Below is a feature article from the Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce written by Rachel Buhl.
Member Spotlight: Insight Creative, Inc.
Employees’ ability to embrace change leads to 25 years of success
As stated in the company name, creativity is a key component of business operations at Insight Creative, Inc.
“When it comes to developing strong creative strategies, there really is no such thing as a bad idea,” said Jim von Hoff, president of Insight Creative, Inc. “Some of the silliest ideas turn into such great, strong creative campaigns.” Von Hoff believes providing a safe, family-like atmosphere in which everyone is comfortable with contributing is essential to both customer and employee satisfaction. “We need to have an environment where people can be themselves and feel like they can put themselves out there,” he said.
With a focus on strategic development, Insight Creative is a marketing communications agency that serves businesses seeking innovative advertising plans. Service areas include media planning, website design and social media management, public and media relations, copywriting, graphic design and commercial photography, video and audio production.
Before brainstorming campaign project ideas, Insight Creative thoroughly analyzes an industry’s audiences to determine how to reach the intended customers. “We do the appropriate research to really understand the target market,” von Hoff said. “It’s important to understand who we’re trying to reach and how they like being reached, as well as the best ways to talk to a specific audience.” This research often includes looking at social media responses to previous campaigns, as well as Arbitron and Nielsen media ratings.
To ensure clients receive quality service, von Hoff hires passionate, client-focused individuals experienced in areas such as advertising, graphic design, media planning, writing and marketing strategy. Additionally, some team members have corporate backgrounds. “Bringing all these people together provides us with tremendous synergy that we can offer our clients by seeing things from multiple perspectives,” he said.
As Insight Creative celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, von Hoff credits the company’s success to its employees’ ability to accommodate to changes in the advertising industry. “We’ve been in business for 25 years and it’s as exciting today as it was when we first opened our doors,” he said. “New media has soared in recent years, which has made us re-adjust as the market changed.” To continue the agency’s development in future years, von Hoff understands the significance of researching the marketing industry to forecast significant developments. “It’s important to remain open-minded and stay up to date on what’s next,” he said.
Von Hoff believes the growing number of communication options has created a more interactive relationship between Insight Creative and its clients. “The new channels help us receive immediate feedback from customers and have created more opportunities for conversations than ever before,” he said.
Along with changes in the advertising industry, Insight Creative also strives to stay informed about the latest changes and trends within its clients’ markets. “As the advertising business evolves, our clients’ businesses are also evolving and changes are occurring in all of their industries,” von Hoff said. Continuous research and training helps staff members stay aware of the changes affecting businesses and their subsequent marketing needs. “It’s a perpetual state of learning,” von Hoff said. “Changes are occurring more rapidly than ever before.”
Other thoughts:
Since marketing campaigns begin with an initial idea and continue through full campaign execution, attention to uniformity is essential for effective campaign implementation. “It’s important to have consistency throughout any campaign,” von Hoff said. “Insight excels in taking the creative content we develop and repurposing it to maintain that consistency.”
One of Insight Creative’s well-known case studies illustrates the company’s involvement with ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” Insight Creative was influential in the management and coordination of all marketing communications for the show’s first project in Northeast Wisconsin in 2010. “We were instrumental in bringing together various areas of the project, from the initial press conference through the pep rally held at Lambeau Field, which was the highest attended pep rally in the show’s history,” von Hoff said.
Why Chamber membership? Von Hoff says his involvement with the Chamber’s CEO Roundtable has been beneficial in addressing some of the challenges he faces as a business owner. “It’s invaluable to have a group you can reach out to that has a commonality in dealing with similar issues,” Von Hoff said. “Being able to interact with other Chamber businesses and share knowledge creates a bond within the community, regardless of how long they’ve been in business.”
For more information, visit insightcreative.com or call 920.468.7459.
As founder of the agency, Jim has overseen the growth and success of Insight since 1988. His client-centered approach and thorough study of clients and their industries set the stage for Insight’s long relationships with a diverse list of established clients including retail, consumer and business-to-business. A UW-Green Bay graduate, Jim’s desire to offer comprehensive marketing communications capabilities makes him—and Insight—unique in our area.
