Blog - Aasman Brand Communications

Intentionally Air North

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:49:50 GMT

This past Sunday I spent the morning alone on a quite outdoor rink waiting for the sun to rise over Riverdale. My thoughts turned to Air North and what factors they faced in competing with two national carriers. I kept arriving at one consistent point - Yukoners are Intentional.

We don't live at -40 by accident. We climb mountains, paddle rivers, fish until 3am and then fish again through 3 feet of ice. We grow long beards and in February our women grow long leg beards. We choose this life and we do it with pride.

The Air North brand exudes flexibility and kindness, caring and good food, intentionally investing in our community and improving the lives of all Yukoners. While the outside world measures success through consumption, Yukon has valued community and intentional living. Yukoners have a choice to make and local businesses would do well to pay attention.

We all share this arctic oasis and are faced with moving from the magical to the mundane. We can tear down rinks to build new houses but does doing so not hollow out the intentional lifestyle of the folks who built this place?

It's all up for debate because we're owners, too.

my cold heart has no strings to pull: super bowl ad review

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:56:53 GMT

If you know me at all, you might be surprised to hear I watched the Super Bowl yesterday. If you know me well, you'll understand I watched it only for the excuse to eat snack food all afternoon and witness the "Madonna is a complete narcissist and we all love it" half-time show.

As a result, I happened to catch a few of the epic Super Bowl commercials, including the Chrysler spot featuring Clint Eastwood. It actually prompted me to yell "Stop trying to manipulate my feelings Clint Eastwood! I know you're getting paid big money to spout this go team America crap in the name of selling cars!" at the tv. Or something like that. It's a bit hazy now—I'd already had a few and was pretty much on my way to a major food-coma as well.

Anyway, I do remember right around the point when old Clint said it was "half-time for America, too" that the golden veil between immaculate creative execution and grubby consumerist culture dropped.

Now I love interesting, cool, innovative advertising and I'm guilty of getting emotionally hooked by it all the time. I love advertising the most when, even though I know its only purpose is to make me do/buy something I don't need, I don't even care because the creative is so darn amazing. This Chrysler commercial fell way short of the mark for me—it just felt too pandering, too populist and too obvious.

After watching it again at work this morning, I thought maybe my nacho-fueled rage yesterday may have been a bit of an over-reaction. I still think it's a crappy commercial, but in the more rational light of Monday morning, I'm more in tune with the fact I'm obviously not the target market for this ad.

So I'm curious . . . do you think the angle Chrysler is taking is an effective one for their target market? And for that matter, who do you think their target market is judging by their Super Bowl ad?

(Feel free to sound off on other Super Bowl ads and share your favourites with us, too.)

Shout out to the new Whitehorse website

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 17:01:21 GMT

Whitehorse has a new website and it's MUCH improved.

Starting with the name itself: whitehorse.ca is far easier to remember than city.whitehorse.yk.ca.

I have spent a few frustrated afternoons (to put it mildly) trying to navigate the old site and I am very pleased with how resourceful the new site is. Some highlights include:

The Notify Me section for press releases, newsletters and more

The festival sub-site under Visitors. Design-wise, there are some awful shadows and glows here that deviate from the look of the main site, but look how exciting February in Whitehorse is!

The Canada Games Centre section is really nice too, and automatically loads today's schedule.

I find the background looks a little bit like American money, but the site was designed by an American company called Vision Internet that specializes in Government websites, so I guess it's part of the terrain.

There's a strange gradient fading the city's logo into the background which confuses me. But other than a few nit-picky things, the site is pleasing and very useful. Have a look through—you're sure to find something you'll want to come back to!

Let’s write a story

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 19:59:02 GMT

I've got the beginning of this story… add to it by posting a comment below.

With an all-day menu consisting of chips, hot dogs and pre-wrapped sandwiches from the gas station on Wilger Lane, it had always been clear to the more polished townspeople that what happened at the Stumbling Monkey had very little to do with food. After three decades tending the towns only licensed restaurant, he should have seen it coming.

He first heard Nettie Spencer refer to herself in the third person as he unloaded beer steins from the aging rotary dishwasher. A mental note instantly appeared on the post-it of his brain: That tall vodka/water with a splash of lime, but not too much lime this time, residing in her left hand will be her last.

The fight broke out shortly after the Leaf's game ended. Elaine Solomon, a spry retiree from the main street post office, had Nettie Specncer by the...

this is not a french horn

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:14:23 GMT

Congratulations Micheal Pealow! Micheal won two tickets for tomorrow night's Whitehorse Concerts presentation of Guy & Nadina—lucky man.

And knowledgable, too. It was a bit of a tricky question because the instrument does very closely resemble a french horn, but is, in fact, called a corno da caccia or cornet de cassio.

Thanks for entering everyone. Keep your eyes peeled for our next contest.

For your viewing pleasure, Shit Musicians Say — yet another spoof of the original Shit Girls Say series.

Stay warm and have a great weekend.

Win Tickets to Guy & Nadina – Carnets de Voyages

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:32:41 GMT

Welcome to Monday friends—just another -40 day in the Yukon. Fortunately, we've got another contest to warm up your week.

Tell us the correct name of this instrument . . .

and you will be entered to win two tickets to the highly anticipated Guy & Nadina storytellers' recital presented by Whitehorse Concerts on Saturday, January 21.

Contest closes Thursday, January 19 at noon and we'll contact the winner shortly after. So all you music nerds, cultural aficionados and the curious alike, get your entries in.

Happy 2012…. and 1982!

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:18:03 GMT

Aside from making sparkler art, I spent my holiday with my nose buried in the Steve Jobs biography. What a jerk, but such a prolific one—responsible for Apple, Pixar, and iStuff (you know what I mean, iTunes, iPod, etc). It's a great read though—author Walter Isaacson weaves the electronic advances since the '70s and how Steve Jobs propelled many of them forward with dramatic personal tidbits in such a way that it's a page-turner.

As an '80s baby, it's neat to read about how the computer industry evolved as I grew up and where I sit now, typing on my iMac. Oh, by the way, the "i" in iMac, is because the product is integrated with the internet!

Me in 1982 and Apple's short-lived computer 'Lisa' in 1983. At this time I believe the computer was bigger than me.

Me in 2011 and the iMac at the beginning on 2012. Thankfully I am not the size of this computer!

Any guesses as to what it will look like by 2013?

Merry Christmas from everyone at aasman

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 20:55:01 GMT

To fully experience the joys of the Christmas season, people need the warmth and comforts of a home. So this year we’re donating to Habitat for Humanity to help build warm and comfortable homes for three Yukon families (habitatyukon.org).

To help spread the message with our clients and friends, we've created a small flipbook to share. You can see the animation here.

From everyone at aasman, may the spirit of Christmas fill your home with peace, joy and renewal.

Winter Solstice Contest!

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:28:18 GMT

In a few short days (pun intended) is the winter solstice, and we'd like to celebrate this darkest of days with a contest.

Enter to win your choice of two prizes: a two-hour branding consultation with aasman or a gift card from itunes.

All you have to do is tell us what time the sun will set on December 21, 2011 in Whitehorse.

Correct answers will be entered in a draw and we'll randomly select the winner from our fancy contest hat (i.e. a plastic bag from Tags).

Our solstice contest is now closed. A big thank you to everyone who entered, commented or just stopped by for a look. We'll reveal the results tomorrow. Stay tuned...

Photos
top: Paul Mantle
bottom: Nicolas Dory

An East Coast Christmas

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 18:51:29 GMT

If you're an east coaster in Canada there's a good chance you don't live on the east coast. East coasters gravitate to Fort Mac, Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver, Whitehorse or any other place where employment is steady – we're a migrating people. That's why each Christmas scores of islanders and mainlanders are homesick, stuck sipping B.C.- brewed Keiths, checking savings accounts and planning for trips home next year. (or maybe the year after.)

Three years ago I was in that boat – my first Christmas away from Nova Scotia – and found myself on YouTube one afternoon searching in vain for a commercial that said loudly and proudly: HOME! When I finally found it I began posting it to siblings' and friends' Facebook walls and the reposts began instantly. There was a connection, this was my generation's childhood in under two mintues.

This spot was created when Sobeys was a regional player, not a national chain, so you'd never see an ad like this from the grocery retailer today. Nonetheless this spot works online – in the emotions of thousands of displaced east coasters, Sobeys has an opportunity to restate its position as the longtime authority in kitchens from Balls Creek to Quispamsis. Imagine being able to "gift this" to friends via Facebook courtesy of Sobeys, so simple.

That idea's free Sobeys, Merry Christmas!