With a portfolio boasting such names as
NECI,
FlynnTix and
Lake Champlain Ferries, it shouldn't come as a surprise that we often see our clients in the news, and that was never more true than last week.
Below are just a few stories that caught our eye recently.
Farrell Distributing Talking Fall Wines on WCAX
Our Friends Donald and Ryan from
Farrell Distributing stopped by
WCAX to talk about some great fall wines in two great segments. You can watch the
first piece here, and the
second here.
(WCAX's embed code seems to have issues so I've had remove all of their clips from this post)
Farrell Distributing has been providing high-quality beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages to Vermont retailers since 1933 and we were proud to help them leap forward into 2013 with the launch of
a beautiful new website just a few weeks ago. Farrell Distributing, with their
regular blogging and
Facebook posting, is also one of our clients who truly "gets it" when it comes to understanding the importance of online marketing and content curation.
Da Vinci BodyBoard on NBC's TODAY Show
Another one of our recent
web design clients,
Da Vinci BodyBoard, found themselves the featured product on the What's Hot in Health segment on NBC's Today Show on 10/16. Watch below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbKHtfBuZX0
Sadly the host got the domain of the website wrong - it's
www.davincibodyboard.com.
And in case you missed it, WCAX reporter
Gina Bullard gave the
board a try with inventor Floery Mahoney a few weeks ago at
Fitness Options in South Burlington.
Da Vinci BodyBoard is a Vermont made product, manufactured in Fairfax at
Amoskeag Woodworking. Head over to the new
DVBB website now and let us know what you think. Critical components of this launch were an easy to use online store (ecommerce solution) and responsive design.
Vermont Veterinary Medical Association on WCAX to Discuss Foodborne Illnesses
Vermont Veterinary Medical Association, a long time client of ours, sent Dr. Karen Anderson as their representative to talk about pet food borne illnesses on WCAX. (I know at this point it sounds like we're advertising for our local CBS affiliate, but I swear it's purely coincidental!)
People and pets exhibit the same symptoms when struck with a foodborne illness. These symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, and discomfort.
Exposure to foodborne illnesses happens from environmental contamination. This usually happens when fecal matter is in contact with food. These contaminants can come from the animals used in the products, the people who handled the pet food or even packaging.
Dr. Anderson advises everyone wash hands before and after handling all foods.
Check out
Vermont Veterinary Surgical Center for an example of a simple, but much more recent veterinary site. We designed and developed the
Humane Society of Chittenden County's site a few years back as well.
Seven Days Profiles Sparkle Stories
Last year we launched the new website for
Sparkle Stories - a site that allows children and families to download original audio stories. "Sparklers", as listeners are called, can download individual stories, weekly series and more. Several years ago, the online service, along with their
iTunes Podcasts, caught fire with parents who prefer that their kids use their imaginations over staring at the TV screen and with their children who are captivated and enraptured by the unique tales. Sparkle Stories quickly outgrew their old website and came to us needing a new
custom web app, which we successfully launched and now maintain for them. A couple of weeks ago, the Charlotte based company caught the attention of
and was profiled in everyone's favorite local weekly alt news mag - Seven Days:
Three years later, the couple has produced more than 450 Sparkle Stories in several different series. Listeners can purchase one story at a time or pay a subscription fee that ranges from $7 to $15 a month, depending on their selections. The Sewell McCanns currently count 1000 paying subscribers from all over the world; running the site has become a full-time job for both of them.
Lisabeth credits the couple’s quick success to the ability to share on the internet, and early recommendations from a community of mom bloggers. “This business could not have happened five years ago,” she says. “We’re grateful for it every day.”
The popularity of their enterprise is evident on iTunes — when Sparkle Stories launched a free podcast this summer, it immediately shot to the top of the Kids & Family charts. It was featured on iTunes as a “New and Noteworthy” offering and climbed all the way up to No. 1 in its category; it’s currently in the top 20.
Eat More Kale in the New York Times
We actually just launched the
Eat More Kale site and online store this week, which we'll blog more about later, but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that they were in the news just a couple of weeks ago as well - more precisely, the owner Bo was interviewed for
NY Times Sunday Magazine's 10/20 issue:
Why do you think your “Eat More Kale” shirts are more popular than any other design you’ve created?
That’s the million-dollar question. I think there is something about just the right three-word phrase, like Nike’s “Just Do It” or “Life is Good.”
So “Eat More Kale” is the “Just Do It” of the locavore community?
That’s right.
Head over to
NYTimes.com to read the rest of the interview and learn more about these greens that are taking the world by storm. And don't forget to take a look at the new
EatMoreKale.com, buy some shirts, and let us know what you think about the design and the online store.
