class="tag"Posts Tagged ‘community’
8 Comments KW Kiwanis Cash Calendar – Giveaway
Community Involvement
In earlier posts we suggested everyone should be preparing for 2019 now. Here at The Sign Depot we have been getting ready for the new year for quite a while now. One of the first things we did to prepare for 2019 was to sponsor a spot in the first annual KW Kiwanis Cash Calendar. We learned about it through Greater KW Chamber CPN Group member Ian Inglis. This fundraising calendar is raising money for local community organizations and we are glad to be a part of this inaugural calendar campaign!
Grab You Calendar
Now is the time to grab your CASH CALENDAR! The cost is $20 and there is a chance to win money every day of the year! To order you own calendar 2019 KW Kiwanis Cash Calender be sure to contact IAN before they are gone. Then keep watch at https://kwkiwaniscashcalendar.ca to see if you are a winner in 2019. Don’t worry about checking everyday. If you win they will contact you. It will also make a great gift to give someone. The timing is perfect for the holiday season as Christmas present, a stocking stuffer or a Secret Santa gift. Because it is affordable and helps the KW Kiwanis Club help others our community, you may want to get one for everyone on your Christmas List. Once you get your calendar we hope you flip it open to MAY 2019 to see our ad. We are so excited about it and want to giveaway a KW KIWANIS CASH CALENDAR to one of readers!
Enter To Win
Enter the rafflecopter contest below (it may take a minute to load). Make sure leave us a comment with your plans for 2019 and it may just win you your very own KW KIWANIS CASH CALENDAR! What a great way to start off the new year.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Carving Out A Spot In Our Community
Bring On The Buddy Benches
After the success of the Buddy Bench project last spring, 91.5 The Beat approached us to once again be part of their next round of School Tour Buddy Benches. We were so happy to see how well received they are at the local schools and gladly accepted the chance to sandblasted the cedar with donor recognition names and the BUDDY BENCH text for this next round of school visits.
Positive Community Involvement
Today the first of the fall Buddy Benches was awarded to St. Matthew Elementary School in Waterloo Ontario. One of our Sign Depot Facebook Fan Page members, Jennifer Beckett, sent us this emotional message regarding today’s presentation, along with a picture of her son sitting on the new St. Matthew’s Buddy Bench.
St. Matthew Catholic School in Waterloo had some sad times recently with the tragic passing of a student over the summer followed by the arson of the school’s only play structure a few days before school started. A visit from 91.5 The Beat and the donation of a Buddy Bench from The Sign Depot & Cedarland Lumber was just the warm hug this wonderful, caring school community needed! Thank you!
To see that this is going to make such a positive impact on the school that has experience such hardship recently is exactly the reason why community projects are so important. To learn more about this project and what exactly a Buddy Bench does for the school’s students, visit our post COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT – THE BUDDY BENCH. To give your school a chance to receive a Buddy Bench of their own, enter the contest at 91.5 The Beat.
Did your local school receive a Buddy Bench? We would love to hear about the positive impact it is making. Leave a comment below so we can learn more about our locally Buddy Benches.
Community Involvement – The Buddy Bench Project
Buddying Up With Our Community
Recently we were contacted by our local radio station 91.5 The Beat to see if we would be interested in their latest School Tour project. They were looking for a business that values community involvement to assist with their BUDDY BENCH initiative. We were glad they came to us and we could help with the project. This may have you wondering what we mean by “BUDDY BENCH” but we think the video below describes it best.
How A Buddy Bench Works
This 3 minute video is a great example of what a BUDDY BENCH can do. Many children often struggle with making friends, joining in and/or finding someone to talk to. The idea of putting a BUDDY BENCH in a school playground assists the children that need a little help in this area. They sit on the bench and a spotter will come and sit with them and strike up a conversation. This little engagement can do a lot to improve the mental health and/or self esteem in kids. It also assists with stopping bullying at school.
Bring On The Buddy Benches
91.5 The Beat is donating BUDDY BENCHES to 3 local schools. Together with our friends at Fiddlesheads and Cedarland Lumber we assisted them with this important community project.
Our involvement was to engrave the words BUDDY BENCH along with the sponsors names into the wooden bench. To do this we sandblasted the bench pieces to carve into the wood. Yesterday the first bench was donated to a local school and as you can see it was all smiles when it was received.
Proud to donate this “Buddy Bench” to #MillenWoodsPS – All thanks to @Fiddleheads_HN @TheSignDepot & @CedarlandLumber for making this happen 😁🙌 pic.twitter.com/dMKOCMUYWw
— 91.5 The Beat (@915theBeat) May 10, 2018
Thank you @915theBeat for your lovely donation of the Buddy Bench for @MillenWoods. Everyone deserves to have a friend. See someone sitting alone? Go say HI. 👋🏼 Be their buddy. 😊 #WRDSBlive pic.twitter.com/nsLL9ZAEa0
— Waterloo Region DSB (@wrdsb) May 10, 2018
Sandblasting wood is something we have been doing for over 25 years. If you want more info about our sandblasted wood signs please visit our portfolio and if you see something you are interested in please CONTACT US!
Small Business Week – Collaborate With Your Community
Small Business Week In Canada
The third week of October is Small Business Week here in Canada. It is a time for those in the small business sector to seek recognition or learn about business opportunities in their area. This year we are shining a spotlight on community involvement. We try to collaborate with local organizations and events that involve art and design. Recently we sponsored FLUXIBLE a UX Design conference with a theme of art meeting tech.
This year we provided in kind signage and Peter had the opportunity to present at a “BROWN BAG LUNCH SESSION”
Peter from @TheSignDepot is talking about sign design at today’s brown bag lunch session. #Fluxible2017 pic.twitter.com/4k8H3B5nQN
— Fluxible (@Fluxible) September 20, 2017
Later this month we will sponsoring the Grand River Film Festival. This year’s theme is about tech design which is something we are passionate about as we are always looking for ways to innovate and create new trends in the sign industry.
The Importance Of Community Involvement
As a small business we think it is very important to be involved in our local community. You can find us at Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber Of Commerce events, local conferences, community gatherings, charity fundraisers and more.
We understand the importance of community involvement and we constantly look for ways to connect with others in the area. It helps us understand what people are looking for, know what they can expect from us, connect with our peers and find out what everyone thinks of our brand. It assists in finding out what is working us and where we can improve. All of these factor in our future goals and help us concentrate on our efforts locally.
Celebrating Small Business
How do you celebrate Small Business Week? We would love to learn more about your business as well. Leave a comment below with what Small Business means to you and how you help others with their small business ventures.
Ways To Increase Your Visibility In Your Community
Top 5 Ways To Improve Your Company’s Visibility Within Your Community
- Do Not Put It On The Back Burner – Many businesses say that they are going to eventually work on their company’s visibility, but you need to state when this will happen. Figure out how you will accomplish this and set a timeline for each step of the way. Once you have put these steps of action in place be sure to celebrate each milestone that you execute and achieve.
2. Get Your Business Involved In The Community – Sponsor local events that are a good fit with your brand. Be sure to bring signs that represent your business so that you can be fully present during the event. Always follow up with the people that you met during that time to get their feedback about how they liked the event overall.
3. Network Within Your Community – Join local business groups such as your local Chamber of Commerce and see what opportunities they provide for networking within the local business community. Make sure to contact the business representatives you connected with to see how you can work together going forward. A B2B relationship can be lucrative for both sides.
4. Find Local Influencers And Make Them Your Ambassadors – Check out who is talking about your local area on social media and connect with them. Find ways you can work together to increase your visibility to their audience, and be sure to reciprocate by sharing their content with your networks as well. It makes for a win-win situation for both parties.
5. Refresh Your Signage – Your business signs are 24 hour advertisements for your business. Nothing captures attention like a bold new custom sign in front of your company. Be sure to increase visibility by adding vinyl window graphics and A-Frame signs. The ensures your business is noticed by both vehicle traffic and those walking by.
These simple steps will quickly improve your company’s stature. By making a few changes it will make a positive impact on your business and your company will become known as an establishment that your community respects and connects with. This keeps your business top of mind with those within your vicinity, which makes it more likely that they will give their business to your company down the road.
Signs Of Community Involvement – TEDx
Connected Community
We want to ensure that our community involvement brings people together for a common good and this new event was something that was recognized as a positive change for our local area. With our past community involvement in TEDx Waterloo we were thrilled that TEDx Kitchener came to us to bring their branding to centre stage, especially since the theme for this event was Fostering Connectivity.
For highlights from the event be sure to check out their #TEDxKitchenerED hashtag to see what those in attendance thought of the conference.
Grabbing The Attention Of An Audience
As a way to introduce TEDx Kitchener, a dimensional sign was created to draw in the audience members. This stand up sign stood out from the stage but did not take away from the speakers’ presentations. It is imperative for signs to have a unique look without becoming an eye-sore, so this one was designed for modern style of the TEDx brand. To acheive the clean look the sign letters were router cut on our CNC table.
Vinyl was applied to the letters and they were placed into a custom platform piece to hold up the sign.
While following the TEDxKitchenerED twitter feed, we noticed that the sign grabbed the attention of audience member @KWSarah when she tweeted this pic
All set for #TEDxKitchenerED tonight ! #kwawesome pic.twitter.com/NPERJQTuJv
— Sarah Bach (@kwsarah) May 20, 2014Community Involvement In Your Area
Community involvement has always been a part of what we do here at The Sign Depot. We want to know how you get involved in your community. There are many ways of doing so. Do you volunteer? Donate to a charitable organization? Participate in community events? How do you give back to your community? We look forward to hearing about it! Leave a comment below, post on our facebook page or send us a tweet. We are always looking to connect with local community as well as our online community. We think that is great way to begin Fostering Connectivity.
Sign Depot Business Client Spotlight – The Bauer Kitchen’s Amandah Wood
Get To Know Amandah Wood
1. Amandah can you tell us about your role at The Bauer Kitchen?
As New Media Culturalist for the Charcoal Group, I manage The Bauer Kitchen’s online community through their Twitter account @thebauerkitchen and their Facebook page. In addition I was brought on to update the overall online presence of TBK, by developing a new website, that functions on every device and represents the TBK brand more effectively. The new site reflects TBK’s upbeat, soho image and allows guests to make reservations, browse food and drink menus and check out upcoming events. I love being able to interact with TBK’s guests online everyday, the restaurant has a vibrant community and loyal regulars which makes my job really rewarding.
2. What drew you to this role?
I was originally recommended to Jody Palubiski (Managing Partner of the Charcoal Group) and Cindy Perri (Brand Guardian) by a friend on Twitter who had been following the stuff I had been working on during my Bachelor’s degree. I reached out to Jody and Cindy and we discussed how my experience might make me the kind of person they were looking for. I was about to graduate from the New Media program at Ryerson University and was overjoyed at the possibility of working for a group that had been such a huge part of my life growing up in Kitchener-Waterloo region. Time and again the group has proved not only their excellence in service and food but they truly believe in supporting local, and hand crafting every possible element of the dining experience. They also embrace new technology and innovation and try to think outside of the box. I knew I would have no trouble representing a restaurant that aligned so perfectly with things I care so deeply about. This is what really drew me to the role.3. The restaurant industry has a lot of competition. What do you do to make sure that The Bauer Kitchen stands out?
The short answer to this is that the incredible team at TBK makes it easy. Conrad and his team are consistent when it comes to attention to detail, positivity, and passionate service. Chef Brian leads a culinary team as equally passionate in their craft and supporting the local food community surrounding them.
4. What do you think are some of the deciding factors that keep customers coming back to The Bauer Kitchen?
Consistency & passion. Business folks bring their clients for meetings because they know they’ll get the same great experience every time. Friends come back because they love the diverse selection of cocktails and the upbeat environment that makes it ideal for socializing. Wine lovers know they’ll always find something they like as our sommelier Jake keeps the extensive wine list ever changing and of course the delicious, delicious food. Together, this team exudes this passion that all of the Charcoal Group restaurants have, and that, is truly magnetic.
5. How do you attract new clientele to the establishment?
By always thinking two-steps ahead. We use technology to our advantage. the maegan™ platform is a good example of this by introducing new ways for a guest to use the restaurant experience. We are always asking ourselves “what’s next?”.We also love socializing events like Cinq a Sept, that reflect the casual and social nature of The Bauer Kitchen and the community surrounding it. Every Thursday between 5pm to 7pm we encourage people to join us around the bar for drinks and good conversation, we also provide complimentary appetizers that offer a sample of our menu. Teaming up with other local businesses is such a great way to build connections and introduce us to new markets. For example, using local suppliers like the Bauer Butcher and Caudle’s Catch on our menus, Promotional Elements for parts of our employee’s uniforms and retail program in the Bakery, Sign Depot for signage needs, local contractors for architectural elements, offer in restaurant promotion like our last one with Goliger’s travel, Centre in the Square and Spike Mobile for additional promotions, and supporting local arts and technology (ie. maegan and Communitech) in events. That’s just a few off the top of my head, there’s too many to mention but we are always interested in connections.Mostly we reach out into the community and leverage word of mouth via regular guests and those who have enjoyed their experiences in the past.
What Story Is Your Brand Telling? Is It A Sign Of Community Involvement?
Signs That Your Brand’s Community Is Looking For The Story
It has been almost two years since Budweiser created an impact through community involvement. By speaking to their community’s love of hockey through the 2012 Super Bowl commercial, they let their audience know they understand community spirit and comradery. Since then many brands have began to realize that it’s their stories that resonate with their audience. New messaging has become about emotional intelligence and brand images instead of the “buy now” ads of the past. Consumers are purchasing from brands they trust and are looking to see how companies understand their needs.
Duracell’s latest ad is great example of this. Duracell makes hearing aid batteries, but at no point is it mentioned in the ad
Duracell chose to let Derrick’s story take the forefront, ending the ad with their brand image. To many, a logo is just a way to represent a company, but brands know that images provide a respresentation for reputation of their business. They are what make businesses easy to recognize. Being memorable is the best way to stand out in your industry.
So What’s Your Story?
What does your company do to get involved in the community? Those are the stories that your audience is looking for. Perhaps you sponsor an event or are involved in community awareness campaign. By making the world a better place you are letting your community know you are eager to be involved in what is important to them. That is what makes you stand out.
Refresh Your Brand And Make An Impact
If you’re not sure how to involve storytelling into your brand messaging start with your company image. Does it make an impact? Does it stand out from others in the industry? Is it good representation of what your company stands for? If not, it may be time to refresh your brand. Rebranding your company’s image to align with your new messaging can change the way consumers see your business. For ideas on designing a new brand image be sure to check out our post on artistic sign design and start the new year off right.
Signs, Sticks and Superbowl. Why Brands Need To Build Community Spirit
Setting The Stage With Your Signage
By now you have saw the majority of ads that will be played during Superbowl XLVI, but this one is the real Standout.
http://youtu.be/y0qZYqdsYAgNotice The Signs
At no point in this commercial are there any beer bottles being opened or draught beer being poured. The only representation of the brand during this commercial is through the signage. It starts with the little signs on the announcers’ microphones, but then the 1:11 mark of the vid is when the impact of the banners hit. After that the brand image is shown on the arena boards. The brand message shows up at the end, displayed on the screen.
Creating Impact Through Community Involvment
Finding a way to impact a community is a great way to bring your brand to the masses . They become your audience and you just might convert some of those community members into clients for your business. Whether the community you hope to reach is online, watching on a television or in a hockey arena you need find creative ways to grab their attention and get them to recognize your brand and what it can do for them. Choosing new marketing ideas like social media, can be challenging, but creating a community of ambassadors for your brand keeps your business top of mind for many. Many don’t realize marketing is different than sales. Marketing is about bringing your business to market. Where do you fit in with your competition? The best marketers know that a community makes your brand. It’s how they feel about your business. That is what can give you the edge over your competitors and in turn can bring you more clients. Find a community to market to and do it in a way that makes them feel appreciated. Choose your method of communication. This brand chose signage. We commend them for that.
Not once through the commercial is the brand name spoken of. They let the signs speak for themselves.
Community Companies Collaborative Christmas Contest
Countdown Christmas Contest
Through a collaborative effort created by Spike Mobileand a few community minded businesses we are now partof the COUNTDOWN CHRISTMAS CONTEST starting today Dec 19th 2011.
It’s fun online scavenger hunt & you have a chance at some great prizes including a Sign Depot welcome sign.
Just read the daily questions and submit your answers and you will be entered in the draw.
By choosing to take part in the contest we’re not eligble to win so watch our twitter for clues. You can also join in the convo by using the hashtag #spikemobileCCC
So make sure to enter by clicking the poster below
Let us know what you think of the contest and most of all make sure you and your loved ones
Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year
