4 tips for working with an Ad Agency

I started my career working at some of the best ad agencies in the world. Then I switched to the “client side” where I engaged numerous advertising, digital, and public relations agencies. I’ve learned a few things that enable me to help our clients hire the right agency, produce the best outcomes, and create long-lasting relationships. Unfortunately, many clients have come to Viva La Brand with stories of failed agency relationships. These failed relationships are stressful,…

30

Mar 2022

By Laura SheridanBlog

2022 Marketing Planning: 8 Tips

We’re in the thick of the planning season. Here are eight tips to enhance your marketing plan. Tip #1: Know thy customer.It’s easy to post on social media. It’s hard to deeply understand your customers to ensure you’re posting where and what they care about. It’s easy to spend money on ads. It’s hard to create a value proposition that differentiates your brand in a relevant, compelling, and meaningful way. It all starts with understanding your…

20

Nov 2021

By Laura SheridanBlog

Featured in Crain’s Cleveland Business by Laura Sheridan, President of Viva La Brand: Do’s & Don’ts of Social Media Marketing

The role of social media marketing in your business plan is important. But how do you determine what to do and how to do it? Keep these things in mind: DO work backward Why is social media part of your marketing plan? Like all business planning, start at the end by defining what success looks like. What metrics do you need to achieve for social media to be an integral part of your marketing program?…

04

Oct 2021

By Laura SheridanPress

Viva’s Blog: 6 Year-end Marketing Tips

Tip #1: Engage your marketing talent.Employers are struggling to keep their employees engaged. According to a Gallup poll, in 2020, the overall percentage of engaged workers in the US is 36%. That means 64% of workers aren’t feeling it. The takeawayThink differently. Provide your associates with opportunities to jumpstart their creative juices. How about offering employees a grocery budget for a rotating team member cooking demonstration? Have you tried playing board games virtually or staging…

15

Dec 2020

By Laura SheridanBlog

Published in Crain’s by Laura Sheridan, President of Viva La Brand: Consumers have changed how they shop, work and live; marketing must change, too.

COVID-19 has changed consumer behavior. At-home working, at-home entertainment and at-home dining have necessitated a change in shopping and buying that many analysts predict will remain for the long term. Maintaining the same marketing strategies that worked prior to the pandemic likely won’t yield the same results going forward. If you’re committed to building long-term relationships with your customers, then you must pause and ask: What can we do to ensure our brand stays relevant…

15

Nov 2020

By Laura SheridanPress

Viva’s Blog: Your customer has changed. Have you?

We’re all shifting our sights from surviving the coronavirus pandemic to charting new courses through it. Data shows that 84% of people plan to maintain the routines they adopted during COVID even after the crisis. Smart business people understand that the consumer insights they depended on when making marketing decisions pre-COVID may no longer hold true. Research on customer behavior is essential. Consider that according to research conducted by Goodques, 74% of people say that…

08

Oct 2020

By Laura SheridanBlog

Be Well Solutions Retains Brand Strategy Firm Viva La Brand

CLEVELAND, OH – July 13, 2020 – Viva La Brand, the brand & marketing strategy and ad agency search firm was selected to help Be Well Solutions provide their current and prospective clients with turnkey wellness programs. “We’re honored to work with Be Well Solutions – a company devoted to one purpose – helping employers build a resilient workforce. Our first project has been to help develop and share a Toolkit with programs to…

13

Jul 2020

By Laura SheridanPress

Viva’s Blog: Your Super Bowl Ad Cheat Sheet

Super Bowl LIV is rapidly approaching. Advertisers are hustling to finalize their multi-million dollar commercials before February 2nd’s matchup in Miami. There’s a lot to look forward to off the field. Facebook makes its first foray into the media frenzy with an ad starring Sylvester Stallone and Chris Rock, the Bloomberg and Trump campaigns are dropping $10M per spot, and Anheuser-Busch is the largest spender with four 60-second commercials. It’s a lot to track. Viva’s blog is here to…

28

Jan 2020

By Laura SheridanBlog

Cleveland Institute of Art Retains Brand Strategy Firm Viva La Brand

Cleveland-based brand & marketing strategy firm is selected to conduct brand research for CIA, the region’s premier art & design college. CLEVELAND, OH – December 3, 2019 – Viva La Brand, the brand & marketing strategy and ad agency search firm was selected to conduct a brand audit study for CIA, the premier art & design college in Cleveland, OH. “We’re honored to be working with CIA – an academic and art and design…

02

Dec 2019

By Laura SheridanPress

Viva’s Blog: 4 Marketing Lessons from Amazon Prime Day

It’s over. Just hours ago, Amazon Prime Day #5 came to a close after selling more than 175 million items, surpassing results for the past Black Friday and Cyber Monday combined. Prime Day started in 2015 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the site’s launch in July 1995. Amazon promised a one-day sales event for the site’s Prime subscribers that would be “one of the biggest deals extravaganzas in the world,” according to then vice president of…

17

Jul 2019

By Laura SheridanBlog