As promised here are a few more photos of our new studio space.  We feel very at home already!

It’s with great excitement we can announce that we have moved to our new studio, a stone’s throw from Ascot Racecourse.  The creative space draws inspiration from our work in brand experience and features a host of fun & interesting areas to keep creative thoughts & ideas flowing.   We moved the week of Royal Ascot & having fun at the races took precedence, so we still have the finishing touches to make; we'll reveal more soon.

Come visit soon, the bar is stocked, the coffee machine tamed and the jukebox on!  Also, someone needs to knock AM, Anna Stennett, off the top of the Ping Pong league….please!

QR codes have proven to be a good way to allow consumers to access content.  They have been widely adopted within integrated campaigns as a means to enter a promotion, visit a URL or download information and freebies. This is great in principle but the reality is that, for many people, the user experience is very clunky.   Firstly, you need to have downloaded a QR code reading app and then take a clear picture of the printed code and only then can you start to receive relevant data.  So although QR codes are functional there is a new technology being introduced which will remove the barriers: Near Field Communication (NFC).  

What is Near Field Communication NFC?

NFC facilitates the transfer of information between two NFC enabled devices, via radio communication.  It works when users bring the devices into close proximity (within 10cm).   NFC is what makes contactless card payments possible for example.  This technology is now being integrated into many new smart phones, with Apple tipped to add the technology to the iPhone 5.

How can brands take advantage of NFC?

NFC presents a massive opportunity for brands as it allows consumers to access content, share information and carry out mobile payments.   Like QR codes it is a way to expand a real world experience into a digital domain but it is a much smoother experience.  Being able to seamlessly spread a campaign across real and virtual touch-points often produces integrated experiences that have a good impact. In terms of brand experience, this makes the technology very exciting.  As NFC works without the need for extra applications it is also bound to extend engagement and reach.

How might NFC be integrated into brand experience?

As corny as it sounds “the possibilities are endless”. We can think of many different uses, including: - NFC enabled point of sale fast tracking, promotional entry or voucher download. - Friend-get-friend mechanics activated via NFC content sharing. - Real time social community building during live activations (maybe even as a condition of participation). - Brand Ambassadors with NFC enabled uniforms. - Fast track to purchase via “buy now” NFC touch-points.

Will QR codes become totally redundant?

QR codes will evolve, but we think they will eventually become redundant.  Before NFC starts to pose a real threat there are other applications that are likely to erode the use of QR codes, such as Mobile Visual Search (MSV).  MSV allows the user to take a photo of any product or logo to access content.  Its wrap-around and three-dimensional recognition capabilities are interesting, but it will be NFC which lands the fatal blow to the content accessing model pioneered by QR codes.

We have been busy this month helping to create a festival and in-bar sampling campaign for Brugal Rum, the number one Caribbean rum distributed by Maxxium UK.  The campaign launches this weekend at the Bristol Harbour Festival (29^th – 31^st July 2011). The Brugal Rum Shack will offer festival-goers the chance to sample Brugal Libre cocktails and play dominoes at a pop-up bar, built in the style of a traditional rustic bar from the Dominican Republic – the home of Brugal Rum.  The pop-up experience, designed by BEcause and built by trailer and structure specialists Mobile Technik, will also visit the Bingley Music Festival near Leeds on 2^nd – 4^th September 2011. Following each appearance of the Rum Shack, BEcause Brand Ambassadors will run 3 weeks of in-bar cocktail sampling at hand-picked venues around Bristol and Leeds.  At both the festival and bar experiences, Brand Ambassadors will chat to consumers about the Brugal Rum story, and distribute leaflets with cocktail recipes and £1 money off vouchers.  Consumers will also be invited to enter a text-to-win competition for a trip for themselves and three friends to the Brugal Carnival in the Dominican Republic in March 2012. Anna Bradshaw, Account Director at BEcause, comments: “Brugal Rum is a brand with a rich history, having been produced in the Dominican Republic since 1888.  It’s the number one rum in the Caribbean and the third largest rum brand in the world.  This two-city ‘hot-house’ campaign aims to give consumers a real flavour of Brugal Rum’s Caribbean heritage, and a fresh drink to add to their repetoires this summer.” Simon Pauffley at Mobile Technik, comments: “Our brief was to work with BEcause to create something authentic yet still premium, which was true to the essence of the brand and the Dominican Republic.  The resulting shack combines traditional materials including corrugated iron, seagrass and wood in a structure which is relatively quick and cost-effective for us to transport and rig at both events.”  

Events for bloggers can be a highly effective way for brands to identify and connect with influential online advocates.  But understanding what makes bloggers tick – and equally, what makes them sick – is crucial for success.   We look at how to kick start the right kinds of conversations, and create relevant, personalised blogger experiences. Few brands these days can afford to ignore the blogosphere.  In virtually every sector and every market, bloggers abound and many of these social-savvy bloggers will hold influence over an extensive community of followers across social networks like Facebook and Twitter.  Recent stats from Blogpulse indicate there are 163m blogs worldwide. Over 200,000 blog posts are created in a typical 24 hour period. For brands looking to engage with bloggers, it’s essential to approach things carefully.  Chances are, a small number of bloggers will be hugely influential for different brands or campaigns.  Their experiences, reactions and advice can have a massive impact – good or bad – on brand fortunes. One excellent way to kick start conversations with bloggers and build strong relationships is via live events.  Here at BEcause, we’ve created campaigns for the likes of Timberland, Eve and Perrier which have all involved getting bloggers directly involved in events.  Here are some tips for success:

1. Understand that blogger outreach is not PR

Although there are many bloggers who are journalists (or ex-journalists), many are simply people who have a passion and love to blog about it.  If a brand is inextricably linked to that passion, most bloggers will be happy to talk about that brand.  But don’t expect them to just regurgitate generic press releases.  You need to engage bloggers personally, and face-to-face interaction can be a great way to start.  Oh, and never treat bloggers as secondary citizens to journalists.  Many carry as much, or more weight with consumers these days.

2. Treat every blogger as an individual

Bloggers may fall into broad categories (eg mummy bloggers, tech bloggers, fashion bloggers etc), but that doesn’t mean they all have the same interests.  Often they have a very niche focus.  If you’re creating an event, it’s crucial to handpick blogger invitees and make individual approaches.  At best, poorly targeted invitations will just be ignored – at worst, you could find bloggers openly ridiculing an ill-thought through corporate approach.

3. Place event content above the brand

The art of a good blog event is to create conversation through experience.  Great event experiences happen when you offer people something exciting and different that they can take part in, and which taps into their passions.  When we launched female-orientated Carlsberg drink Eve last year, for example, we created fashion swapping events in Manchester and Liverpool.  National and regional fashion bloggers were invited as VIPs, and because everyone had such a positive experience, the event generated extensive buzz on blogs and social media.

4. Maintain the dialogue

Just as with any form of marketing, relationships dry up if you don’t keep the conversation flowing.  Well-conceived events can really kick-start positive relationships between brands and bloggers, but it’s important to keep finding ways to leverage those partnerships, developing long-term influential advocates.