As we Speak

Since their humble beginnings way back in 1994, QR codes have evolved into a marketing tool that’s become immediately recognizable by the masses. And they don’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon, either. Exploding in popularity during the Covid 19 pandemic as a hands free, paper free way to view menus, handouts, flyers, and more, they’ve solidified themselves as a great tool for driving action.   In fact, when used well in marketing, they’ve prove... Read More

With the holidays approaching fast, how are you preparing? Are you the kind to put your Christmas tree up the moment Halloween is over, or are you decorating and doing all your shopping the week before Christmas? However you swing it, between decorating and shopping and coordinating family get-togethers, it's easy to become completely swept up by everything you need to do OOO between November and the end of the year. But don't forget, the second half of Q4 is your final stretch t... Read More

Marketing Vocabulary For Beginners If you’re just beginning your adventure into marketing, welcome!  Practically every business needs some form of marketing, digital or otherwise.  Especially within the last year, business owners large and small have discovered that the need for a digital presence is essential to their company’s survival.  Marketing is about meeting your customers where they are and getting in front of the eyes that are most likely to act on your b... Read More

Leadership requires exceptional decision-making skills. But in the life of a marketer – who on any given day is having to keep tabs on dozens of channels, tactics, analytics, and audiences to name just a few – it can be easy to fall into a ready-fire-aim approach to decision making. Or if you’re Top Gun’s Maverick, don’t think, just do.  Urgency, pressure, complexity, resource limitations, and incomplete and/or conflicting information can easily influence ... Read More

This summer, I celebrated my 7th "Speakiversary," our team's endearing term for work anniversaries.    According to Google, the traditional gifts for a 7th anniversary are copper and wool. If I were Oprah, I’d be announcing that you’re all going home with hoards of pennies and pet sheep. Unfortunately I couldn’t make that happen, so instead I’m sharing 7 of my top takeaways from my first 7 years at Speak Creative. ... Read More

Speak has been in the biz for over 20 years, so we’ve seen our fair share of branded swag. Employee swag, client gifts, and outreach gifts featuring a company’s logo and/or branding are all relatively common for organizations to dole out. But often, these gifts earn the reputation of being poorly made, unuseful, or boring.  As a growing company ourselves, we’ve learned the ins and outs of branded gifts and freebies, and, as an agency that specializes in branding and ma... Read More

What is ADA Compliance for your website? Online accessibility is a topic that many organizations are eager to tackle, but it’s easy to get wrapped up in the details of it all. Making your website ADA Compliant means that it passes a number of tests for accessibility, and allows differently-abled users to access your content with ease. The criteria for these tests are called Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, and they cover a number of technical details like: Color contrast for i... Read More

If you have an interest in business development, entrepreneurship, and/or marketing, chances are, you’ve tuned into ABC’s Shark Tank at some point in the last decade. For years Shark Tank has captivated viewers as they showcase entrepreneurs vying for an opportunity to grow their business with the help of an investing “Shark.” Entering as small start-ups with some early success, businesses share their heartwarming stories of humble beginnings, noble causes, false star... Read More

For many new organizations, deciding on branding—that is, the overall look and feel of your business—is one of the first choices made. However, as businesses (from small businesses all the way up to international corporations) become more established and develop a stronger consumer perception and place within their community, the case often becomes that these early branding decisions ultimately don’t represent the brand as well as they could. But how do you know when your ... Read More

The value of great storytelling goes far beyond entertainment and, well, telling a story. There’s plenty of research that shows consumers like to feel a human connection to the companies with which they align. Connecting to human emotion on any side can help build trust and get away from the perception of only caring about pushing sales, sales, and more sales. Of course, everything a company does in its marketing efforts is to generate success in sales and improve brand reput... Read More

Mobile-first website design has become a bit of a buzzword in the design space recently. When we consider whether a website is good or bad, one of the first things we look at is whether it is designed with mobile in mind. But what does this really mean? Today, we’re talking about how to determine whether your website prioritizes optimization for mobile screens, and why not doing so is no longer an option.   What is Mobile-First Design?  In a world where the vast ma... Read More

  If you're anything like me, and much of the Speak team, you're pumped for the Olympics.   The delay of the 2020 Olympics as a result of the pandemic was understandable but still disappointing. On the flip side, I can’t say I’m mad that now we're getting back-to-back summer and winter events.   The marketing landscape during the Olympics is like an international version of the Super Bowl. High viewership is expected, and our screens are... Read More

If you’ve been in the marketing world for any amount of time, you’ve surely heard preached the importance of having a strong and identifiable brand. It sounds so simple, but it goes way beyond the name you attach to an organization. So what does it really mean for a company, an agency, or any business with an outward presence to have a brand? This blog post will walk you through three easy steps to identifying the market you’re trying to reach and the brand personality that ... Read More

Are you familiar with the Diffusion of Innovation Model? If that title doesn’t ring a bell, you’ve probably heard about the concept, which categorizes the adoption rates of technology into 5 groups: Innovator, Early Adopter, Early Majority, Late Majority, and Laggard. Your adoption style doesn't only affect your own experiences and internal operations, but it also impacts the quality of your users’ experiences and the pace of your audience growth. When you recogni... Read More

Last month, there was a wildly popular NYT article floating around the internet about languish. The article talks about how many of us are feeling a collective emotion that isn’t quite burning out because we still have energy, but it’s not depression because we don’t feel hopeless. Really we are all feeling a bit ‘meh’ which is synonymous with feelings of languish.  via GIPHY It’s important as an employer, manager, or even as an employee to know how... Read More

I remember when I spent my days doing endless research, packing swag boxes, and various projects that were thrown my way. Just kidding, that’s still what I do. I graduated in December 2019 from the University of Tennessee and joined Speak as a Marketing and Business Development Coordinator shortly after.  If you are in a marketing coordinator or entry-level role, you might find yourself googling all the things that you don't know to keep your head above water. I felt like... Read More

What’s in an emoji? My life as an emoji - 📚☕️🐱  I think that covers it. What’s in an emoji? That which we call a 🌹 by any other name would smell as sweet. That’s the saying, right? Ok maybe not quite, but you get the gist.  But back to emojis. They really are pretty amazing if you think about it. The ability to communicate (and truly understand) across cultural barriers, the ability to share nuance or a reaction without photo or video, or having to type &ldq... Read More

Want to maximize your productivity? Revamp your morning routine. Productivity in 2020 is a topic we’d all probably prefer to avoid discussing. When life gives you lemons, productivity can take a hit, and as many people learned in 2020, working from home isn’t always as easy as it seems.  Whether you’re still trying to find a new normal working from home, or adjusting to a new normal being back in the office, a new and energizing approach to productivity and work may j... Read More

Taylor Swift told us we could leave the Christmas lights up until January, so we did. However, now the Christmas lights have been put away and another year is in full swing. The end of the year and the beginning of the next is when many organizations, including Speak, set aside time to reflect. We’re all reflecting on where we succeeded, where we came up short, where we pivoted, and where we are headed.  On a personal note, I majorly succeeded in my goal to spend less on concert t... Read More

If you’ve ever struggled to bring an idea to life, welcome to the club. Getting stuck in a creative rut is a rite of passage for most of us. It’s the rock bottom of the creative process where we sit — unhappily questioning our abilities and wallowing in self-doubt — until we remember that we are, in fact, great at what we do. Not only that, but we’ve yet to meet another person who hasn’t felt frustrated or overwhelmed by the creative process.  Ideatio... Read More