When things happen with purpose inside Blaine Parker's head, these kinds of things happen to advertisers. Probably because someone else is there to keep it on the rails.




WORKING WITH SLOW BURN MARKETING...

The work in this category would be impossible without (a) The Fabulous Honey Parker and (b) the courageous and unflinching business owners who felt the fear and did it anyway. (More about Slow Burn Marketing may be found by clicking here.)



Straight Talk. Better Vision.
The name "United Eye Car Specialists" sounds big and impersonal. You'd never guess it was one eye doctor in rural New Hampshire with a keen mind and a great manner. We told him, "You're not United anything. You're Dr. Sam's Eye Care." The new brand is as no-nonsense as Dr. Sam, and is directed at the person whom Dr. Sam considers the true primary care provider: Mom. The subsequent ad campaign doubles his new patient base in eight weeks. In ten months, a business that had been flat for three years is up 30%.


Confidence Restored
Slow Burn is asked to create dental implant advertising for a general dental practice in Phoenix. After listening to what the doctors want to accomplish, Slow Burn's advice: forget advertising implants. Instead, create a new and entirely separate brand--one that can compete directly with the 900-pound specialist gorilla in the category, and possibly even be stepped out into other markets. Total Freedom Dental Implants is born. The advertising reflects the practice's genuine knowledge of and affection for their patients. The results? From zero to operating in the black in the first quarter. Over $1.2 million revenue in year one. 


Love. Truth. Hair.
An entrepreneurial young woman with an edgy hairstyle and expansive tattoos buys a struggling hair salon. She inherits an outdated logo and a small, loyal client base. The name is silly, but has years of brand recognition. It must remain. By refreshing the package to reflect the owner's hipster idiosyncrasies, the goal is to attract a younger customer base without alienating existing clients. The response is overwhelmingly positive. The salon becomes a destination for the young, the hip, and the young & hip at heart. Single print ads have generated as much as an 800% revenue increase over the short-term. In three years, annual revenues are up 300%. By popular vote, the salon wins the town's "Best of..." by a landslide.


Creating at the edge of possible
Suffering a brand identity crisis that hails from their early days building skate parks, Murphy Productions badly needs a brand update. Today, they build and manage multi-million-dollar events for the likes of The Dew Tour, Red Bull, X-Games, US Tennis, the Winter Olympics and Mattell. Slow Burn helps redefine the Murphy brand, then develops a one-to-one, B2B marketing effort in the brand's new voice. It's targeted at existing client DIRECTV for their annual Super Bowl event. In the meeting, the man from DIRECTV says, “Who are you? I don't even know you!.” That single meeting garners a quarter-million-dollar raise. 


We see your vision, and raise it.
The first thing that needed to happen was a new name. When approached by this Philippines-based software development company, they were going by Phil's Development Inc. It sounded a little like a 28-year old guy named Phil sitting at a workstation in his mother's basement. The reality: a highly adept offshore team led by a Silicon Valley-seasoned CEO with an extraordinary track record. The switch to Fearless Development emphasizes their clear-eyed and forward-thinking ability as industry leaders. The company is bold and visionary, both in their skills and in their always-open communications approach. 
 
Only in Park City.
After appearing on air to promote their new branding book, Blaine and Honey get a phone call asking if they'd be willing to help the station with its own branding. Listener-supported radio is always a challenge. Working pro bono, they help KPCW define themselves by defining the town, as the two are inexorably linked. Not allowed to change the station logo, they turn the tagline into a its own logo. Underwriters are energized. Locals are noticing. Pledge drives, essentially flat for several years, are up significantly.
It's Not Just Paint, It's How You Look.
After several years as one man painting homes in Park City, Matt Wolf decides it's time to grow up, i.e. brand his business. And, as a business that works on showcase homes in an upscale town, the brand requires a distinctive tone. This is about more than just picking colors. It's about creating spaces worth showing off. That change in style and point of view have to start at the top. The first thing that happens: changing the man's wardrobe. He becomes the house painter who shows up at the in-home consultation wearing a sport coat. Positioned as a fine artist (which he is), and packaged in a way that appeals to the upscale homeowner, he quickly has to stop advertising. He has more work than he can possibly handle. He doubles his revenues in one year.

It's Your Turn.
The Law Office of Susan M. Graham is a healthy and thriving law practice specializing in estate planning and elder law. They have a steady flow of clients, but always need to attract new ones. The reason for rebranding: in five to ten years, when Ms. Graham is ready to retire, the firm will be neatly packaged so it can be sold as a turnkey operation without Ms. Graham. Becoming Senior Edge Legal flags exactly what they're all about: giving seniors a leg up, an edge  when it comes to planning for the future. The green grass motif conveys the peace of mind, stress relief and optimism Senior Edge provides. The response? Astonishing. Clients get the new brand and embrace it. The firm is busier than ever and can't take on any more work. 

FROM THE DAYS PRIOR TO SLOW BURN...
The radio days, as it were. Specializing in direct response local radio is a challenge. It's an ephemeral medium, and since they can't see it, advertisers tend to hold their radio advertising to a higher standard for results than their other media. Fortunately, this entire exercise was about honing direct response chops for small-business advertising--and producing results that keeps advertisers coming back for more. 
Transmission Repair Shop
Campaign featuring pithy, aggressive humor doubles business volume in 12 weeks.
         
A/C Contractor 
Short-term campaign with a word-jazz feel generates 2,000% ROI.

Tax Problem Specialist
Using radio commercials featuring clients telling their own extraordinary stories in their own words, the size of the business triples within one year.

Party Yacht Charters 
Seasonal radio campaign featuring a romantic wedding vignette outperforms all other ad media combined.

Elder Law Attorney 
Overwhelming response to story-telling radio campaign prompts advertiser to cancel all print ads for radio at half the budget.

Window Company 
New, imagistic message in rotation with old, left-brain messages outperforms the old commercials 4 to 1 every time it airs.

Family Therapist 
Despite a meager budget allowing for 5 spots over two days, laser-targeted commercial generates 21 new leads each week.

Home Improvement Company 
Replacing old, left-brain ads on how to avoid mistakes with laid-back, we-know-how-smart-you-are approach quadruples lead generation overnight.

Informational Website 
Despite a lean schedule of two spots in midday, first day on air generates 2700 unique website visits. Client expands campaign to other markets.

Appliance Superstore 
Revamped radio campaign incorporates family dog, leading to major increase in floor traffic. According to owner, “Now, that dog owns this store.”