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100 Tricks to Appear Smart in Meetings

Andrews McMeel Universal

Profile

Started in 1970, Andrews McMeel Universal (AMU) is the publishing company famous for bringing you classic comics like "Peanuts," "Doonesbury," and "Garfield." But their publishing prowess goes far beyond comics—the world-renowned "Dear Abby" editorial, Rupi Kaur’s smash hit “Milk & Honey,” and countless best-selling humor, cookbook, puzzle, and children’s books all belong to their lineup.

Right Message, Right Time

Ads were created for each stage of the consumer journey.

Objectives

About to add Sarah Cooper’s hilarious satire “100 Tricks to Appear Smart in Meetings” to their lineup, AMU approached us for help in promoting the new book and its launch party events across the country. Initial campaign ideas included paid social, retargeting email, and even out-of-home tactics that would reach employees of the corporate, startup, and tech worlds. With these tactics and audiences in mind, we needed to develop the right message and creative execution that would align with the book’s branding, build awareness, generate interest, and, of course, drive book purchases.

Results

After reading the book (and honestly laughing out loud every page), it was clear a key element to selling the book would be to connect people with its sense of humor and give them a glimpse of its material. Knowing the book’s satirical nature wouldn’t be clear every time to everyone, we balanced existing material with newly crafted copy that echoed the tone of the book. We then pulled in elements of its illustrations and pushed out the creative direction to each tactic, from social to email to a center stage ad on the VTA Light Rail in Silicon Valley.