews this place has been an amazing experience.

- Blake Katchur

Got Specs?

You’re flipping through a magazine and out falls a mini booklet promoting a new fragrance. Your shampoo comes in a bottle that changes color with the light. You know that an artist somewhere had the vision to create that booklet or bottle, but how did it get from an idea in the art director’s head to a tangible reality?

The road between concept and completion is called Production. Your production department is all about the details - we are thinking about trims and bleeds, paper absorbency, glossy vs. matte finishes. We work closely with the designer and under the tight reins of a budget, always trying to get the biggest bang for the smallest buck. A lot of this is research. It’s not the most glamorous job at the agency, but it might be the most fun! New techniques are always evolving and the art directors are constantly pushing the envelope.

Consider that mini booklet on fragrance. On the surface it seems easy enough, print a little book and send to the magazine to insert into their pages. But that little booklet needs to be a specific size or the magazine’s automated inserting machinery will not be able to pick it up – it’s production’s job to know that. And the art director wants to print on a designer sheet of paper that feels like suede, but that’s way out of budget – instead we’ll print that tactile effect using a soft-touch aqueous coating over the whole piece. What about printing the scent of the fragrance on the piece, can we afford that? Maybe, but only if we stick to 2-color printing. These are the kinds of options that Production will offer the art directors and clients to ultimately produce a beautiful portfolio piece that is within budget.

Here at Karsh, production is not only concerned with the printed piece. We also spend lots of time tracking down what is commonly referred to as “schwag”. You know the items; keychains, t-shirts, flash drives, water bottles… all with the client’s logo prominently displayed. And we don’t stop there – did you ever consider what it takes to wrap a building? Or a bus or train? And what about that shampoo bottle that changes color with the light? These are things that production will figure out. Basically, if the art director can dream it, we can make it happen!

Karen Heydman
Director of Production Services

Tom Morello once said that his musical inspiration was a horse. Not sure what that means. My inspiration is Wonderpets. But I digress.

Seeking influences from outside your industry is a good thing. It prevents reflexivity and tunnel vision. It’s not that you shouldn’t be reading The Denver Egotist and AdFreak. You should. And here are a few other publications that might influence your work in ways you can’t predict:

infosthetics.com: In modern communication, Information design is as creative and important as graphic design or art direction. This blog highlights some of the coolest and most creative ways to visualize the data points that make up our world.

Various style blogs: Working on American Crew, most of us at Karsh\Hagan try to keep up with fashion. The Sartorialist, Streetpeeper, Selectism and Street Etiquette are a few blogs that have developed a following. Trendsetters reveal themselves through their clothing, and seeing their styles gives us insight on how to speak their language.

wired.com/underwire: According to Gareth, more Americans played a video game in the last six month than went to the movies. The Underwire is Wired’s blog about both games and movies, plus everything else that influences geek-pop culture.

creativesocialblog.com: Increasingly, and especially in digital, the power of an idea isn’t defined by how many consumers might see it, but by how many consumers pass it around, mash it up, and make it their own. Creative Social is a survey of that type of work.

wallpaper.com: Architecture one of the loudest and most lasting expressions of culture. This blog puts it in the context of design and fashion, linking humanity with the spaces we build ourselves.

[Ed. - Matt Ingwalson wrote this post for Karsh Connect and cross-posted it to his blog.

How to be different.

“As consumers become savvier, and traditional media becomes more and more cluttered, brands are faced with unprecedented challenges: How do they stand out from the crowd?” Makes you think differently, doesn’t it.

For the last three months, I have been working as the Receptionist with Karsh\Hagan. I feel so fortunate to be surrounded by such creative people who work hard and also know how to have a good time. Between welcoming visitors to our agency, assisting with various projects and having designers whiz by my desk on their scooters, I have yet to find myself bored. I am so thrilled to be part of the Karsh family and I look forward to growing with the company over the years.

Erin Gonshor

Innovation in package design from Japan.

We know this is a few years old, but it is still a great idea.  Japanese farmers came up with the concept to save space by growing watermelons in square containers.  The concept has been around for about 30 years, but the cost is triple than a normal watermelon so it has not made it to the mainstream - but we say when you have a good idea, why not get it out there.  If anything they look great and can spark new thinking for conventional product and package design.

Karsh\Hagan is pleased to announce that Amy Sievertsen has joined their team as Account Supervisor.

Sievertsen graduated from the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in Business Administration focused on Marketing.  After graduation, she joined Renzios, Inc. and The Bradford Exchange.

Her knowledge of public relations and marketing led her back to Colorado, joining McClain Finlon Advertising, where Sievertsen spent 5 years as a lead marketing strategist and client contact and on the agency’s largest account.

“I am very excited to be returning to the advertising industry after a two-year break as a stay-at-home mom” says Sievertsen. “Karsh and Hagan is such a great place to be now, especially with the solid client partnerships that continues to grow. We really are able to help them with our full-service capabilities, including a serious focus on digital brand integration.”

About Karsh\Hagan

In 1977, Phil Karsh and Tom Hagan founded Karsh\Hagan on the love of a great idea - to build their clients’ businesses.  After 32 years, that’s what keeps us hungry today.  The agency provides branding, on/offline marketing communications and innovative business building ideas.  Their ability to genuinely connect brands with their audiences is what has made Karsh\Hagan successful.  Key clients include: American Crew, Pinnacle Bank, www.tdameritrade.com, Visit Denver, Western Union and others.  2008 agency billings were $35 million. For more information, visit www.karsh.com.