Excel spreadsheets, handwritten notes, emailing yourself details about a customer's preferences . . . all of these are ways that we input and track information about our leads, prospects and customers. Then there's the encyclopedic knowledge you or your team members have stored in your heads that no one else has access to. But what happens if you or a point of contact in your company gets hit by the proverbial bus?

This is the third time we've updated this post - it's one of those blogs that has evolved as our client base has over the years. This time our refresh incorporates more behavioral science tactics and focuses on two of the "Three B's" (no, we're not talking about your college roommates) in changing how people make a decision - Behaviors and Barriers. 

TL;DR: Make it as easy as possible for your audience to find and do business with you by understanding and ruthlessly removing friction.

Ah, 2020. Like the world’s longest game of blackjack—the hits just keep coming.

It’s funny (and also cruel) that when we need each other the most, it’s never been more important to keep our space.

To everyone who is sick of social distancing—but who cares enough about their fellow man to keep doing it anyway—the world owes you a debt of gratitude. And probably a drink.

(We can help with that last part.)

Have you ever sat through a boring focus group? How about a forced brainstorming session where everyone looks awkwardly at their hands, or where one person monopolizes the conversation?

No one likes receiving mixed messages. Especially not your customers. And especially not during a global pandemic.

In Iowa, where most COVID-related restrictions have already been lifted, a good chunk of stores, restaurants and service-oriented businesses have reopened in person. Some have reduced their hours or seating capacity. Some require face masks and have added hand sanitizing stations. While others seem—almost—like it’s back to business as usual.

It's hard to tell what's normal these days, and most of us aren't sure what to expect when we walk into a business we haven't been to in months. During the first stretch of scattered re-openings, consumer experiences were all over the board. And to a large extent—they still are. 

People have been flexible and forgiving as businesses work to wrap their heads around what works and what doesn't. But they’re eager for a sense of consistency. And they just want to know what’s happening.

The de Novo team is SUPER excited to share that we have won an Award of Distinction from the 26^th Annual Communicator Awards!

With the ever-expanding digital landscape, the desire for video has exploded over the last decade. At this point, virtually every social media platform you can think of can be a vehicle for your video content. While moving video formats quickly take viewers between multiple moments of time and space, still video seeks to do the opposite—allowing viewers to immerse themselves in a single moment of time and space. 

We have been playing around with still video recently and want to share some of what makes it the next big thing in the digital video landscape. Take a look at this example we created: 

We’ve been fielding a lot of communications this week regarding decisions businesses and organizations are making in order to protect employees, customers and the general public from the COVID-19 outbreak. 

No brand is a static entity.

As a business naturally evolves, its people, capabilities and culture change with it. Marketing materials will have to change too—this is a given. But websites, collateral and social media graphics aren’t the only things that need to keep up. Sometimes the brand itself needs a little bit of tweaking.