As a recently engaged woman, I’ve been doing a lot of research within the wedding industry. And I have to admit, the amount of terrible marketing in the field has been fairly shocking. Some examples…

(Note: these observations/suggestions could easily transfer to many other industries.)

Photography

The wedding venue my fiancé and I chose is beautiful, charming and rustic… but you’d never guess from the photography on its website. Photography should be the Number One sales tool for wedding venues. How else will potential clients get a feel for your space and envision themselves choosing your facility for one of the most important days of their lives? (Luckily, I heard about my venue from a trusted friend, or I may have missed out completely.)

Salespeople

I attended a bridal show a few weeks ago and encountered the worst salesperson I have met in my entire life. As I approached his booth, where he was sitting on the table, he immediately told me how much he didn’t want to be there. He then asked where my wedding was to be held. After I told him, his head immediately dropped. “Not there,” he says. “You should consider choosing another venue.” Not something an excited bride-to-be wants to hear mere hours after she signs her contract for the venue. The guy goes on to explain that they don’t like the place because it’s up on a hill, it’s hard to get equipment to, it’s on the smaller side, yada, yada, yada. Really, dude? Make sure you keep your employees in check. That first impression of your company could easily make or break the sale.

Websites

Or shall I say, lack thereof. I’ve looked up multiple vendors only to find their profiles on YellowPages.com, and nowhere else. Hello! Get yourself a website. Hire a freelancer, ask a friend for help. Anything to have some presence in cyber space. That’s where I’m doing most of my research, and I’m assuming most other brides are doing the same.

Taglines

This is a more minor one, but just something I noticed. Taglines such as “Photography you can live with,” are not the most convincing. Maybe run your tagline by a few people (or anyone, for that matter) before it goes live? This idea also can translate to your company name in general. For example, alliteration using letters that aren’t actually in the correct spelling of what you are trying to say. Often seen with “K”s used in place of “C”s.

As a marketing/communications professional, I might be a bit more sensitive to these blunders than the average bride. However, I think most others in my position would appreciate the improvements.

We at Z2 are huge fans of The Pfister Hotel—not only because it’s a client of ours, but also because it is just such a darn amazing place. One of our favorite projects we work on with the hotel is its Artist-in-Residence program. I mean, how many hotels do you know of that have an artist creating work right on site?

The hotel is currently in the process of selecting its next great artist. This year’s finalists are Pamela Anderson; Matt Duckett; Albin Erhart; Hal Koenig; Brandon Minga; and Timothy Westbrook. Now the public will help choose the next artist.

Beginning this evening, you can visit The Pfister’s website and Facebook page to vote for the artist you’d like to see as the next artist in residence. Votes can also be cast via Twitter (#ArtistInResidence). Voting will end Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012, and the selection committee will announce the next artist in residence soon thereafter. The public vote will equate to one seat on the selection committee, influencing the final decision.

If you’d like to check out work by the six finalists, head down to Gallerie M, inside InterContinental Milwaukee, for January Gallery Night, taking place this evening. You can cast your vote right there! And don’t forget to stop by The Pfister to say hello to The Pfister’s current artist Shelby Keefe, as she hosts her final Gallery Night in the space. Stick around The Pfister afterward for a fun reception and live entertainment. Hope to see you there!

Last week we celebrated another year with our “z2 inspired Holiday Party” which included a 5-course breakfast at The Pfister Hotel, followed by a train ride to Chicago for a bit of shopping before heading out to Moto in Chicago for a 15-course meal (yes, I said 15!) that included 9 savory dishes, 6 desserts, and edible paper and ink along the way.

And the chefs? You may have seen Richie Farina and Chris Jones on Top Chef: Texas. Yeah, those were our chefs…

It was definitely an experience to be remembered. A big thanks goes out to Cory and Deb from all the Z2 staff for this one.

Happy Holidays everyone! :)

I’m a bit of a fan of creativity challenges (and yes, I’ve done a few myself) so when I heard that The Pfister Hotel’s current Artist in Residence Shelby Keefe was planning to do 30 painting in 30 days, I was excited to see the outcome. Oh, I should mention, I’m also a big fan of Shelby’s work.

The theme of her 30 paintings is “People in Urban Landscapes” and if you know her work, you should know that’s a perfect theme for her to tackle. Check out the Pfister Blog for more info about the project.

Want to see these painting and other work by Shelby? You’re in luck! Fall Gallery Night is October 21, 2011. Stop by and check it out!

It’s not easy taking something as simple as the UNICEF trick or treat donation box and making it evolve with technology but the people over at the United States Committee for UNICEF have managed to do just that. In 1950, the year of it’s inception, the program raised just $17 when a small group of kids in Philadelphia, PA walked their neighborhood asking for dimes and nickels instead of treats and candy on Halloween. That has grown to the massive participation today which has raised over $144 million for undernourished children.

The box has slowly evolved since it’s origins. In the 50′s, it was just an empty milk carton. In 2008 UNICEF introduced mobile phone text messaging, along with donation collections on MySpace and Facebook. Starting this year participants will have to opportunity to scan a QR code which will make the donation experience much more interactive. Not only are you able to donate through this web portal, but you can also upload a picture of yourself and create a digital costume which can be shared over the web. Depending on your donation amount, you are able to select from a number of digital costumes and photo effects.

So this year as you are out buying bags of candy for the children of your neighborhood, be sure to also download a QR code reader and do your part to help the less fortunate children in the world.