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Recession? What Recession?

September 3rd, 2008

With all the doom and gloom about the state of the economy you could be fooled in to thinking that the UK was going into a recession and that consumers are cutting back on their spending.

That’s not what the big brands think.

Marketing Magazine reports today that Ralph Lauren is launching a “super premium” perfume in October that will retail for around £2,000 a bottle! The frgrance will be called Love and will come in a gold plated bottle and is aimed at the affluent over 25 female.

The super-premium perfume launch will be at Harrods and Ralph Lauren are likely to follow this with the UK launch of its Notorious fragrance

Notorious by Ralph Lauren

Notorious by Ralph Lauren

Antny Rankin, Senior Marketing and Product Manager at Ralph Lauren says that the company is increasing its media spend by 150% to launch both brands. In particular they are claiming to have developed  “an innovative media strategy” for Notorious including infusing the November issue of Marie Claire with the fragrance.

The company are also including  magazine and TV advertising (starring French model Laetitia Casta) to the marketing mix as well as a red button campaign on ITV which will allow interactive viewers to order samples.

Ralph Lauren which started over 40 years ago with a collection of ties has grown into a global brand  that includes product lines for the home, men, women, children, babies and even dogs! They are hoping that the the two fragrance launches will account for 60% of sales during the Christmas period.

Jason Edge

Monkey Business

August 15th, 2008

When someone says Olympics you don’t usually think of monkeys; unless you’re Damon Albarn that is. In a shock move away from the usual rock music/sporting montage, the BBC commissioned him and his Gorillaz collaborator Jamie Hewlett (also the creator of Tank Girl) to produce a figurehead for this year’s Olympic coverage.

The result is a theme and series of cartoons which showcase the events of the games using characters from one of China’s most famous novels - Journey to the West - published in 1590. Monkey’s story is familiar to some from the cult 1970’s series Monkey Magic. This bizarre Japanese featured Monkey along with sidekicks Sandy (a water monster) and Pigsy (a pig monster) undertaking an epic journey from East to West.

In these new cartoons our heroes use their magic and some of the different Olympic disciplines to aid their return to the east.I have to admit to some misgivings when someone told me about this monkey but having seen several of the cartoons I’m impressed. I love watching sport and especially the Olympics but between events I’d much rather watch these cartoons than listen to the inane banter between the presenters and commentators. I know that they’re paid to talk for a living but someone should remind them that “brevity is the soul of wit”.

And on that note it’s time for me to go but what I really wanted to say is that I like these cartoons. It’s time they tried something new for these big sporting events. I just hope that Seb Coe has Damon and Jamie on speed dial for 2012.


Liz Barr

Celebrity Endorsements

August 7th, 2008

I tuned into one of my favourite radio stations this morning, catching an advertisement featuring a celebrity voice over. It caught my attention as I recognised the voice and it made me think of other companies which have employed well-known personalities to feature in marketing campaigns.

Popular, clean living stars are often requested to make store appearances, work as brand spokespeople and wear certain labels. Some big names have been used by retail giants to boost sales or revamp a tired corporate image.

Marks and Spencers include Twiggy and Myleen Klass in advertising campaigns. Celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver, is the face of Sainsbury’s and Tesco feature well-known personalities to voice advertisements. Other celebrities who have been involved with marketing campaigns include

James Nesbit - Yellow Pages
Lenny Henry - Premier Inns
Jeremy Spake - Euronics
Richard Hammond - Morissons
Nintendo DS - Zoe Ball and Jonny Ball
David Beckham - PEPSI

Celebrity endorsements come at a cost and companies will choose a celebrity who best fits their brand - taking into consideration the personalities public image, behaviour and taste.

If your budget doesn’t stretch to Beckham, it could be worth considering a local sports personality to promote your brand. A local celeb could help you tap into a new market, generate media interest and ultimately boost business for your company.

Due to celebrities being in such high demand, it is really hard to pin them down. Nexus has a good relationship with many celebrity bookers and can help find a suitable personality to work with your brand.

Claire Lodge

Why Use An Agency?

July 21st, 2008

Take the legwork out of your purchasing?

With so many companies cutting back on staff and downsizing their dedicated purchasing departments, it leaves less time for getting the best prices for a particular project. It’s surprising just how many valuable hours are lost wading through Yellow Pages or trawling through the pages of Google or Yell.com in order to find a suitable supplier.  Indeed, if the project is one of a specialist nature, there is often a need to spend costly hours researching products before you even get to the supplier search.

Just a few ways that an agency like Nexus can help.

We have many years of experience in the industry and a large portfolio of “trade only” printers and manufacturers with whom we have excellent longstanding relationships. From the everyday print requirements of any office, such as business cards, letterheads and compliment slips, to specialist print such as personalised security printing (cheques, gift vouchers etc.), continuous stationery and exhibition graphics - solutions to name but a few… we can even supply bespoke wallpaper!!!

Your agency should have a dedicated team to source whatever you need for your marketing and find the most cost effective way of producing it, including the project management, leaving you free to concentrate on your core business.

Once a job has been sent to a supplier this is often when the trauma begins. Artwork issues, changes to specification and proofs. Forget all that!

Your agency should handle the lot. They should be able to design and create artwork for you if required or check your own artwork before it goes off to be printed so that the project runs smoothly from start to finish.

What about the cost?

As you would expect, an agency has to charge something for providing this service but it needn’t be a large premium. Our customers simply wouldn’t tolerate high prices. In fact, often our buying power is so great that our customers can’t cheaper than Nexus, even including our management charge!

It doesn’t just stop there…..

When you need to advertise a project or job vacancy, use an agency to get you the best deal available using their expertise to promote your product or company and it won’t cost you a penny more for the ad than if you went directly to the media! It’s not often in this day and age that you can get something for nothing! If you don’t have your own artwork, an agency will have a dedicated design team that can provide you with some very creative ways to advertise your product. For peace of mind make sure that the agency you choose are members of The Newspaper Society.

And there’s more…..

How many times have you asked for prices on a print job and thought that if only you had the storage facilities you could have ordered much larger quantities to take advantage of a more favourable price?.  Well we can help you with this by offering you a storage and delivery solution. You just order your print, we store it and send it to you on an as and when basis. This can be done via a central purchasing department or separate departments, and you can even order a year’s worth of supplies at a time. You have now saved precious storage space, time and money.

There are many other ways that Nexus can help you stretch your budget and increase your market awareness. We are only a telephone call away and you will be pleasantly surprised at the benefits of using an agency as opposed to separate print suppliers, advertisers and designers.

Mike Sturt

Searching for inspiration?

July 11th, 2008

Staring at a blank computer screen for inspiration to a design brief?

Often it is forgotten that the computer is a tool used to execute your creation. The end result will only ever be as good as the idea itself it won’t matter how many PhotoShop filters you throw at the design!

It is so easy to get trapped by the limitations of the applications and settle for working within their restraints.

Before you pick up a mouse try picking up a pen and layout pad. There are no restraints and you can let your imagination run riot. You can plan the design as YOU want it to look not how your computer or the web dictates it should look.

Sketch & Mock-Up

Crossing over and drawing inspiration from other sources will always produce fresh vibrant results. Drawing, reading, photography, music and films among others all have something to offer.

Be resourceful, If you need an image and are having trouble finding one online then pick up a camera and get that shot. Again don’t let the computer be your sole resource.

Computers, their software and the web undoubtedly make life a lot easier but sometimes you just have to put down that mouse leave your desk and find your solution somewhere else.

Happy hunting!

James Morrison