Willow Blog
this month's articles
connect magazine
connect magazine vol. 12 no. 3 — Brain Storm to Brand Storm
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connect magazine vol. 12 no. 2 — The Human Touch
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connect Vol. 12 #1 — Transformational: Redefining Marketing in the Age of AI
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connect Vol. 11 #4 — The Evolution: B2B Marketing Changing with the Times
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connect Vol. 11 #3 — Storytelling Secrets
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connect Vol. 11 #2 — Harnessing Big Data
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connect Vol. 11 #1 — Cracking the Code!
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connect Vol. 10 #3 — Class in Session!
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connect Vol. 10 #2 — Head on a Swivel!
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Print and the State of Customer Engagement — Direct marketing and print can effectively complement and enhance customer engagement.
read more
connect Vol. 10 #1 — Mixing it up!
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connect Vol. 9 #5 — Making Sense
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connect Vol. 9 #4 — The Age of Execution
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connect Vol. 9 #3 — I write in cursive.
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connect Vol. 9 #2 — High impact: ingredients for stimulating customer experience.
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connect Vol. 9 #1 — Act like a media company.
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connect Vol. 8 #3 — Letting go of the next big thing.
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connect Vol. 8 #2 — The invisible client: marketing to the unseen.
view the zine
connect Vol. 8 #1 — The art of boredom: Creativity thrives in the quiet.
view the zine
connect Vol. 7 #4 — Your move: Why marketing is accountable.
view the zine
connect Vol. 7 #3 — Taking the Plunge; Marketing in the New Normal; Forbes Tips for a New World
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connect Vol. 7 #2 — Reignition: Fueling Success in the New Landscape; Plus: The new tools. A look at what works and why.
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connect Vol. 7 #1 — Getting personal: delivering unique customer experiences.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 6 #2 — Lane change: the grand old art of pivoting.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 6 #1 — Embracing Risk in Marketing.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 5 #5 — Is Technology Killing Creativity? Plus Hero Work, Competency Addiction
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connect Vol. 5 #4 — The curiosity quotient; timing is everything; dare to be different.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 5 #3 — Experiential Cravings: Why CX Matters; Bottling non-conformity, B2B barriers to growth.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 5 #2 — Smarketing: new ideas on the alignment of sales and marketing.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 5 #1 — Dirty work: the art of being gritty. Plus, The future is now!
view the online zine
connect Vol. 4 #3 — Orchestrating business: an inside look at creating new business development processes.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 4 #2 — Shaping Markets: The new playbook for carving out your brand's niche.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 4 #1 — What roles and skills will be needed beyond 2020?
view the online zine
connect Vol. 3 #6 — The Great Escape; Why Your Employees Are Your Best Branding Asset; See Why Technical Marketing Skills Are On The Rise
view the online zine
connect Vol. 3 #5 — Out of Sight, Out of Mind; Blending Data; Personalized Content
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connect Vol. 3 #4 — Home Grown; How Marketing Vehicles Work; Why Your Story Matters; Leverage Your Content Marketing
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connect Vol. 3 #3 — Stoking Creativity, Fall of the Story, Mercedes-Benz, Building the Perfect Brand
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connect Vol. 3 #2 — Drilling down: market research in the modern landscape, Robyn Frey on design trends
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connect Vol. 3 #1 — Paradigm Shift, Trending with James Pooley, Eye on Real Content
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connect Vol. 2 #6 — Never Grow Up; The Cause; Trending with Friederichsen; Content Gains Steam.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 2 #5 — Back in the Saddle; Impact; Trending with Ray Makela; Social Media Conundrum
view the online zine
connect Vol. 2 #4 — The Connection Mindset; Re-branding; Marketing Guru Michael Klynstra; Data You Say?
view the online zine
connect Vol. 2 #3 — Underdogs: How our weaknesses become our strengths; Marketing 2020; Secrets of Branding; Five inbound marketing tactics that work
view the online zine
connect Vol. 2 #2 — Corporate jungle: How to truly make your brand stand out; Trending with branding expert Rodger Roeser.
view the online zine
connect Vol. 2 #1 — 7 Deadly Sins of Marketing; Technologically Yours, Social Change Agent, How Do You Do SEO?
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connect Vol. 1 #6 — The era of marketing ROI, Retargeting, Boosting conversion rates
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connect Vol. 1 #5 — Inside this issue: Tuning in, Marketing Automation, Intimacy of Print
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connect Vol. 1 #4 — Inside this issue: Hyper Local; Best Social Sites; The Power of a Question
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connect Vol. 1 #3 — Inside this issue: Why sending customers to your website matters; Making data sing; Romancing your brand.
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connect Vol. 1 #2 — Siloing: How to identify the walls, and then break them down.
view the online zine
Announcements
Willow Featured in NPSOA Magazine — Willow made the cover of NPSOA. Read about the four generations who've been leading Willow for over 60 years.
see the issue
Stamps honour First Nations chief, Ukraine — New stamp celebrates Chief Marie-Anne Day Walker-Pelletier; stamp booklet supports Ukraine relief.
learn more
Canadian Print Scholarships to Bestow 76 Awards This Year — Canadian Print Scholarships has announced that it will be awarding 76 scholarships to students in five graphic communications programs across Canada for the 2020/2021 academic year.
read more
Basics
Amazon is Selling Products calling Canada the 51st State — Many Canadians aren't happy and a petition with more than 57,000 signatures is calling on the company to purge '51st state' listings.
read at cbc
The Ultimate Colour Guide — Need a guide to colour as it relates to printing? You can find it here, along with links to related articles.
the eyes have it
Save Time and Money with a Digital Storefront — Storefronts simplify the creation, ordering and fulfillment of customized, branded materials for your users.
read more
The Importance of Accurate Job Specs — Accurate specifications ahead of time are essential to getting your job printed quickly at the price you expect.
read more
The Ultimate Envelope Guide — Find specifications on over 100 sizes in 12 categories, with a downloadable die file available for each envelope.
envelope options
Basics of Direct Mail — Direct mail remains a highly effective way for you to grow your organization. How do you maximize this marketing investment?
read more
Job Release Guidelines — You've worked so hard on your job. Here's a quick overview of what to do when you're ready to send it off.
ultimate checklist
File Set-Up: Easy Ways to Get Documents to Print Correctly — If you use a non-Adobe program to create your files, saving your job so it prints successfully is as easy as 1-2-3.
see how
Packaging with InDesign — If you use InDesign, here are step-by-step instructions on packaging your job files.
collect those files
How Many Pages Is My Project? — When describing your project to us for quotation purposes, it is important that we're both on the same page in terms of pages.
here's how to count pages
The Ultimate Paper Guide — Look no further if you need a tutorial...
click and icon to learn more
Willow File Prep Checklist — Make sure your creating those files correctly by reviewing our file submission guide
make those files
Case Study
Canada Post: Case Studies to Inspire You — Explore best in class direct mail marketing case studies from the Canada Post archive.
read them
Canada Post: MEC Omnichannel Strategy — Mountain Equipment Company (MEC) prides itself on prepping customers for the smoothest journeys possible.
read more
Amazon Turns to Print to Market Toys This Holiday Season — The latest validator of the value of print? Why, it’s the largest online retailer — Amazon!
print to click
Print and eCommerce: The Case of Restoration Hardware — Like many successful retailers, Restoration Hardware uses a combination of retail stores, a robust e-commerce presence, and a print catalogue to drive branding and sales.
read more
Communications
Middle Market: 2025 AI Snapshot — Survey shows that middle market companies are entering a more mature phase of AI adoption.
read now
Annual appeal letters: dos and do nots — Remember, your annual appeal is a totally different kind of direct mail. Here are some simple rules to achieve peak performance.
do's and don'ts
Burning Bright: Julie Bee — Author offers advice on fueling success
read interview
Willow Featured in Canvas Magazine — "Jeff Ekstein calls it the 'mail moment' — that time when something special or eagerly anticipated hits your mailbox."
read the article!
Stop Ecommerce Fraud in Its Tracks With These Security Tips — Retailers are faced with balancing the increasing speed and volume of transactions with the rising number of security threats.
read more
Empathetic Negotiation — Q&A with Todd Camp, Owner and Chief Negotiation Officer at Camp Systems
read more
Q&A with Ray Sheehan, Founder of Old City Media — Connecting the dots: enhancing customer experience and engagement with Ray Sheehan, Founder of Old City Media.
read more
PR expert reminds us that real life experience matters in writing — We asked a PR expert what sets human writers apart from AI writing tools like ChatGPT or Jasper.
read more
Canada-Themed Writing Sample: Chat GPT — We asked Chat GPT the following question. Here's what it came up with.
robot speak
Hope Abounds in the New Year — The fresh start that a new year brings can be invigorating, and it's a great time to set goals and make plans for the future.
read more
Canadian Print Scholarship named for Willow CEO Jeff Ekstein — Willow Printing Group takes pride in our advocacy for youth scholarships in the printing industry.
read more
Your Keys to Growth — We sat down with John David Mann to get his take on the current environment and how making fear your ally is key to growth.
read more
Four fall projects your organization should consider — With fall upon us, it's time once again to focus on your marketing plans for the holidays.
our suggestions
Your 6-step plan to increase sales with the right tale — If you want your prospect to think it over, give him lots of facts and figures. If you want him to decide to work with you, tell the right story.
read more
Infographic: Survey Shows Consumers Still Want More Paper — In the name of going green, many companies are ditching their paper communications. Customers have other ideas.
print lives on
Speak to the Heart — Why connecting with your customers is more important than ever.
read more
Supply Chain Challenges Hit the Printing Industry — Due to the pandemic, we're seeing disruptions in everything from paper, ink, shipping, cartons, as well as Canada Post delivery delays.
plan ahead
Where the Heart Is — How does family impact a family business? Conflict, different ideas and differing leadership styles all play a role.
read more
Warren Werbett Interviews Willow CEO Jeff Ekstein — The two go printer to printer on the What They Think website.
watch now
Cultivating Trust: Priority #1 for 2021 — The loss of confidence among executives in their ability to influence their peers and drive big business changes is staggering.
read more
Pandemically Yours — How marketers are connecting with customers during COVID-19.
view now
The Device Vice — Check out which devices those aged 16 to 64 reported spending more time using due to COVID-19.
see infographic
Home Is the New HQ — Companies are embracing the whole virtual office experience with new urgency to make working remote work.
view infographic
Willow Printing Group: Statement on COVID-19 — Willow Printing Group is considered to be an essential service according to the recent Government of Ontario guidelines.
read more
In Times of Crisis, Lead from the Front — We sat down with Bo Bothe to get his thoughts on what business leaders should do when crises like COVID-19 hit.
lead
Six Ways to Say Thank You — Simply saying thank you can go a long way toward improving morale, retaining valuable staff members and keeping your clients coming back.
read more
Stamp of Approval — Over 2,000 millenials were surveyed on their opinions of print. You might be surprised at the results!
view the infographic
Ekstein Named 2018 Lewis Memorial Lifetime Achievement Recipient — Willow's CEO Jeff Ekstein was awarded the 2018 Lewis Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award.
it's an honor
Willow Chairman and CEO Featured in the National Post — Willow Chairman Lew Ekstein and CEO Jeff Ekstein were featured in a lengthy National Financial Post article.
read now
Infographic: Missing Mystery — How much we use technology and why powering down can lead to deeper connections.
view infographic
Why salespeople suck at listening — If you talk to any sales person, they'll tell you they're not like that. Alas, they usually are.
read why
Ekstein Named PIA Chairman — Printing Industries of America named Jeff Ekstein its 2014 chairman.
read the article
The Kingdom of Content — Content is King, but distribution is Queen. Stats and tips on how to improve your content distribution strategy.
see the infographic
Impact: Going Deeper Than Data — Create personalized, engaging messaging for increased relevance and effectiveness.
learn how
Creative
Canada Post Launches Fascinating Fungi Stamps — Canada Post just released a delightful set of stamps celebrating five fascinating fungi and lichens.
see them!
Experience Alchemist Shares Insights on AI — Michael Deperro champions technology not as a replacement for people, but as a tool to elevate them.
read more
Disturbing Implications: PostScript Fonts Discontinued — Support for the font format has been discontinued as of February 2023 for most Adobe programs including Acrobat, Photoshop and InDesign.
read more
Recent Adobe Guidance on Type 1 Fonts — We've quoted directly from Adobe's latest guidance on Type 1 fonts and responded with our thoughts.
read our thoughts
Adobe Products Shift Colours Due to Pantone Library Changes — New Pantone Connect plug-in, which has replaced Adobe's built-in functionality, leaves many users frustrated.
read more
Mark This: 15 Important Logo Design Trends — Lines! Curves! Colours! Shade! We feature 15 trends and 60 logos from the LogoLounge Trend Report.
the best new logos
New Logo Design Trends — Logo Lounge has released its Logo Trends Report, a fascinating take on key trends in brand and identity creation.
see 60 logos
Colour Challenges: How to Choose the Right Colour for Your Project — We've all seen the challenge: what you thought you were choosing doesn't match what ends up on the printed page.
seeing is believing
Identify a Font by Uploading a Photo of It — MyFonts.com lets you upload an image of text to identify the typeface. We tested it with 40 randomly selected fonts to see how well it works.
font face-off
Setting Up Folders in InDesign — Setting up jobs that require die cuts such as folders and packaging is easy if you follow these simple guidelines.
setting up a die-cut job
Fonts: What's Out There — Postscript! TrueType! OpenType! Learn all about these font formats and much, much more!
everything fonts
12 Easy-to-Understand Examples of How Posters Work — Review 12 posters from the Cooper Hewitt/Smithsonian Museum How Posters Work Exhibit and see an example of each.
see some posters
Design Strategist Touts the Power of Print Messaging — To build a brand that your marketplace can trust, your message has to be bold, colourful, attractive and compelling.
read more
Acrobat Document Review Helps Creatives Streamline Approvals — The traditional creative process can be challenging to manage especially when there's multiple reviewers. Now there's a better way.
review and approve
Animations Reveal How Logos Evolve — These awesome gifs that tell the story of how the logos of 12 big companies have evolved through each's history.
watch them change
Stretch Your Marketing Budget — Check out our cost savings checklist to keep your marketing costs down.
read the list
Where Have All the Icons Gone? — An in-depth look at what goes into the making of an iconic brand in today's marketing landscape.
brand aid
Return on investment in design — Firms that won design awards saw an immediate increase in stock price, according to a study of 264 firms over 13 years.
read more
Type Terms, Tips and Tweaks — Kerning vs. tracking. Descenders, ascenders and baselines. Sixteen type classifications. Master this and be a type guru!
typography bold
Psychology-Based Colour Palettes — For a wacky take, visit this site that purports to use pyschology to build your palette.
psycho rainbow
Six Cutting Edge Logo Design Trends — Check out these six logo trends, from flat designs to monolines, for cutting edge identity design.
see the trends
Creating Logos and Other Design Marks — If you are considering a new or redesigned logo and/or corporate identity, here are some ideas to keep in mind.
corporate identity considerations
The Ultimate CMYK Duotone Guide — We selected 25 portraits and applied different CMYK duotone to each image. You can even download the curves we used.
view the duotone guide
Pocket Folder Inspiration — Explore some great pocket folder links, each with free die outlines available for download.
folder inspiration
Envato Market: A Creative Resource Like No Other — Envato features over 4.5 million digital products created by designers, developers, photographers, illustrators and producers.
visit the marketplace
28 Design Terms Every Marketer Should Know — Check out this great infographic of 28 design terms that every marketer should know.
know your terms
What Counts — Scientific research defies long held corporate beliefs regarding the effect of rewards on creativity and performance.
dollars don’t inspire
Pantone and the Value of Great Identity Design — A brand so strong its target audience pays a premium to see it on a mug? Impossible? Not for Pantone.
mug shots
Digital Printing
Digital Printing Production Tips — Review our quick list of considerations when you plan to print your project digitally.
review the tips
Using Conditional Logic in Variable Data Projects — With all of today's advance personalization and versioning options, writing a letter can be as tricky as writing computer code!
here's why
Digital Printing Data Strategies — If you are looking for a practical guide to what's possible with variable data, here it is.
variable primer
On Demand, Jim Rockford Style — Digital printing used to be hard. Now it's much easier. See just how hard with these two examples from history.
pre-digital visions
Case Study: Personalize Your Conference — 1:1 personalization is a lot more than names. Here is an example of what you can do.
read the case study
Direct Mail
Grow Your Business and Reach With Direct Mail — How do you grow, and ensure that you’re reaching potential customers?
read more
5 reasons why direct mail marketing works — Direct mail marketing gives businesses the opportunity to reach millions of individuals on a more personal level.
read more
Driving Connections — Direct mail is a great vehicle for marketers today.
view infographic
The Time We Spend with Mail — Research quantifies the amount of time consumers spend with their mail. The short answer: a lot!
time to read
Five Questions to Drive Your Direct Mail Strategy — Good direct mail starts with good strategy. Here are five ways to frame your strategy when contemplating direct mail.
read more
Appetite for Attribution: Grocer's Hunger for Direct Mail Grows — A high-growth company competing in a dynamic industry, Goodfood focuses on customer acquisition as its primary key performance indicator.
read more
Turbo-Charge Your Sales With Print Catalogues and Data-Driven Marketing — Harvard Business School shows that adding print to email drives sales.
read more
The Omnichannel Value of Direct Mail — There are significant market forces at work that underlie direct mail's resurgence and its effectiveness in addressing today's marketing challenges.
read more
Four Rules for Better Direct Mail Results — How do you create a perfect piece that maximizes results? And are you using tools and tech to your full advantage?
read now
Young consumers embrace direct mail — Direct mail in is an effective tool to get Millennials and Gen Zs to respond to calls to action.
rate this!
Turning Media Moments Into a Meaningful Experience — Mixed-media moments can become meaningful customer experiences that create lasting bonds between retail brands and their loyal consumers.
mix it up
How Direct Mail Can Boost Your Business — Direct mail remains a dependable and affordable way to get your message across, however big or small your business.
read more
The Art and Science of De-Duping a List — The decisions that go into deduping can be complex, and should be driven by your marketing goals.
it's all in a name
Nordstrom and J.Jill See Sharp Decline in Profits After Abandoning Direct Mail — These retailers recently learned the hard way that shaving expenses by eliminating direct mail can be disastrous.
lessons learned
Writing Direct Mail Copy: 10 Point Checklist — Like the fisherman's lures, good direct mail copy is critical to a mailer's success. Here's some pointers on how to write it.
call to action
Design with Mail in Mind — Here are some strategies to keep costs down when designing direct mail.
direct mail design tips
After a Long Hiatus, JCPenney Is Again Mailing a Catalogue — The retailer discontinued its iconic Big Book in 2009. Here's why they've decided they need mailings after all.
read more
Seven Tips to Direct Mail Design — Creative plays a big role in the effectiveness of your mailer.
mail design tips
Direct Mail Delivers Best B2C ROI — Target Marketing Magazine readers indicated B2B delivers the best ROI for B2C among all types of approaches.
our review and link
Newsletters... Reeling in the Readers — Identify the eight type of stories that get the best readership, design strategies and much more.
get more readers
17 Ways to Increase Response Rates — With successful direct response campaigns, three critical elements converge to entice your readers to take action. Those three elements are the list, the offer and the creative.
response rates
Postcards: Think Outside the Box — These postcard design tips focus on print options that add value by increasing response rate.
postcard strategies
Postcard + Newsletter = Perfect Match? — The postcard newsletter is a great concept, allowing you to provide valuable information in a condensed format that is more likely to get read.
see some samples
Photoshop Variables Tutorial — Want to create variable image objects using Photoshop? Here's how.
variablicious
List Acquisition — Read all about list acquisition, consumer and business lists, and the secret sauce of great campaigns.
more on lists
Print and e-Commerce: By the Numbers — We thought we'd share with you some of the many reasons that print and e-commerce go great together.
read more
Four Subject + Headline Strategies to Get More Opens — An email has a subject, a direct mail piece has a headline, but really they function the same: Open it and read on! Here are four strategies to get more readers to do just that.
opening salvos
Postcards...5 Tips for Better Results — A simple checklist to make sure you are getting the best results from your postcard mailings.
go to the 5 postcard tips article
Niches: Big Data Comes to Print List Sourcing — Niches is a proprietary segmentation tool that uses demographic elements to group a household into one of 26 specific clusters.
see all 26
Powerful List Profiling Solution for Direct Marketers — Now there's an easy-to-use tool to statistically profile your best B2B or B2C customers.
read more
Using Print to Build Your Email List — Would you like to see your email newsletter list grow more quickly? Here's how you can build your email list using print.
see how you can use print
The One Most Important Feature of a Landing Page — What is the single most important feature of any landing page? It's the laser focus on getting the reader to take the next step in your marketing effort.
learn more about landing page strategies
Environment
Going Green — Get the skinny on reducing your carbon footprint.
green by the numbers
9 Ways to Turn Your Home Into a Workspace — Here are nine tips you can use to make the most of isolation and working from home.
read more
Apple and The Conservation Fund Partner on Forests — Apple is working to promote sustainable forestry to protect working forests in Maine and North Carolina.
growth stock
Print Sustainability — Get the real story on environmental sustainability.
true green
Recycled Calculator: Environmental Impact — Review the details as to the impact of your recycled stock choices.
recycled by the numbers
Eco-Friendly Brainstorm — Looking for ways to become an even greener mailer? Check out these suggestions.
greener mail
Green Your Mind. The Rest Will Follow. — Switch your bulbs, why choose the tap tap and other tips on how a little green can make a big difference.
environmentality
Images and Colour
What Now? And How? FYI for Photoshop Users — Users of Creative Cloud applications and Pantone colour tools should get all the information they can before deciding how to proceed.
see resources
Colour Me Frustrated: Users React to Adobe, Pantone Rift Over PMS Libraries — As a service to its members and to the industry in general, Printing Industries Alliance presents this overview of the Adobe/Pantone situation and its consequences for end-users.
read more
Creating Colour Harmonies — Creating beautiful colour schemes is easy if you rely on any of the tried and true visual harmonies, regardless of whether it's print or web.
here's how
GRACol and G7: Standardizing Colour Appearance — Holland Litho has been certified by a third party in GRACoL 7, allowing us to produce consistent colour across all devices.
learn more
16-Bit Images: Better than JPGs — We opened an image as both 8-and 16-bit. Compare the two after a few adjustments and you'll see why.
see for yourself
Converting Drop Shadows from CMYK to Black Only — CMYK drop shadows can be problematic: Here's how to convert them to black only.
oh-k do-k
Stock Photo Demand Letters — How you can avoid getting a stock agency demand letter for copyright infringement.
avoid trouble
Digital Photography... Take Your Best Shot — Tips for taking great digital photographs!
start your studio
Image Scaling Limitations — How much can you scale an original photograph? This article provides the answers.
image tips
Eight Great, Really Free Stock Image Websites — We set out this month to find really great, truly free (even for commercial use) stock photo web sites.
see our picks
RGB To CMYK... What You Need to Know — For a quick but thorough review of colour theory and how it applies to creative, production and printing, look no further than this article.
good space
New Thoughts on RGB and CMYK — To convert to CMYK or not convert.With new technologies come new options.
convert or not. you decide!
Images: Resize, then Import — With image-intensive projects, you should always resize images before importing them into your layouts.
here's why
Take the Colour IQ Test — This unique test gives you a grade beyond pass or fail.
test your perception
Amazing 100-year-old Images from the Ill-Fated Endurance Voyage to Antarctica — These early colour photographs of Antarctica were taken by Frank Hurley in 1915 at the age of 30.
view the photos
Pixabay: 520,000 Free Images — Here's a free stock image resource for you to check out to keep your image costs down.
see some images
Key Concepts: Photography Basics — Learn about f-stop, ISO and other key concepts with sample images referenced.
more on clicking
Improving Web JPGs for Print — Need to print an image graphic from the Web? Here's how to reduce the JPG artifacts in your original.
how to fix jpgs
Marketing
Knockout! — Why print and content are the perfect combination.
see it now!
Back to the Mailbox — While inboxes are flooded daily — often ignored or filtered into spam — mailboxes are, by contrast, nearly empty.
read more
Infographic: 2025 Marketing Shifts — The most significant shifts in the marketing industry over the past year.
view now
Does Marketing Really Evolve? — The real message is this: Print delivers results. It's a way to show your audience you care.
read more
2025: Predicting B2B — Companies will need to avoid quick fixes and premature scaling back; focus on strengthening infrastructure, data practices, and customer-centric planning.
view infographic
5 Marketing Trends to Watch in 2025 — This year's trends are setting the stage for marketers to thrive in an ever-changing landscape.
see infographic
Infographic: B2B Marketers Must Adapt — B2B marketers should anticipate longer sales cycles, address budget constraints, and proactively share detailed pricing and ROl information.
view infographic
Top AI Concerns Among Businesspeople — Only 63% of companies plan to increase AI spending over the next 12 months.
see infographic
Canada Post: Festive Gifters — Meet the 4 holiday shopping segments set to spread cheer
read more
The Power of Print vs. Digital Advertising — Five great reasons to include print in your marketing mix.
see infographic
2025-2028: Predictions for Marketing — Market research firm Gartner shares predictions social media, AI adoption, brand differentiation, and more.
view infographic
Unskilling — 94% of workers express a desire to learn skills to work with generative AI, only 5% of organizations provide training on this at scale.
read more
The Shift — Strategies for overcoming challenges in marketing organizations.
view infographic
Unlock the Future — In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, marketers are increasingly embracing Artificial Intelligence (Al) and automation to fuel innovation and growth.
infographic
It Is a Me Time — How personalization (and technology) is driving marketing's future
read more
Embracing Ambiguity — The challenge of these times is not the ambiguity but rather our appetite for ambiguity.
read more
Action: Be Courageous in the Face of Rapid Innovation — As generative AI becomes mainstream, content with human qualities like empathy, humor, and credible sources will distinguish itself.
read more
Traditional Paths Help Find New Markets with Data — How you can use print as part of a strategy to discover and reach new markets and demographics.
track it
The Long Haul — The best companies in the world have marketing backbones.
read more
Finding Purpose: Top Reasons for Content Marketing — The top purpose for content marketing continues to be brand awareness.
view infographic
Benchmarks: 6 Metrics to Track Brand Performance — These six metrics follow customers through every stage of the buyer journey.
view infographic
An e-mail about print — Linda Bishop, a former top performer at RR Donnelley, believes that in many ways, print is more relevant than ever before.
read interview
Data Drives Marketing — From connecting with customers, to perfectly timing your messages, to optimizing your campaigns, data is the key that unlocks success.
read story
5 marketing tips you can (and should) try now — Innovative technologies and platforms continue to push marketing into new and exciting directions.
read now
Why empathetic marketing still is the path forward — Empathetic marketing may have hit buzzword status, but it has always been the key to acquiring and retaining loyal, satisfied customers.
read more
That's a Wrap — 3 ideas on how marketers should engage marketers in the new year.
read more
Infographic: In Brands We Trust — In today's world, which seems more divided than ever, consumers expect brands to step up against adversity.
see now
Marketing Uses Content to Take on Bigger Role — Content marketing is a chance to gain insight, engage in real conversation and connect on the sincerest level.
read more
Combining Art and Strategy — Fallon Anawalt, entrepreneur and marketer, shares thoughts on the state of marketing today.
read more
Canada Post: Why CX Matters in B2B Marketing — Customers now want a memorable experience to surround their purchase, and they are willing to pay a premium for it.
read more
Hurdling: Marketers Must Adapt to Win — Shifting live events to virtual formats threw everyone for a loop, and left people craving connection.
view infographic
How to build your Dream 100 prospect list — Putting together a dream team of prospective clients should sit at the heart of your sales and marketing efforts.
read more
The ROI Case for Gender Marketing — Here is a sample ROI that demonstrates the potential impact that gender versioning might have on your direct response rates.
by the numbers
Which Marketing Trends Will Survive the Pandemic? — Knowing what marketing trends to keep and which to let go will help you adapt your focus.
view infographic
Relevance Is Found on the Frontlines of Recovery — In order to recover, brands must evolve with the needs and motivations of their customers in a way that differentiates them from their competitors.
read now
Infographic: Top Predicted Areas of Content Marketing Investment — Here's where the experts think marketers will spend their money in 2021.
view infographic
Humanize your B2B Marketing — As marketers, too often we default to a buttoned-up, formal approach to business buyers, while we appeal directly to consumer passions.
be a people person
Taking the Initiative — In confusing times, leaders need to over-communicate, meaning more often than they think they should.
start with a click
Obstacle Course: Barriers to Creating Effective Content — Creating content leads to business success, so why isn't everyone doing it? Do you have the time, materials and bandwidth?
view infographic
Canada Post: Is your data ready for action? — Data has taken centre stage, with the world tracking, recording and acting on the numbers to mitigate the size and spread of the pandemic.
read more
People Prefer Paper Packaging — Two Sides North America announces results Of Packaging Preferences 2020 Survey.
what they like
Custom Content FAQ — We have complied and answered the most commonly asked questions to give you more information about content marketing.
read the faqs
Carry On: 4 Tips for Battling Adversity — Marketing during these challenging times? This infographic suggests four ways to do it.
view now
Why Finding a Cause To Back Is the Strategy Your Brand Needs Now — Authenticity is something every brand should embrace fully, especially in a time when consumers are selective about what they connect their attention to.
read more
2020 Branding Trends — Our 2020 branding infographic details many important design trends in play right now.
view infographic
C.A.P. it: Another Sales Acronym You Can Use — The majority of selling is not technique, but plain old people skills.
read more
Q&A with Tom Edwards — Technology trailblazer on what should be on every marketer’s to-do list.
read the interview
Infographic: The Me Movement — Personalization is everywhere: today's consumers expect customized options to be at their fingertips.
view now
Why Reinvention Is the Mother of All Successes — If your clients do not think that their business is not better without you, find out how to make that so.
read more
Unique Selling Proposition — While others may sell products or services that compete with yours, chances are pretty good you have a unique story to tell.
identify what they are
The Five Key Components to Building Your Impressions — Building impressions is a success principle that takes the rules of branding beyond a name and logo and applies them to five key components.
read more
Content Marketing Update: Audience Outreach Trends — This simple infographic shows on which channels sophisticated marketers are mostly placing their bets.
view infographic
How to Learn the Right Lessons from Data — Actually deriving meaningful insights from that data and converting those insights into action is easier said than done.
lesson plan
Building the Perfect Business Strategy — As the orchestrator of 77 business turnarounds over the past 50 years, Robert Bethel rose to the task of being a Mr. Fix-it the old-fashioned way.
read more
Infographic: The Power of Content — Check out the infographic we created from a survey showing the power of content in the decision making process.
view the infographic
Practicing the Art of True Leadership in 2019 — As a leader, how can you make a difference? If you want different, you have to think different. It starts with your mindset.
read more
5 Messaging Strategies of Successful Branding Firms — Before you begin communicating with your audience, ask yourself why should anyone care about your product or service?
read more
Defining the Ultimate Buyer Personas — 46.5 percent say they freqeuntly update their buyer personas and have tailored content strategies mapped to each profile.
see the infographic
Comprehensive Guide to Surveys — Learn the fundamentals of creating, deploying and optimizing customer surveys.
all about surveys
Building Your Brand One Partnership at a Time — The foundation for brand development starts with the relationships you forge with your partners.
read more
Content: The Game Everyone Is Playing — In today's digital landscape, we see millions of pieces of content uploaded daily. How is the content game changing?
read now
Five Great Videos on the Art of Storytelling — Take a look at these videos to see how storytelling can make you a more interesting and effective communicator.
watch now
Data Mining for the Rest of Us — Small businesses can use simple data collection methods to gain insight into opportunities, design promotions, and ultimately sell more.
read the case study
CNBC: Why Millennials Love Catalogues — CNBC is yet another example of a major media outlet profiling the value to marketers of catalogues.
cnb-see!
Infographic: Finishing the Race — Forbes surveyed 400 marketers to determine how empowered they are to act. The results may surprise you!
check it out
How to lead in new age of leadership — For the past 20-plus years, Brian Braudis has been telling leaders across the world that leadership is tangible energy.
read now
The art of being intimate — We caught up to Mayur Ramgir to get this thoughts on the art of building intimacy and why brands must make this a daily priority.
read more
The Art of Overcoming Price Objections — There is a framework and language that clients find helpful in working through price and pricing.
read more
The ABCs of Gen Z — By 2020, the North American Gen Z market will grow to over $1.4 trillion! Do you understand this giant demographic?
check it out
Comprehensive Testing Primer — This mini-whitepaper provides a primer on testing strategies, concepts and options.
test case scenarios
List Rental: Great for Print, but not Email — List rental has been a standard practice in the direct mail industry for years. Email marketing, not so much.
learn why
The Psychology of Social Timing — Use a little psychology to determine the best time of the day to send your email campaigns!
when to send what
Determining Your Pricing — Some considerations to keep in mind when determining your pricing.
pricing strategies
Microbranding — How brewers are using a local flavour with their branding strategies.
read more
The Final Stretch — Push on to victory with this simple fourth-quarter checklist.
go for it
Disruption for Positive Change — Companies passionately talk about how they need disruptors on their team, and encourage others to challenge how things are done.
read more
So, You Want To Be a Market Leader? — Go ahead, ask Ken Rutsky the question. What does it take drive a market? To be a leader?
read more
Return-On-Investment (ROI) — Some thoughts on creating and communicating an effective ROI message.
read more on roi
3 newsroom lessons to improve your sales story — Humans are natural storytellers. We gravitate to stories, whether around a campfire, the water cooler or on Netflix.
read more
Wordsmith: how content influences purchasing decisions — A blockbuster new survey identifies how content influences purchasing decisions.
view infographic
What Trends Do You Need on Your Watch List? — We asked Pete Wiltjer to share some of insights on what to expect as we slide into 2017
read more
Full Steam Ahead! — Brands gaining momentum through content marketing strategies.
view infographic
Go Deep with Cross Media Marketing — Find out how established brands like the NHL are successfully breaking through the clutter, and why it's time to say "goodbye to spray and pray marketing".
read more
Why Print? — The catalyst for this story is a fantastic brochure produced by The Print Council simply titled Why Print?
go to why print article
Experiential Marketing and the Role of Direct Mail — Experiential marketing is a strategy to engage consumers and invites and encourages them to become a participant in a brand.
read more
1:1 Marketing and Variable Data Printing — This article delves into the concepts driving one-to-marketing and digital printing, touching on databases.
read now
Creating Great Buttons: Cues from 10 Great Websites — See the button styles of ten great websites, with four expert tips from a renowned designer.
see some buttons
Point Blank — 4 self-inflicted missteps that can land your brand in trouble — Too many brands often don't recognize the need to adjust to changing markets and circumstances until it's too late.
read article
Building Relationships for the Long Haul — Q&A with Bill Schiemann, who knows a thing or two about the whole premise of staying engaged and connected.
read more
SMS/Mobile Best Practices — Considering a mobile campaign? Follow these six SMS best practices to avoid the dreaded STOP.
read more
Creating Your Sales Playbook — Your sales process works best when you build a playbook your sales team can use as a guide.
read more
New Ways to Sell: Challenging Traditions — Find out why traditional relationship builders perform the worst, while those who challenge their clients have the greatest success.
new way to sell
9 Tips to Creating Great Content for Boring Industries — Even if you are in an industry that some might not find exciting, you can still create thoughtful, engaging content your target audience will read.
spice it up
INFOGRAPHIC: How Often Should You Revisit Your Marketing Strategy? — In today'sever-twisting economic landscape, factors driving the market could force yourmarketing strategy to change on a dime.
read more
Get Your New Year's Resolutions Here — Time to craft the perfect to-do list of items that will help set the course for every step you take.
read more
Five Plays to Add to Your Marketing Handbook — Marketing momentum will continue to surge in these five areas.
view infographic
Free, ALL CAPS now OK for Email — Return Path sees no negative impact of using in email, but it may make you feel a bit queasy.
read this, it's free
Mapping the Customer Journey — You do not use your most expensive tools at the beginning of the customer journey.
read more
Building Your Strategy for Effective Sales — Matt Sharrer wants his clients to do a little soul searching. He asks tough questions about executing the right strategies.
read now
B2B Survey: 64% rely on direct mail — B2B respondents listed direct mail as a critical component of their marketing mix.
best practices
Often-Overlooked Rules of Grammar — Review the finer points of grammar, the little things that can make all the difference, to see if your writing complies.
dot-dot-dot
Kindra Hall: Great Ideas on Storytelling — A storytelling expert, with a huge dose of passion, she advocates a process to construct your unique story.
storytelling
Copy: Penny Pinchers vs. Spendthrifts — How you should change your approach to copy for both spendthrifts and penny pinchers.
who's the customer?
Six Tips to Writing Better Copy — Make your headlines and paragraphs more effective by following these six easy copywriting tips.
make it sing
How loyal are your customers? — Let's be honest: you have fans of what you do, but are they really going to recommend you to other people?
read more
A Recipe to Scale — Scaling a business is not about growth. It is about magnifying your business and stretching it beyond the comforts of your current structure.
grow your boat
Modelling — How to build a brand that is predicated on trust.
read more
Romancing Your Brand — Social change agent Tim Leberecht on why romance still matters today.
read now
The Seven Deadly Sins of Marketing — In this technologically driven world, we decided to look at the seven deadliest sins marketers are making today.
see the sins
Marketing 2020: The Future of Branding — The marketing department of the future will likely be quite different and require updated skills, revised roles and a new contemporary culture.
read article
How To Write Headlines That Surprise The Brain — Research shows how substituting a word in a familiar expression causes the brain of a reader to snap to attention.
word play
Two Great Infographics to Evaluate Your Website — Check out these two infographics to help you evaluate your website's elements and review key stats.
view now
Re-branding: How and why to reshape your image — Why did Hilton Hotels need to rebrand, how did they do it and what are the results?
read more
Infographic: Connecting with Millennials — Is your content successfully reaching millennials? Compare your strategies to these surefire tips and get more shares from your content.
reach out
Above The Noise: The Burberry Story — In the midst of the recession, Burberry had a record year. Here's how.
read more
The Discipline of Story-Telling — Telling stories is not simply about grabbing a piece of content and distributing it to your followers.
read more
Marketing: Art, Science or Artful Science? — If you are an artist, learn science. If you are a scientist, cultivate art.
read article
The Model Business — The art of (re) establishing your business model is about changing the rules and adapting to the harsh (or antiquated) realities of doing business today. So, how’s your strategy going?
read article
Cause Marketing: Join the Movement — The images of Nepal made everybody stand up and take notice. From Twitter, to Facebook, to the business down the street, everybody stood up to do their part.
read more
How thought leadership can build market share — During a 1968 computer conference, Douglas Engelbart astounded attendees with how he was able to control everything on the screen with the touch of a mouse!
read more
Why Marketing Automation Works — Marketing automation can play a key role in helping to create harmony in that never-ending battle between sales and marketing.
read more
Shift Happens — One idea that may never need to be retired comes from the iconic thinking of Dale Carnegie. Way ahead of his time, why are his theories on the importance of a market based focus more relevant than ever?
read the article
Second City: 8 Ways to Business Success Using Improv — Tom Yorton, CEO of Second City Communications (SCC), shares 8 ways improvisational techniques help businesses be more successful.
learn how to use improv for business
Change: A Catalyst for Transformation — How to transform a business from market-driven to market-driving.
read more
The Stuff That Matters — Why the art of relationship building will be more vital to marketers than the science of big data.
read more
Sponsored Content Trends — Sponsored content is emerging as the newest form of scalable online advertising.
read more
Sixth Sense — Identifying and cultivating the intangible trait that leads to marketing success
read more
B2B Sales: Time for a Mind Shift — Fine-tuning the marketing mix to focus more on solution selling.
read more
Rubbernecking — Use your brand to make an impactful first impression with potential customers.
read more
Tell Your Story — Content marketing is the latest marketing trend gaining popularity.
read more
Humble Beginnings — In his book, "David and Goliath," Malcolm Gladwell highlights a story about how difficult it is raising a kid in a wealthy environment. What are the morals and business lessons to be learned?
read more
Fantastic SEO Infographic — Brafton infographic shows how content is the future of SEO.
see the graphic
SEO: Important Google Keyword Changes — New Google policies make it harder to find the keywords you need to optimize for search engines.
keyword chaos
CASL: Anti-Spam Update — Regulations for Canada's anti-spam law.
anti-spam details
Landing Page Optimization — Customized landing pages can improve campaign results up to a 70%.
click through
Ten Ways to Fill Your Story Pipeline — Trying to come up with story ideas for your newsletter or blog? Here are ten ways to jumpstart your effort.
copy concepts
Response Rates and Gender — Does your marketing subtly appeal to one gender more than the other? What can you do about it?
read the research
Ultimate Guide to Text Abbreviations — It may be mind-boggling but we easily compiled more than 1,600 abbreviations and acronyms used in texting.
txt abbrev
Survey Results: Sneak Preview — We recently surveyed our clients. Get insight into content, social sites and Willow right here.
survey results
CASL/Spam: Action List for Business — Highlights of the new Canadian Anti-Spam legislation which is expected to come into force mid 2013, and what it means to your business.
manage your risk
Holiday Marketing — What's your marketing plan for the holidays? Here are some great ideas to consider.
read more
Situation Analysis — You can use a 5C framework to evaluate your marketing situation. Learn more.
creating a 5c analysis
Offset Printing and Coatings
Shorter Runs Result in Higher Per-Unit Cost — Print longer runs to keep your per unit costs down.
read more
Why invest in preprinted letterhead? — Author Eddy Hagen shows us why quality preprinted letterhead and envelopes are a great idea.
see why
Take the Printing Terms Quiz — Our printing terms quiz is a test of 20 questions. See how many you can get right!
go to the printing terms quiz
Quiz Answers — Here are the answers to our printing terms quiz. Hope you did well!
passing grade?
Heavy Coverage... 10 Job-Saving Tips — 10 tips to keep in mind when your print job has heavy ink coverage.
heavy coverage design
Rich Black Ink — Make your black backgrounds deeper and richer by adding some colour to the 100% black ink.
here's how to create rich black
Product Focus: UV Coating — Did you know UV coating looks great and can protect your print jobs from automation damage and even normal wear?
learn more
Varnish, Coatings and Other Effects — Want to know more about varnish? This tutorial says it all!
visualize varnish
Packaging
Navigating Cross-Border Printing and Distribution — A Willow Printing Group success story for Wix Filters and NAPA Auto Parts.
read more
Five Great Packaging Resources — Whether you are launching a new product or redesigning the packaging of an existing one, sometimes it helps to be inspired by great work.
discover 5 great sites
Paper
Are electronic communications greener than print? Not so much — A recent Washington Post article does a good job debunking the greenwashing myth.
get the facts
Paper Challenges — In general, for all types of print runs, paper and envelopes are in short supply. Here we explain the major reasons why:
learn why
Video: How Paper Is Made — Choose from both an article and a video on the process of manufacturing paper from start to finish.
paper in the making
Paper Thickness and Weight: Cutting Through the Confusion — How thick is a given weight of paper? It all depends on the type of paper it is. Confused? Read this and you won't be.
more on paper thickness
The Right Paper — Ever wonder which stock you should specify for which type of project? Wonder no more; they are all listed here!
go to paper uses article
Video: The Importance of Sustainable Forestry — Know the truth about recycling, where paper comes from and the importance of sustainable forestry.
watch now
Paper Glossary — Here's the key to keeping up when inundated with paper jargon. This one's a keeper!
go to glossary article
Understanding Paper Brightness — Brightness not only determines how vibrant an image is but also determines a paper's colour cast. Explained.
paper brightness
Scientific American: Brains Prefer Paper — SA cites 200+ studies showing human brains prefer reading text on paper rather than screens.
smart read
New Research: Milennials Prefer to Learn with Print — Research shows reading comprehension is much lower with digital text compared to print.
see why
When Do You Need a Paper Merchant? — If you require assistance frequently with exotic stocks or paper research issues, we can introduce you to a specialist known as a paper merchant.
learn more about paper merchants
Post-Press and Bindery
Folding Panel Size Calculator — Use this calculator to determine how much you need to adjust the panels for a variety of fold types.
size your panels
Product Focus: Loop Stitching — Loop stitching is a great bindery option for brochures or catalogues that need to be included in a three-ring binder. They lie flat while opened, unlike materials that rely on drilled holes.
learn more loop stitching
Folding: Common Terms and Diagrams — Wouldn't know a French fold if you were engulfed in one? Read this and you'll never be flat on folding.
folding terms unfolded
Production Articles
Planning Resilience: Ideas for Managing Your Marketing Supply Chain — The marketing supply chain is not immune from disruption.
read more
Social Sites and Email
Best Day and Time to Send Emails? — The research is in on the best days and times of days to send your emails.
is it conclusive?
Change is in the Air — Disruptive changes to business models will have a profound impact on the employment landscape.
read more
The Death of the Life Cycle — The life cycle of smartphones underscores an important trend to marketers.
read more
Infographic: Twitter Tips — This infographic from Fusework Studios shows how you can get the most from Twitter.
tweet tweet
Out of Sync — Should we be afraid that more intimate forms of communications will just drift away?
read more
Ensuring Email Deliverability — You spend a lot of time creating your email marketing campaigns. Make sure they get delivered.
deliverability tips
Work and Play
Canada Post: 2024 Stamps — Canada Post has an exciting lineup of new stamps this year.
see the stamps
Stamp Celebrates first Black Player of the NHL — Willie O'Ree: There are certain accomplishments in life that you could never even dream of. Getting a stamp in your honour is certainly one of them.
read more
A Different Type of Hangover — Much like the morning after, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health are pretty significant and should not be disregarded by marketers.
read more
Stamps bring to light the founding stories of two early Black communities in Canada — Between the 1700s and early 1900s small waves of Black Americans journeyed north in search of land, opportunity and freedom.
story/video
The Eggcorn Is Born — An eggcorn is an unintended pun of sorts. A term only recently coined, it's taken on a life of its own.
eat your corny
99 Ways to Win an Argument — In a perfect world, best ideas win. In the real world, recognize these logical fallacies.
dark arts
iPhones, Androids and Print Production — It may be tempting to edit and send us a file from your smart phone or approve a proof from your iPad. We find the technology is not quite ready.
here's why
Worth Talking About — How the Ritz turned a lost stuffed animal into a loyal customer.
read more
Hammered Grammar — These jokes, compiled by a dictionary blog, will have every editor out there laughing.
get it?
A Tale of a Cat Who Killed My Mac — When the cat recently wrecked the Mac, we learned some lessons the hard way that all laptop users should heed.
spilled milk
Video: Very Funny Ikea Catalogue TV Commercial — This Ikea television ad highlights the user-friendliness of its print campaign, spoofing a MacBook campaign.
watch it
The Time It Takes — How long does it take to...
fun facts to track time
Lessons Learned from a Young Bassoonist — Why would a gifted musician choose such an obscure instrument?
learn about the bassoon
8 Jokes for the Holiday Season — A good joke can come in handy this time of year. Here are eight bad ones.
laugh a little
Changing Culture: The New Workplace — Many traditional ideas on how to get things done have lost merit, and a new type of work culture has emerged.
read article
How a Printing Error Gave Us a Green Incredible Hulk — Stan Lee, the creator of the Incredible Hulk, originally envisioned a grey-skinned hulk. Lucky for him, it printed green.
green with envy
Make It Work: Keys to Win-Win Outsourcing — 63 percent of all businesses in North America outsource one or more processes to a third party.
how to do it right
Time to Spring-Clean Your Client List? — Sellers must act transparently and buyers must simultaneously act with respect.
read article
Lessons in Success from Non-profits — What makes non-profits tick? The ABCs are Altruism, Bonds and Chronicles.
read article
Are you an ideaphobic? — Companies must incubate new ideas and allow the creative process to permeate throughout their organizations.
read more
Building a Community — Community building is a topic businesses are rallying around these days.
read more
The Relevance of Play — It is not just kids who need play to develop and grow creatively. Discover why being playful is a mindset that great marketers must embrace.
read more
Guide to Google Advanced Search — This is one of the easiest-to-follow guides on Google searches you will ever find. Case study based, live links to each example.
amp your search