Enjoy!

It’s that time of year again! Market Mentors is  helping out with the Salvation Army Coats for Kids drive and we’re asking for your help to reach the goal of collecting thousands of coats and making sure no child goes cold this winter.

This year’s campaign will kick off this Friday, October 7th and will run until the end of October. You can check the website here for a drop-spot  location near you. If you have any gently used or unused winter coats, please drop them off at any of the location spots listed on the website instead of throwing them out. So many children are in need and it is our goal to help them out!

The distribution date for the event is November 12th at the Springfield Salvation Army location (285 Liberty Street, Springfield MA 01104)

You can also find the Springfield Salvation Army on Facebook here for more details and pictures from years past.

Thank you for your support!

Congratulations to Michelle!

From the article:

Michelle Abdow of Longmeadow, MA, started Market Mentors in August 2003. Prior to this, Abdow worked in media for 10 years. “I had always wanted to start my own advertising agency, so the timing felt right to open up shop,” she said. Abdow found herself helping clients understand the importance of Internet exposure. She also helped them with public relations initiatives and assisted them in executing their campaigns. “We develop strategies that not only provide effective coverage, but save our clients’ money,” Abdow said. She said a quote that keeps her inspired is, “At the end of the day, it’s all about results!”

So, what have we been up to lately?

We worked with 94.7 WMAS to produce the 3rd Annual Kids Safety Expo at the Basketball Hall of Fame on July 24, 2011 and it was a huge success! The event is put on as a service to the western MA community, providing families with free safety tips, tools and materials for keeping their children safe. The MYChip program and Small Smiles Dental Centers donate their time and services to provide parents with a DVD of their child, fingerprints, dental swabs and teeth imprints – all invaluable in case of an emergency!

Entertainment from magician and puppeteer Ed Popielarczyk

A happy visitor!

Libbos Law passing out free bike helmets to the children

Small Smiles

The Springfield Fire and Police Departments were also present to interact with the families. The kids watched K9 demonstrations, climbed the fire ladders and sat in the drivers seat of the fire trucks. We had some awesome sponsors that helped make the whole event possible – so a big THANK YOU to all!

If you’re a business that’s interested in participating in the event next year, please feel free to Contact Us.

‘Til next time!

Check out Michelle’s answers and read the full article here!

(—), (–), (-), (–)

If you don’t know the difference between the lines in parentheses above, don’t worry—you’re in the majority.

Take a look at the line I just used.  It’s called an em-dash, and it’s used to emphasize an abrupt change in thought, a pause, or an interruption. Here are a couple of examples:

“I’m getting twice the gas mileage with my new car that I got with my old car.”

Okay, you’ve made a point about your car. Now, suppose you think of something else that’s notable about the car, but completely unrelated to gas mileage:

“I’m getting twice the gas mileage with my new car―the one it took the dealer three months to find with the options I wanted—that I got with my old car.”

The em-dashes let the reader know that there’s been a change in thought—or, because we’re talking car, a detour .

An em-dash can also be used as a dramatic pause to set up an expectation or emphasize what comes next.

“We have finally identified the killer as John Smith.”

Okay, now you know that John Smith is the bad guy. What a relief. But wait—(em-dash) there’s something else!

“We have finally identified the killer as John Smith ―the same John Smith you’ve been married to for 27 years!”

Ouch.  As if it’s not bad enough there’s been a killer on the loose, that em-dash sets off a piece of information that makes the situation even worse.

Em-dash, emphasis. That’s not actually how an em-dash got it’s name—it’s called an “em” dash because it’s the approximate width of the letter “M” on a keyboard—but it’s not a bad way to remember what it’s for.

The next one’s one’s trickier. It’s called an en-dash. It’s wider than a hyphen but not as wide as an em-dash, and it’s used to show numerical ranges in place of the word “to,” as in:

“I wrote chapters 12–17 last night.”

“You’ll have to work 8–10 hours on Saturday to make up for the time you missed.”

The en-dash is also used in place of the word “to” when connecting two things, one of which is made up of two words:

“The New York–Boston flight was canceled.”

On the other hand, if both of those things were made up of only one word, you’d use a hyphen to connect them:

“The London-Boston flight was canceled.”

It’s common for people to use a hyphen in place of an en-dash—common, but wrong. (There’s that em-dash again.)

Hyphens are easy. A hyphen is used:

• to combine two words into one compound word, such as “well-being”
• to connect two words that modify a third word, such as in “advanced-level course”
• to separate numbers that are not inclusive (in other words, don’t need the word “to” to connect them), such as phone numbers and Social Security numbers
• when spelling out a word, such as “h-y-p-h-e-n.”

Finally, there’s the double-dash, incorrectly called a “double-dash” because it’s actually made up of two hyphens, not dashes. This has traditionally been used in circumstances where the symbol for a dash is not available, such as on a typewriter keyboard or in ASCII-only character encoding. It’s pretty much fallen by the wayside as technology has made it easy to insert an em-dash into text.

Well, gotta dash. More next time when we tackle the “I/me” substitution and—my favorite—the confusion over “preventive” and “preventative.”

And, yes, I could have used commas instead of those last two em-dashes. But that’s another story.

Check out a few of our favorites below!

TV:

NUVO Bank & Trust Company “Cash Without a Catch” TV Campaign

Market Mentors developed the “Cash Without a Catch” campaign to promote the fact that NUVO Bank will pay all fees at any ATM in the country for customers who have a checking account with Direct Deposit or an average daily balance of $1,000 or more. This sets NUVO apart from other banks and financial institutions who have outrageous ATM and other hidden fees.

Baystate Medical Practices “New Doctors” TV Campaign, featuring Dr. Sara Rourke

We developed a series of “New Doctor” TV ads to help Baystate Medical Practices promote doctors who are accepting new patients. We supported this campaign with advertising on Facebook, and in print and radio advertisements.

Boilard’s “Big Box Busters” TV Campaign

Boilard Lumber’s “Big Box Busters” campaign was a really fun one to work on! We came up with a concept that “busted” people’s idea that “big box” stores offer better deals and values on products than local, independent shops—an  idea that isn’t always true. We made it known that Boilard Lumber, located on Oak Street in Indian Orchard, offers unbeatable deals, expertise, and values on the name brands that contractors and homeowners alike are searching for, along with personal service they won’t find at the big boxes.

DESIGN

Identity:

Springfield Museum Culture & Cocktails Logo Design

Market Mentors was hired in early 2010 to help the Springfield Museums develop a brand image for their new event series, Culture & Cocktails. The series was designed to attract a younger audience to the museums through monthly themed events. We in turn designed posters, postcards and coasters to promote the series—and had a lot of fun in the process.

Women's Health Associates Logo

When we were asked to create a new brand image for Women’s Health Associates in Springfield, MA, we went for something that was eye catching, modern and easily readable. What do you think?

Appleton Corporation Logo

Appleton Corporation, a property management company in Holyoke, desired a new brand identity to update their look and turned to Market Mentors for creative input.

Web:

Women’s Health Associates new website. This was a great project to work on as the team at Women’s Health Associates is so great!

Meredith Springfield website design was a unique project this year, as the work they do as a premier blow molding company really fascinates us. Our interest in what they do right here in West Springfield meant we had a great time developing a new site for them!

Collateral:

Scott Masi, the founder of Chairman of the Board in York, Maine, asked Market Mentors to develop a tri-fold brochure to promote his line of customizable Adirondack chairs and furniture. Using only the best, most natural wood to create his pieces, Masi, also can engrave College or University seal, corporate logo, name, or any other special symbol onto the furniture,  turning it into a unique and comfortable works of art.

Print:

One of our newest clients, Keith G. Roy Construction, of Westfield, MA, wanted to venture into the Hartford, CT, region with his home improvement, remodeling and roofing services. The print ad we created for CT Life helped Keith G. Roy gain a presence in that market.

NUVO Bank Print Ad Series

NUVO Bank & Trust Company is local, independently owned, and headquartered in downtown Springfield, MA. Throughout 2010, we created a variety of print advertisements, including the “I Did It” and “Growth Savings Account” campaigns, as well as ads promoting the Doctors Express/NUVO Bank relationship.

Outdoor

Boilard Lumber's "Man Shopping" Billboard

Man Shopping? That’s right! Man Shopping was a hugely successful campaign for Boilard Lumber.  Market Mentors developed it as a way to position Boilard Lumber as a “boutique” lumber and home improvement store—the kind of boutique that’s okay for men to shop in! No dressing rooms, no long lines, no “Honey, does this make me look fat?” questions. Hallelujah!

EVENTS

AMICCON Press Conference with Co-Founder Ellen Bemben

Market Mentors was hired to assist AMICCON (Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Competition and Conference) in planning and promoting their first event, held at the Mass Mutual Center on 11.16.2010 

Doctors Express Springfield Grand Opening, Sept. 23, 2010

Doctors Express in Springfield officially opened their doors on September 25, 2010. We created a “Grand Opening” campaign, consisting of public relations initiatives, TV, print and radio advertisements. We also built a Facebook Fan Page and hosted a Grand Opening event to promote the new location. Since the opening, Doctors Express has enjoyed enormous success in offering urgent healthcare, without the long emergency room waits and big copays!

Get OnBoard! Event at the Basketball Hall of Fame

OnBoard, Inc. exists to expand the governance diversity of local organizations by enlisting women and people of color to their boards of directors, trustees, and volunteer groups. They also want to inform organizations of “cultural competency” and why it is so important. Market Mentors was hired to produce the group’s 2nd “Get OnBoard!” event, which helps connect organizations with interested individuals in a speed-dating format. The event was held at the Basketball Hall of Fame on October 28th and turned out to be an enormous success. It was a great event to be a part of and we can’t wait for the next one!

The 2010 Safe Kids Expo

Market Mentors produces the Annual Safe Kids Expo each year, bringing in local families for safety tips, fun activities, and more! Parents are able to have their children fingerprinted through the MyChip program, for no cost at all.

Market Mentors planned, produced, and promoted the 2010 Home Builders of Massachusetts President, Walt Tomala.

Market Mentors produced the 2010 Home Builders of Massachusetts State Officers Installation Ceremony at the Basketball Hall of Fame. Walt Tomala, owner of TNT Contracting, was sworn in as the new President.

VOLUNTEERING

Elizabeth Taras and the crew from 94.7 WMAS volunteering at the 2010 Coats for Kids distribution event!

Each year, our employees volunteer their time to help the Salvation Army of Springfield and other local organizations. This year, we volunteered at the annual Coats for Kids event, which provides families in need with new or gently-used winter coats to make sure no child goes cold.

PUBLIC RELATIONS:

NUVO Bank's Trent Taylor in Business West article, "Nickel and Dimed"

Meredith Springfield's Business West article, "Breaking the Mold"

Click the following links for some other great stories:

AMICCON on ABC 40′s Making a Difference

Coats for Kids on ABC 40′s Making a Difference

Safe Kids Expo on WWLP’s Mass Appeal

Public relations is very important at Market Mentors. We value the coverage we are able to garner for our clients, and believe it is the best possible value in marketing communications. Many companies and agencies overlook the power of PR, but we recognize its importance and work hard every day to shine the spotlight on our valued clients.

So there you have it—a sampling of some of our favorite work from the past year. We wish all of our clients, readers, and friends a safe, healthy, and happy New Year! See you in 2011!

-The Market Mentors team

P.S. Our #1 favorite project of the year had to be creating our agency video. It was a blast to work on and we are so happy with how it turned out. Enjoy!

It is trackable,  two-sided, flexible and best of all… free. It’s not for everyone, but it IS for banks and financial institutions, and here we show how.

Check out the presentation below for some successful strategies on making the most of social networking. Leave a comment on your thoughts or if you have any questions!

Social media for banks and financial institutions

Everyone loves snuggies.... right?

Keep an eye out for this years! Coming soon. Happy Holidays everyone!