Category: General


The changes ushered in by COVID-19 have shown just how quickly consumer’s interests and purchasing behaviour can shift. Businesses small and big alike have had to adapt their marketing strategies in real time to respond to the current climate of the world.

My team and I are very passionate about supporting businesses throughout these unusual times. I have been personally reaching out to talk to new brands every day concerning how they’re adapting their plans and adjusting their digital advertising. I hear a mix of things – some brands are at a standstill, still on total pause-mode, while others are using this time to actively plan and pivot in their marketing efforts.

Despite this, one thing has stayed the same – video is trending. We’ve been seeing some really great results from the brands we work with who have been brave enough to stay in the market at this time. These results have been seen across all channels due to the increase in time spent online by consumers and the decrease of competition.

The Chime Digital team believes that video content is more important than ever, as people view it as a welcome distraction from day-to-day life. Have a peek below at a YouTube survey that asked consumers to rank the reasons why they watch video content:

Consumers primarily watch video content to “relax and unwind”. Survey participants also reported that they watch videos because the content makes them laugh, inspires them, or helps them to forget about the world around them.

While there is no doubt that it is important to adjust communications to be mindful and empathetic of the times, it is also apparent that consumers are looking for videos that distract them from the current state of affairs in the world. Consequently, people are spending more time online than ever – I can vouch for this myself. However, these unforeseen times have reminded me that feeling productive and feeling like we add value to the world is one of the most meaningful things that we can do during a time like this.

So, how can we help your brand educate, entertain, or inspire people stuck at home all day? Your brand can provide value to people even if your product doesn’t directly help folks deal with the quarantine/COVID-19 crisis. As long as you keep the focus on helping people, your marketing doesn’t have to stop.

Chime Digital launched in February of 2015 and we are now upon our five-year anniversary!

The first word that comes to mind is GRATEFUL.

I am so grateful, first and foremost, to my team; an incredible group of like-minded industry veterans. I am also extremely grateful for all our wonderful clients who trusted us to bring their brand vision to life and develop custom programs with their precious marketing dollars.

Over the last 5 years, we have run campaigns for over 50 brands and have received positive industry press. We are so proud to be a part of these campaigns, from driving donations for CNIB’s Phone It Forward program to working with notable influencers to drive awareness for Yves Veggie Cuisine and creating an innovative campaign to fuel the plant-based movement for Iron Vegan.

Running Chime Digital for five years has had its ups and downs. Clients have retired and all that business retired with them. We have poured our hearts into RFPs that have been well received and even voted favourite, only to lose to another company because ultimately our creative ideas were considered “too risky.” We have had our creative ideas completely stolen, only to find out by seeing them come to life and featured in multiple news outlets with no mention of Chime. I have been ignored. Ghosted. Stood up. There have been days when opening a taco stand on a beach somewhere seemed like a really good idea.

Despite this, I truly love what I do. I love meeting new people and I flourish throughout the creative process.

In Brené Brown’s recent talk, “The Call to Courage”, she mentions a quote by Theodore Roosevelt that altered the course of her life and changed her outlook on everything. So many things from this talk resonated with me, but these are my favourite takeaways:

– This quote has everything to do with vulnerability – which at the end of the day, is not about winning and not about losing – it’s about having the courage to show up when you can’t control the outcome.

– I made the choice to live my life in the “arena” – I decided I’m going to be brave with my life. I’m going to show up. I’m going to take chances. And here’s what I can tell you for sure – if you choose to be brave with your life, if you choose to live in the arena, you’re going to get your ass kicked. You’re going to fall, you’re going to fail, you’re going to know heartbreak. But it’s a choice that I make. Every day. Before my feet even hit the floor, I will choose courage over comfort.

– If you are not in the arena, getting your ass kicked on occasion because you were being brave, because you were “daring greatly”, you will never know either victory or defeat.

My daughter recently read a book on launching and growing new business ventures and the stats showed that 85% of start-ups survive the first year of business, 70% the second year and 51% make it to five years. We took an evening out to celebrate our five-year anniversary and she says to me, “Mom, you made it to five years! You had 50/50 odds to get here and should be proud of the business woman you are.”

I am so proud of what we have accomplished. We were brave, we took a chance – I still remember starting out with a simple “Let’s call it Chime” and not knowing where we would go from there. I have learned to stay focused, stay positive through the set-backs, and above all, to continue to get up each day and live in that arena – and I am so thankful I did.

I thank everyone for their support and trust in us as a young company with ambitions to do big things.

I would like to give special thanks to my daughter, Sydney, who has been with Chime since day one. Her steadfast determination, amazing attention to detail and passion for our client’s success has, without doubt, been a huge part of Chime’s milestone. I am also so fortunate to be working alongside my talented and creative sister, Karen, and her partner, Matt – founders of our sister company, Door Knocker Media.

Here at Chime Digital, we love meeting new people. If you want to chat about some of the projects we’ve worked on or discuss ideas for your brand, give me a call!

Are you incorporating programmatic native ads into your online advertising mix?

Some recent findings shed some light on the benefits of this tactic and why it adds a unique strategic layer to your campaign’s success.

We all know display ads are a very effective tactic in generating straight conversions if you’re looking to sell a product. However – in comparison to display prospecting – case studies have shown that native ads truly shine when it comes to driving traffic and boosting brand engagement in the long term.

Don’t get us wrong; we love display ads. Display is a great way to keep your brand name out there. But with the rising popularity of incorporating storytelling as part of marketing strategies in this content-driven age, advertisers should really make better use of the goldmine that is programmatic native!

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In today’s day and age, “cause marketing” has become both a norm and an expectation – potential customers who visit your website and see your advertising want to know that you share their desire to make this world a better place. Studies show that more Canadian consumers than ever care about how companies are supporting social causes.

In fact, when quality and price are equivalent, social purpose is the number one deciding factor for shoppers. The high volume of consumers who say that they would switch from one brand to another if the other brand were associated with a good cause has climbed to 87%.

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Did you know that 48% of people cite a website’s design as the number one factor in deciding the credibility of a business?  To these people, it doesn’t matter how good your business is or how much better your products or services are than your competitors. If your website doesn’t look the part, they probably aren’t going to give you a second glance.

That’s why it’s so important for all business owners to keep up with modern web design trends. You don’t need to jump on every trend that arises – but staying informed will help you determine whether your website’s appearance could be causing it to lose potential business. We’ve put together a list of trends to keep a close eye on. Check them out below, and get inspired to tackle your web design projects with style.

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Did you know that the single most important predictive factor for the success of Super Bowl ads is the degree to which they tell a complete story? While this reassures the power of a strong narrative in marketing, it also elicits the question “How do I tell a story with my advertising?”

Since the early days of storytelling, with poets weaving together epic tales of heroes rising up to defeat monsters, stories were meant to compel action in us. They have continued as a preferred means of communication over the years because they draw on empathy – they are relatable and they are engaging.

Good content marketing should do one the following:

  • raise awareness
  • increase conversion
  • boost customer loyalty

Great content marketing can do all three at once.

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We live in a digital world – one where marketers are continually on the lookout for more and more innovative ways to grab a consumer’s attention. In today’s digital landscape, online video marketing continues to skyrocket – and for good reason. According to a recent study, 84% of people expect brands to create video content that provides solutions, experiences or entertainment. Here are just a few of the latest stats about the power of video:

  • 90% of customers report that product videos help them make purchasing decisions.
  • A third of all the time people spend online is dedicated to watching videos.
  • Including video on a landing page can increase conversion by 80%.

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A jingle writer has done their job well if whenever you think of a particular brand their catchy tune immediately springs to mind. If you were brought up watching television or listening to the radio in Ontario, you’d be surprised to realize just how many of these jingles have become so ingrained in our memories!

The Alexanian jingle is one of those unique iconic jingles that everyone knows and loves. Without fail, every time we mentioned working on a new video with Alexanian, we’d hear “♪, ♫, ♪, ♫, ♪… Alexanians!” sung back to us right away.

Given the memorable status of their jingle, we decided to center our latest video project around it, playing on the heritage of the popular tune but re-vamping it to make it more fresh and modern for today’s digital world. Check out the video here at AlexanianTV!

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Last year, we set out to create a memorable holiday campaign for Vaughan Mills shopping centre. It involved creating Santa’s Tiny Big Town, the perfect place for families to make memories. Unlike other Santa experiences, this one provided a winding entrance full of interactive games for the children to play while they waited to see Santa, as well as a unique narrative focusing on the importance of spending time with the ones you love.

To coincide with the launch of Tiny Big Town, Vaughan Mills also announced a new charitable partner, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). One hundred per cent of proceeds from all photo packages sold were donated to SickKids for the duration of Santa’s Tiny Big Town, with a goal of raising $100,000. Viewers were urged to share the cause across their networks using the hashtag #keytotheholidays. They ended up surpassing their goal, raising a total of $115,000 for SickKids!

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When developing creative for advertisers, it’s important to start with target market insights.

Millennials, for instance, are digitally savvy, with a preference for luxury and exclusivity when it comes to brands (as these brands convey status). They want story-driven brands they can interact with online, since social media is part of their DNA.

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