Block Club Creative

Block Club’s 2011 Media Kit and Creative Services guide

When it came time to create our 2011-’12 media kit and creative services guide, it was important that they convey all of the excitement happening at Block Club, as well as a stronger identity across our brand. When Block Club began, we were a publishing company that put out a bi-monthly magazine. Since then, we’ve become a creative design and marketing company that publishes a magazine and a few other supplemental publications. We’re changing the magazine––shifting from bi-monthly to quarterly publishing, growing an inch in each dimension, printing on premium FSC-certified matte stock, and switching to perfect binding. Our company is getting busier by the month. We’re making these changes in order to produce a better magazine, and to allow for better use of our time for the creative business.

We couldn’t have been more excited when our media kits and [...]

Merge menu gets a facelift

Merge is one of Buffalo’s more eccentric and lively restaurants. If you haven’t been, it’s worth a visit for one of their vegetarian/vegan/raw/gluten-free-friendly meals (there’s food for you omnivores, too). The guiding principle behind Merge is the incorporation of different nutritional lifestyles on the same menu, a place where meat-eaters and plant-eaters can merge and enjoy a fantastic meal in a comfortable, artistic surrounding.

We created a new menu that provides educational information on the vegetarian, vegan and raw diets, and a legend that indicates which dishes are appropriate for which diet. On the back of the menus––printed on 11×17” paper so that owners could print duplicates themselves––are fun games and space for doodling. Where Merge’s previous menus were laminated, reused but ultimately discarded, and where they had space for diners to draw and doodle on disposable place mats, now the [...]

Block Club Magazine

For Block Club Magazine’s fourth annual Holiday Issue, we went shopping. This year’s issue shares with readers what’s on the wish lists of Block Club’s five-person team––retail gifts, classes and lessons, trips to local places and other experiences. To create a visual theme that would fit the issue, Courtney designed five original patterns that were reminiscent of a holiday motif and color palette. One pattern had things on our wish lists, arranged in a fun typographical grid.

For our cover shoot, we printed that out on a large sheet of paper, wrapped a small gift box in it like wrapping paper, and photographed it on a matching background. Additionally, readers can download desktop wallpaper versions of the five images and enjoy the Holiday Issue in the comfort of their own computer screen.

Find a copy of Block Club Magazine at one of [...]

Friending Arnold on Facebook

When the office of Student Affairs at the University at Buffalo contacted us for social media marketing solutions, we explored a number of options for their needs. Student Affairs, which has its feet in many doors on UB’s North and South campuses, wanted a way to direct undergraduate students to a Facebook page, providing a one-stop portal for the various programs and offerings on campus.

We customized a Facebook page for the annual Distinguished Speaker Series, where students could join and find ticket giveaways, trivia contests about speakers (like the Governator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who comes to UB on Jan. 27, 2011), and other helpful information. By speaking to the target audience in a venue and language they already understand, Student Affairs is able to remove the barriers of traditional marketing solutions and go right to the source. Now, students can [...]

Knoer Group website

At first glance, the website for Knoer Group is straightforward: an informational site for a law firm that specializes in environmental law, and all the corresponding services of a legal practice. The site presents a great deal of text and few images, yet still needs to be dynamic and engaging.

By employing a classic visual style with a geometric pattern in light gray, and highlights in hunter green, the site is clean, sophisticated, tailored for their clients and customers, and in tune with what the law firm has built its loyalty and base on. It offers a refreshed look for the firm without compromising its standards or stature.

The firm’s legal practices and offerings are organized in a simple and easy-to-find manner, as is information on the firm’s partners, publications and events. Keeping your information organized and concise is imperative, even [...]

It’s Amore: 37signals

It’s a sunny Friday in Buffalo and we’re jamming out to the “spring cleaning” play list on Stereomood. It’s not spring and we’re definitely not cleaning, but the music is perfect for today.

The only thing cooler than this music is the interview I just had with Matt from 37signals. I seriously love what these guys do. Is it possible to have a bromance with another company? Anyway, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the company, you need to check it out. If you’ve ever been unorganized, forgotten someone’s phone number, or like me, are regularly drowning in a sea of Post-it notes while trying to remember contacts, who to email when and getting work done for clients, 37signals is the company for you. They make really sweet web apps to help people get things done.

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Block Club: We’re big [...]

Cool Stuff We’re Working On Right Now

We’ve pretty much wrapped up the Elmwood Village Map & Guide for 2010/2011. This is our third time working on the project and we’ve decided to change it up a bit. We’re hoping that the large map and street guide can be used as a wayfinding system for the street. It will probably need a few minor tweaks before that happens. I’m digging this format a lot more than the last format. Should be on the streets in a couple of weeks.

Video Interview: Social Media and Buffalo Businesses

At the end of our social media seminar, we highlighted four Buffalo, NY business that effectively use social media to market themselves. Emily Burns of Freed Maxick, Adam Wilson of Celebrate Buffalo, Becky Gandour of Elmwood Village Association and Rich and Alyssa Mattingly of Nickel City Studios kindly answered a bunch of questions we prepared for them. They all gave great suggestions and tips. The most resounding messages were be yourself and build relationships. If you were at the seminar, you’ll remember that the word of the day was, yep, you guessed it, relationships. Enjoy the video!

Video Interview with Helen Min of Facebook

A few weeks ago when I was prepping for Block Club’s social media seminar, I figured it would be best to talk to our friends at Facebook to determine the best ways for small businesses to market themselves on the platform. We called up Helen Min, a longtime friend of Brandon and native Buffalonian and Helen was more than happy to help. She recorded video responses to questions that we emailed her while she was overseas working out of the Facebook office in Dublin, Ireland. Thanks for your help, Helen!

Signup for a free MailChimp account!

If you were just at Social Media & Your Business, you heard me talk a lot about email marketing and building relationships with your customers. We always use MailChimp to communicate with our customers and clients and can’t stop talking about it. Check out my interview with Ben Chestnut, co-founder and CEO of MailChimp, by clicking here.

If you’re interested in using effective email marketing, click here to signup with MailChimp for free. Yes, some things in life are still free and if you have fewer than 500 subscribers, MailChimp is one of them.

If you need help getting started, or want a custom designed email marketing template, get in touch with Block Club by email Patrick (at) blockclubonline.com or call us at 716.507.4474.