Ideas & Insight

Project Background   Farrell’s eXtreme Bodyshaping (FXB) is a fitness franchise headquartered in Des Moines, IA. Their comprehensive program includes kickboxing, strength training, nutritional plans and community support. FXB is well known for drastic physical transformations and significant weight loss that members see after only a few weeks.   Since 2001, Farrell’s has grown to over 70 locations around the country and has aspirations to double in size over the next few years. To accomplish this goal, they have been exhibiting at expos to attract potential franchisees to partner in...

With everyone focusing on digital marketing, it can be easy to forget how effective “real-world marketing” can be. We’re talking about live event engagement — which actually combines both real-world marketing and digital marketing. A couple of things we at Applied Art & Technology know a lot about.   In our experience with live event production and marketing, we’ve found that attendees remember certain companies and brands most when there is a strong digital component to complement their “real-world” presence. Examples of digital experiences range from social media to virtual reality, ...

In today’s ever-evolving business climate, trade show events still persist. Why? Because they work. Trade shows provide an excellent venue to increase your brand’s visibility, showcase your latest products and services and connect with thousands of potential customers- all within a short span of time. But with so little time and a lot of competition, how can your brand stand out?   By connecting and engaging with attendees before, during, and after the trade show. How your brand engages with customers before and after the show is just as important as the event...

  If you’re up to speed on VR (Virtual Reality), then you’ve probably heard about AR (Augmented Reality), and if you’re really on the bleeding edge you may even know of MR (Merged Reality). All of this technology is incredibly popular right now. Marketers are scrambling to get on board as the online platforms quickly develop new capabilities. Facebook F8 2017 anyone?  We want to help you understand the basics so you can show off your knowledge at your next marketing meeting. Let’s start with the essentials: VR vs. AR ...

  It's National Beer Day once again! Time for another survey of some of the finest Iowa craft beers I've had the pleasure of tasting in recent months. With so many great local brews to choose from, it gets harder and harder to keep this list short. Again, some of these may be in short supply, so if you can't get your hands on these I've included selections that should be easier to come by.   Carpe Diem - Mahdouse Brewing Company, Des Moines A welcome yearly released bourbon barrel-aged Imperial Stout with cocoa nibs, Kona coffee,...

One of the most exciting developments at Applied Art in 2016 was the christening of our treehouse studio space. Being able to offer shoots using not only natural light but also natural moonlight, which helped us revolutionize the video industry yet again. And being able to offer meeting space for Stargazers & Cats on the Prairie was a bonus. Cuddling our prairie living felines has provided more than a little stress relief therapy. Alas, the pesky windstorm that blew...

  Looking for new ideas for your tradeshow? We’re wrapping an extended tradeshow roadtrip and have a few ideas! Here’s a quick overview of the innovative work we did for one of our clients. Record-setting booth attendance! Our Tradeshow Experience Team was in Las Vegas with John Deere at ConExpo. Deere has already set booth attendance records throughout the show. We’re live-streaming in 360 VR Throughout the duration of the show, we not only broadcasted live from the floor at ConExpo, we were broadcasting LIVE in 360°! We’re really excited about ...

As an interactive developer, I’m pretty much always on the hunt for fresh technologies with surprising uses. And when it comes to trade shows, I’ve built enough interactives to know that the goal on a trade show floor is as much getting people to remember your brand as it is introducing new ideas. So when an on-site project took me to the Consumer Electronics Show a few weeks ago, I was excited to see what the biggest players were bringing to the table. This annual 3-day tradeshow in Las Vegas...

We just returned from sunny Phoenix, home of this year's Commodity Classic, America's largest farmer-led, farmer-focused convention & trade show. Throughout the weekend, we could be found with the Firestone exhibit. We set up a pop-up theater feature, an eye-catching video, and lighting design to showcase the latest AD2 tires.  We also provided A/V support from our plush headquarters inside the theater. Check it out:   

As bandwidth increases and video production methods become more efficient, businesses are using video as a primary method of communicating with their customers and prospects. Video is a marketer's media tool of choice for two reasons: Video is engaging and, more importantly, video is persuasive. Here are some of the ways that businesses are using video to help improve their bottom line: Advertising, Marketing and Promotion: 1. TV Commercials TV commercials are still the best marketing investment. TV's ROI has increased by 22% in the last five years and is 2.5 times more effective at creating ...

2013 is proving to be a year of milestones at Applied Art, and one of those milestones includes Karri Higgins' 25th consecutive Maytag Commercial Laundry Annual Meeting. Karri heads up Black Cat Productions, a one-woman powerhouse of event production and support services housed in Applied Art. She works closely with founding partner Mark Wilke on event and meeting production. So closely, in fact, that they often spend day and night together (they've been happily married for 24 years). Karri has worked on Maytag events since the late 1980's. Her first Commercial Laundry...

Applied Art graphic artist Scott Kaven created this vibrant :30 web spot for Songdish. Songdish is a new online music community and web tool that connects fans, bands and the music industry. Supported by producer Neil Zaugg and graphic artist Todd Huffine, Scott drove the creative and finished the spot earlier this week just in time for Songdish's arrival at this year's SXSW in Austin, Texas. Scott designed the spot so that any still frame of the video is an abstract piece of art. Check out the video!

The Final Season actor Sean Astin and real-life Norway baseball coach Kent Stock invite you to participate in a benefit for recent Waukon High School graduate and former baseball player Mark Hawes. Hawes is a young man who is paralyzed from the chest down as a result of a sliding accident during baseball practice. Mark is working hard to get himself in a position to follow his dream of attending Iowa State University in the fall, where he wants to major in Ag. Engineering.

The State Historical Society of Iowa celebrated the 150th anniversary of the Civil War on April 12th through the grand-opening of its Civil War mobile trailer exhibit. Iowa Governor Terry Branstad was honored with the ribbon-cutting of the History on the Move trailer, which will travel to various venues throughout the state. Applied Art had the privilege to facilitate its interior and exterior design and renovation (previously it housed an Abraham Lincoln exhibit), in collaboration with Jennie Bailey of the Historic Iowa Exhibit Design ...

Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Trustwave is the leading provider of on-demand data security and payment card industry compliance management solutions to businesses and organizations throughout the world. Applied Art developed a multi-touch presentation for an 85" screen (think CNN-style interface) in order for Trustwave to deliver 2011 security risk information at the USA 2011 RSA€ Conference.

Slipknot and Roadrunner Records in NYC again chose Applied Art & Technology to create their latest interactive DVD set - (sic) nesses. On top of developing the content of both disks, this time around we also completed the DVD interface, authoring and encoding. Editor and Producer Neil Zaugg developed and cut the content, including the "Live at Download" concert that was recently shown in theaters around the world. The high-energy concert was also broadcast globally on MTV's World Stage. In addition to...

The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) has announced that Iowa's Leadership in History winner is The German American Heritage Center, nominated for the exhibit The German Immigrant Experience: 1845-1925.  With partner Morgan-Bailey Consulting, Applied Art and Technology provided the video, hardware, and programming for several interactives including: Party Line: Pick up the receiver of an actual WWI-era candlestick phone to listen in on German-American conversations about their treatment during this war era. ...

After attending a great conference this past week - I felt the need to blog about my top ten takeaways. There's a lot of value in building relationships but keep in mind - it's hard to measure While social media tools may be free - resourcing them is not Public posts on Facebook are now opened to be searched Social Media University Global (SMUG) site - definitely worth checking out ...

Applied Art teamed up with ISU to create a special video open for the basketball games against rivals Iowa and Kansas. The video was shot on location at Hilton Coliseum and features a young Cyclone fan paying homage to Cyclone greats past and present. This inspiring video fired up the crowd and a version was created for use at Hilton for all remaining games this season.

Applied Art assisted The Meyocks Group and their client Firestone when Senator Charles Grassley’s 2009 Ambassadors Tour weeklong tour included a stop at the Firestone Global Distribution Center in Ankeny, IA. Firestone brought in various pieces of agriculture equipment that showcased their tires. In addition a static display of the various tires they produce was set-up inside. Applied Art provided both video and meeting support for the event. We created a Firestone Brand Video that was shown in HD as guests entered the facility as well as a theater-like...

I just returned from another tradeshow in Las Vegas, Exhibitor2009, where we had an opportunity to partner with AV Dimensions to display our content on two LED displays side-by-side. We provided content to show in their exhibit on both a Barco 4mm Black LED display (NX-4) and the more common 8mm (ILite 8 MD) display. The LED displays are becoming more and more prevalent – at sporting events, corporate functions, concerts, and of course trade shows. Their advantages are that they are extremely bright and can...