Going Interactive Blog

GI has a new blog

2009-08-26T16:49:00.002-04:00

Well the good old blogging days of 2005 are behind us now, we finally upgraded our own blog to fit the modern world. It really IS a big deal because our own stuff is always done last! For anyone visiting this old blogger site, please check us out at our new location... www.goinginteractive.com/blog

Surprising (Maybe?) Social Media Stats

2009-08-20T10:10:00.003-04:00

Erik Qualman's Socialnomics blog lists some pretty interesting social media stats.

For instance:

- 1 out of 8 couples married in the U.S. last year met via social media

- Years to Reach 50 million Users: Radio 38 years, TV 13 years, Internet 4 years, iPod 3 years, Facebook added 100 million users in less than 9 months... and iPhone apps hit 1 billion in 9 months

- 80% of Twitter usage is on mobile devices

- The #2 largest search engine in the world is YouTube

- More than 1.5 million pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photos, etc) are shared on Facebook ... daily

Read the rest here on the Socialnomics blog.

Going Interactive creates RealTalkATL.org

2009-08-19T16:28:00.006-04:00

After a little delay and some patience, Going Interactive is proud to announce that the non-profit Future-Foundation Real Talk ATL site is online (and rocken)!

Going Interactive designed and developed the Flash site with the tween audience in mind, keeping it hip, fresh and cool (we'd like to think so at least). The site promotes a healthy lifestyle for young urban teens through the Future Foundations teen abstinence before marriage lesson plan. Going Interactive tried to bring the concept to life with animation, sounds, quizes, real stories, and visuals.

Check out the site at www.realtalkatl.org

More About Future Foundation:
Future Foundation is committed to shaping today’s youth into productive and responsible citizens. We believe that children are the key to our future and to sustainable change. Future Foundation of Atlanta exists because of visionary and founder, Shareef Abdur-Rahim. A Sacramento Kings Forward, Cal basketball star and Trumpet Award recipient, Abdur-Rahim envisioned an agency dedicated to supporting the youth and neighborhood, in which he grew up. The impact of Future Foundation runs deep with eight dynamic programs and three annual events designed to positively influence over 4,000 underserved youth, grades 5 - 12. Nestled in the heart of East Point, Georgia, students have an opportunity to work, play, and relax while building the character necessary to succeed in school and life.

Atlanta / Roswell based Going Interactive works hand-in-hand with each client to develop a unique and creative approach the their project. To find out how you can stand apart from the crowd, contact us today.

Will Anyone Pay for Anything on the Internet?

2009-08-06T11:45:00.003-04:00

Here's an interesting little article from Guy Kawaski on Amex's Open forum about how young users of the net pretty much don't pay for little if anything.

Check it out here.

Going Interactive Wins 4 Communicator Awards

2009-08-05T09:26:00.003-04:00

We're pleased to announce that we grabbed four 2009 Communicator Awards - Awards of Distinction for:

Wegener Communicaitons - wegener.com

MyBoxercraft Retail - myboxercraft.com

Ron Clark's Great American Teacher's Club - greatamericanteachersclub.com

and last but not least our own site goinginteractive.com

Visit the Communicator Awards site here.

Going Interactive Produces Interactive Flash Slot Machine Kiosk

2009-07-09T15:58:00.002-04:00

Going Interactive recently wrapped production of "Triple Play" a customizable interactive "slot machine" themed kiosk system for Consumer Source's Apartment Guide / Rentals.com trade show booth in Las Vegas.

The Flash based piece was installed on three stations at the booth and allowed passers-by to stop and try their luck at winning an iPod touch. As they spun the slot machine they were exposed to promotional Apartment Guide and Rentals.com messaging.

Booth staffers were also able to use an Admin screen to set the time limit on play and set the odds to meet the demand.

To find out how Going Interactive can increase your trade show booth presences through digital media contact us today.

Generous Office Gift Deliveries Ease Pain

2009-06-25T17:37:00.004-04:00

We'd like to thank our wonderful Mom for sending the Going Interactive Staff a series of weekly gift basket surprises to ease our suffering as we worked an enormous amount of hours over the past month or so.

We were lucky enough to get huge deliveries of Popcorn, an amazing Fruit Tree, super custom cookies, and today a Candy Basket.

Thanks Mom!

Doug and Jason

New Project Highlight Video - HomeSafetyCouncil.org

2009-06-24T10:30:00.001-04:00

Here's a nice little quickie video highlighting our work on the new Home Safety Council website: www.homesafetycouncil.org

new 3Gs iPhone

2009-06-08T15:51:00.003-04:00

Going Interactive is excited about some of the upcoming features of the new 3Gs iPhone including video (with editing), better camera, advance TXT, and best of all... copy and paste!
Check out the details and specs.

What's it look like in the GI War Room?

2009-06-04T21:18:00.003-04:00

Check it out on the GI Flickr Photo Album.

Fan up!

2009-06-04T10:02:00.002-04:00

Hello fellow internet friends - there's been some good success on the recent Facebook page we set up for HSC (www.HomeSafetyCouncil.org). Check it out and Fan up - Home Safety Council Facebook

And while you are on there, Fan up with Going Interactive Faceboook (we feel neglected!)

Home Safety Council - New Site is now Online!

2009-06-02T15:46:00.007-04:00

Going Interactive has been working for months on the new Home Safety Council® website and it's finally live. Within the first couple days the site garnished thousands of page views and there's been a consistent series of user sign-ups that are near the hundreds every single day. By those stats alone, the site is already a huge success.

The Home Safety Council® (HSC) is a national nonprofit organization. Through national programs, partnerships and the support of volunteers, HSC educates people of all ages to be safer in and around their homes.

Overall, Going Interactive worked with Brand Resources Group and Home Safety to create a new user friendly, modern design and well thought out website. GI focused on adding new and innovative social elements such as custom forums separated into specific audience groups, blog elements, Facebook fan page, YouTube Channel, Quiz's, polls, Video player and much more. The site pushes users to sign up for free safety tips which is clearly assisting in the increase of enrollment. GI will continue to keep the site fresh and up-to-date with BRG and HSC with new and improved safety content.

Check out the new site and pass it along - www.homesafetycouncil.org

Scenes from the Front at Going Interactive

2009-06-01T19:45:00.002-04:00

Here's a scene from this weekend as we figured out some complicated stuff on a big project!

The Gauntlet Interactive Quiz Game Video Highlight

2009-05-28T20:43:00.002-04:00

A quick highlight clip of our Flash game for Ron Clark's Great American Teacher Club site.

"You Pick 'Em" (Weeds that is ;) - Flash Mini Game

2009-05-27T08:53:00.004-04:00

Here is a video highlight clip of the "You Pick 'Em" mini flash game Going Interactive produced for the new WeedPro.com website project.

Visit WeedPro.com to play the game.

Great American Teacher's Club Site Highlight Clip

2009-05-26T18:23:00.006-04:00

Here is a new video clip highlighting our work for Ron Clark's "Great American Teacher's Club" website. This clip is also under the Work > Web section of our website goinginteractive.com

What happens when you put Flash, Flex and Adobe AIR all together?

2009-05-23T15:32:00.011-04:00

Jason Davenport, Doug Davenport, and Randall Potter pile into the Going Interactive agency studio conference room for Printies creation lock-down. Making a huge international AIR, Flex, Flash app is no easy task. Current GI studio hours are from 8am - 9pm, 7 long days a week. Wow!

The Printies app will allow kids to design with easy to use tools and print out their very own fabric plush toy. GI has been working on the custom application for months focusing on design for the target tween girl audience, ease of use & extreme usability, and some serious (serious) coding and development. There's been a whole lot of ink being used during beta testing and getting all the happy Printies to align perfectly on the fabric sheets.

Once the Printies toy hits Target and Toys R Us... there will be millions of art and tool combinations and there's no limit to what you can create!

Average iPhone App: 19.9 Uses, 9.6 Minutes Per Play

2009-05-15T11:59:00.003-04:00

Some interesting stats about Apps for the Apple iPhone...
"The study also found that 46% of users play their games/apps five times or more, while 10.2% play 25 times or more."
Read the full article

YouTube launches new ways to engage with brands

2009-05-15T11:51:00.002-04:00

YouTube is mixing it up a bit for brands who like to spend money. There's a new mosiac video type of display available now. Read the post

New Google Results "Options" Tab - Serious Search Results

2009-05-13T14:57:00.004-04:00

If you a google search for something today you'll notice a new "Show options..." text tab at the top left of your results.

Clicking this you can then Filter your results by Videos, Forums, Reviews. Date and Time, etc.

This is some serious search results refining!

It's now more than ever to keep up video, blogging and content updates for all your web seo marketing efforts.

PS - Click the WONDER WHEEL option too for an interactive flow graph of your search term. Very cool.

Going Interactive Creates "The Gauntlet" - Interactive Quiz System

2009-05-11T14:40:00.006-04:00

Going Interactive recently completed work on an ambitious new addition to Ron Clark's Great American Teachers Club website (which we also designed and developed).

The addition is "The Gauntlet" a fully customizable interactive online Quiz creation system for teachers to create their own unique quizzes for students. Member of the GATC can login, create an online "classroom", add students, enter 10 quiz questions and answers and then upload their own face photo to be inserted into the "Knight" character that players take through the Gauntlet as they play.

The teacher then send a unique URL and UN and PW to their students who login and play along to guide their "Knight Teacher" through the Gauntlet. If the student gets a wrong answer they see their teacher eliminated in a humorous fashion. If they get the answer correct they see the teacher dance or shoot hoops or do some other funny "success' move.

Overall this new quiz maker is an awesome addition to a site already rich in educational resources.

We invite you to play a sample "Going Interactive" Quiz by clicking here and entering the UN "GoingInteractive1B" and PW "hZsZ" (no quotes). Have fun!

TV Revs to Decline 21% in 2 Years; Digital 'Transformation' is Only Hope

2009-05-06T11:58:00.003-04:00

After six years of hovering between $20 billion and $22 billion, the 2009 TV industry revenue will take a dramatic fall below the $20 billion mark starting this year.

TV industry revenue for 2009 is expected to end at an even $17 billion, a 21.2% drop from 2007’s $21.5 billion. A "digital transformation" is an ideal next path.

Read the article

The new WeedPro site is online & has plenty of features

2009-04-30T15:25:00.012-04:00

Going Interactive worked with the great WeedPro staff to create a unique site from scratch which fits with their new natural and organic services. WeedPro is a Georgia based company who provides a myriad of residential and commercial services.

Going Interactive wanted to make them stand out from the crowd and give them a variety of educational and social features. Some of these include a convenient Send to Friend function, an Add This social networking share tool, the customized WeedPro Blog, a WeedPro Twitter account and a WeedPro YouTube Channel all of which help with organic SEO.

Going Interactive also filmed and animated a number of videos to be featured in the Education section of the WeedPro website.

A short and entertaining Game – "You Pick Em" was also created to keep customers on the site and having fun.

Overall the new WeedPro site is a great example of a site that utilizes a variety of new and relevant interactive features to keep things fresh, educational and entertaining.

Check out the full site – www.weedpro.com – and if you are based in the Metro Atlanta area, give them a call and go organic!

GI Produces Fun Animated Promotional Video

2009-04-29T14:51:00.004-04:00

Going Interactive recently wrapped up production on this fun little promo video for "The Connected Life" for Edelman. It features a dude who's trying to hook up some complicated DVRs and cable, etc. But suddenly the Connected Life super person appears to hook it up for him and shows him how cool it can be in his house. In the end he's happy and his family dances with joy. GI wrote, animated and did the voice over.

Check it out:

Or direct YouTube link here.

PowerPoint to Flash Interactive CDs

2009-04-28T11:23:00.004-04:00

We've had a number of projects this year where we design and develop a rich PowerPoint presentation and then process it into an interactive and menu driven Flash presentation.

When producing comprehensive Sales Tools for distribution the advantages to this process are numerous. Doing the actual content in PPT enables us to work easier with the Client on edits and revisions. Files are quickly transferred back and forth and review sessions are efficient b/c both parties can view the same exact file while discussing via conference calls. Edits can be made right on the fly. Also the PPT stage enables the Client to internally edit content with their internal team.

After the screen by screen content is complete we then move it into Flash to "hook up" external linking items like Cost-In-Use calculators, Flash video files, PDFs, docs, and external website links. This is where the Flash advantage comes in. Doing this in PPT would produce a painfully clunky and unreliable button linking monster. Not to mention an unnecessarily oversized file.

That leads us to the other Flash advantage of being able to hook up a main Menu Title screen, hidden Forward / Backward buttons, and roll over sub menus. All these give the presenter the option to customize the presentation based on the audience.

The last but not least advantage is budget. Using the PPT on the front end for customized design, content and review sessions saves time and production resources and thus makes the overall project price lower than if it was all being produced in Flash.

The final result is a fully interactive presentation with menus, video content, links and more that can be distributed on CD or on little jump drives. It is the perfect presentation tool and leave behind item for any B2B sales and marketing department.

To find out how Going Interactive can help your company with an interactive sales tool contact us today.

March 09' Web Stats Reveal Twitter Frenzy

2009-04-24T15:20:00.004-04:00

Are you using Twitter yet?

Well according to this recent survey, you might be. Twitter the infamous microblogging site experienced double-digit growth last month in March growing 131% to 9.3 million visitors.

Here's the full article.

Feel free to follow us @ Doug Davenport or Jason Davenport and Going Interactive.

GI Produces Fun Promotional Nitrile Glove Video

2009-04-14T15:58:00.003-04:00

Going Interactive recently wrapped up production on a promotional video clip for Kimberly-Clark Professional's Kimtech Pure G3 and G5 Sterling Nitrile Gloves.

The piece was created with a green screen video of a real live gloved hand intermixed with motion graphics.

To view the live video click here.

Teaching kids how to Twitter

2009-03-25T12:34:00.001-04:00

Interesting idea here coming from the UK - where schools may teach kids how to Twitter, blog, podcast, etc.
Check out the story

Going Interactive Wins Gold AMY & Silver AMY Awards

2009-03-20T10:10:00.012-04:00

Last night (3.19.09) Going Interactive brought home two big awards from the AMA AMY ceremony.

MyBoxercraft.com was the overall winner of the Web Transactional category and took Gold.

Ron Clark's - Great American Teachers Club microsite was a runner-up in the Web Microsite category.

GI would like to thank all of the Going Interactive team members who participated in making both of these sites successful as well as the clients for the great opportunities.

Here's some photos of last nights event:

GI's infamous "audience shot from the stage"

Principal's Jason Davenport & Doug Davenport saying "thanks"

The awards

See more photos on the Going Interactive Flickr feed

Don't forget you can also "fan" us on Going Interactive Facebook

iPhone Update

2009-03-17T16:56:00.002-04:00

This just in...
Apple just announced that iPhone OS 3.0 software, coming this summer, will deliver 100 new features, including cut, copy and paste; MMS; landscape view for Mail, Text and Notes; stereo Bluetooth; Notes syncing; shake to shuffle; parental controls for TV shows, movies and App Store apps; and a new Voice Memo app. Apple also released an updated SDK, with more than 1,000 new Application Programming Interfaces, to registered developers.

Learn More at Apple

(yeah!)

Facebook- Not Google

2009-03-12T12:03:00.003-04:00

Interesting bit of information about Facebook giving more referrals than Google on some sites.
Here's a great quote from the article... "Soon [SEO/SEM spend] will start to follow the eyeballs and transition from Google to social media".

GI Vimeo Channel

2009-03-11T13:42:00.004-04:00

We've always enjoyed watching creative videos on Vimeo, so we finally created our own Going Interactive Vimeo Channel to share with others. Check it out.

MyBoxercraft: 4 of 5 Behind the Scenes Photo Shoot from Going Interactive on Vimeo.

Shooting the Gauntlet

2009-03-05T17:47:00.001-05:00

Here's some scenes from our recent video green screen shoot for elements of Ron Clark's "Gauntlet" interactive game for teachers currently in development here.

Going Interactive is up for 2 more AMY Awards

2009-02-27T12:10:00.002-05:00

Going Interactive is proud to announce that we're up for 2 more AMY Awards this year.

GI has been selected as a winner for the category "Web & Interactive: Web Campaign/Microsite" with their Ron Clark (famous educator) marketing site "Great American Teachers Club Advance Membership Promo".

GI is also a winner in the category of "Web & Interactive: Transactional Web Site" for our work on Myboxercraft.com for BoxerCraft.

Getting Your Brand Into Online Communities

2009-02-27T10:31:00.000-05:00

I found this interesting article about some big brands and how they are using online communities to get conversations of "real" people started. Check it out here.
- Jason

Printies Design Studio Empowers Kids to Create Own One-of-a-Kind Stuffed Toys

2009-02-17T14:14:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive just finished the online Demo version of the Printies application for the American International Toy Fair in New York City (February 15-18 2009).

The Printies online design studio at MyPrinties.com will offer kids an online experience that is simple, intuitive and entertaining. MyPrinties.com will offer children thousands of professional art assets and design tools like coloring, painting, and resizing effects. There, children will be able to start with a blank canvas or select from quick start templates that allow them to customize professional designs. Kids can customize everything from a Printies’ hair to its toes and can even add scanned photos and other images for truly limitless customization.

The Printies line will make its debut this Fall with three themed activity kits: Printies™ Pet Design Studio, Printies™ Ocean Design Studio, and Printies™ Jungle Design Studio.

Check out this New York TV coverage of Toy Fair

Going Interactive Wins Gold Addy & Bronze Addy

2009-02-09T14:58:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive won an amazing Gold Addy Award at Saturday's big event in Atlanta for UPS "The International Paperless Adventure" online game!

Going Interactive also took home a Bronze Addy Award for the MyBoxercraft.com consumer based online retail site!

GI wants to thank the their fantastic clients and all those GI team members who were involved in the strategy, design, development and creation of these 2 Addy Award winning sites.

Glove Video Shooting at Going Interactive

2009-02-05T18:00:00.001-05:00

Here's a quick pick from a green screen shoot at the studio yesterday. The subject was that pretty white glove for an animated video project.

Producing Ron Clark's GATC National Webcast

2009-02-03T14:00:00.000-05:00

Last night Atlanta based "Super Educator" Ron Clark has his first national webcast on his Going Interactive produced new website for teachers, The Great American Teachers Club.

It was pretty exciting to see Ron get on the camera and answer site Member's questions in real time. Members got answers to questions ranging from motivating students to Ron's favorite snack foods to using music and lyrics to teach difficult subjects.

Video Shooting at Going Interactive

2009-02-02T12:46:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive just wrapped a video shoot session for MyBoxercraft.com. Here's a few photos from the model - product session.

New Going Interactive 2008 Showreel

2009-01-29T09:57:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive has just uploaded the 2008 Showreel. Check it out on our portfolio site GoingInteractive.com - GI Facebook (and become a FAN), or GI YouTube channel (and subscribe).

The Showreel contains snippets of selected work form 2008. It includes projects like Ron Clark's - Great American Teachers Club, XvsY Game, Guess What I Am? Game, Kudzu.com's MyBusinessMVP, Atlanta Financial Center, Real Talk ATL, Willow Glynn Resort, Hospitalogic, Peachtree TV, Land of a Thousand Hills, and MyBoxercraft.

Of course there's much more to learn about and see so if you're interested in getting ahead in 2009, visit us at Going Interactive (see some old Showreels) or email us.

25 Years of Mac - Original Demo 1984

2009-01-26T16:17:00.001-05:00

Oh how different our company would be if this had not happened.

Thank You Steve!

Twitter is fast!

2009-01-20T18:24:00.001-05:00

Here's an interesting article about just how fast Twitter is. At this point, it's beating the news to the "news" stories. Read the full article.

MLK Day - Feed the Hungry

2009-01-19T10:05:00.001-05:00

Members of Going Interactive volunteered their time yesterday to help set up for the big Atlanta MLK Hosea Feed the Hungry event at Turner Field on Saturday. The event is set to help clothe and feed the hungry and homeless around Atlanta. The volunteers had to cover a pretty large portion of a turner field level with carpet.

MyBoxercraft - Catalog Photo Shoot Videos on YouTube

2009-01-14T13:59:00.000-05:00

We've completed a series of 5 Behind the Scenes videos for MyBoxercraft.com. GI followed the crew and models around as they shot photos for their upcoming catalog.

GI got it all on tape and created them a customized new YouTube Channel. Check out the MyBoxercraft Channel with the 5 current videos. More videos will be coming next month, so subscribe and stay tuned!

For creative video and utilizing SEM tactics, email Going Interactive today.

Here's a preview of one of the videos currently on YouTube.

Apple changes it's iTunes Managed Rights

2009-01-13T08:44:00.000-05:00

Some pretty good news for iTunes lovers.

Under its "iTunes Plus" program, Apple said all music would be sold without digital rights management (DRM) — that is, iTunes music buyers won't suffer track playability limited only to iPod/iTunes products, and will be able to share and listen to their tracks as they please.

There's some price differentiation of course, but we think it's worth it!

Getting Ready for ToyFair 2009

2009-01-09T17:57:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive is once again working with Technosource to produce a great new creative toy product called Printies. It will make it's first appearance at this years ToyFair in NYC. More to come this Spring / Summer.

GI Wins 2 More Addys

2008-12-29T15:26:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive has won 2 more Addys!

The award winning projects are the UPS Paperless Adventure online game and the MyBoxercraft.com online-retail based website.

GI is happy to hear the good news and will find out more details at the big event sponsored by the Atlanta Ad Club. A special awards presentation will be in February at Opera.

Uers Expect Companies to Have Social-Media Presence

2008-12-29T15:17:00.000-05:00

An overwhelming majority (93 percent) of online Americans say companies should have a social-media presence, and 85 percent believe these companies also should be interacting with consumers through social media, according to an article found on MarketingVox.

Other interesting findings:

• Men are twice as likely than women interact frequently (one or more times per week) with companies via social media (33 percent vs. 17 percent).
• One-third of younger, hard-to-reach consumers (age 18-34) believe that companies should actively market to them via social networks.
• The wealthiest households (household income of $75K+) also believe that companies should seek to reach them via social media.
• Two-thirds of the wealthiest households and the largest households ( those with three or more members) feel stronger connections to brands they interact with online.

Going Interactive understands the current trends in social media and online marketing. Contact us today to see how we can help your business succeed.
* Screen taken from www.GreatAmericanTeachersClub.com (created by Going Interactive)

Online Fun, Flannel, Ron, and Adobe Site of the Day

2008-12-22T17:55:00.002-05:00

Recent News from GI:

What do flannel boxers, a fun family guessing board game, Atlanta's own star educator Ron Clark, and Adobe Site of the Day have in common?

They all have new hot new websites produced by local interactive and creative agency Going Interactive.

Guess What I Am! is a hilarious new twist on a classic guessing game that is available at toy retailers nationwide. The new Flash website features complete interactive content including Flash video and an animated interactive version of the physical game. If you're a parent of young children you'll definitely want to check this new game out at guesswhatiamgame.com or at your local toy retailer.

MyBoxercraft.com is home to Atlanta based Boxercraft's new retail focused website. The site offers full online shopping of 100s of quality Boxercraft items from hoodies, to capris to those good old flannel boxers. It also contains social marketing elements like a Frappr map where Boxercraft fans can add their photo and location and a Boxercraft Flickr photo group. GI created all user paths and designs to meet the needs of the target audience.

GreatAmeicanTeachersClub.com is home to famous Atlanta educator Ron Clark's new promotional site for the upcoming "Great American Teachers Club". This high bandwidth site features full motion green screen video of Ron and Ron Clark Academy Co-Founder Kim Bearden (carrying a chainsaw no less!) talking up the benefits to teachers of joining the club. For those users who sign up get to see a special video of Ron dancing and showing off his famous crazy socks. The full site will be launching early 2009 and have tons of great teacher resources.

Going Interactive wins Adobe's Site of the Day for their viral online marketing game - The International Paperless Adventure. GI took the brand new UPS service online in a fun and interesting way. The UPS service offers customers the ability to ship internationally without all the hassle of paperwork. The game takes users through a variety of locations and includes unique destination endings, sounds, music and more. Check it out at http://paperlessgame.ups.com.

Going Interactive was brought on to develop online strategy and design and produce these sites from ground up.

Learn more, visit the Going Interactive official site address is www.goinginteractive.com.

A Merry Time for All - GI Holiday Party 2008

2008-12-12T16:40:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Veni Vidi Vici for a wonderful Holiday Diner last night. Here's the GI staff and significant others enjoying the desert and coffee.

Going Interactive Facebook Fan Page

2008-12-11T15:42:00.000-05:00

We've got a new Facebook Fan page.

It's got some great Staffer Parody photos on it right now.

Click on over and become a Fan.

Holiday Video Ads with Humor

2008-12-08T15:29:00.000-05:00

Here's one I wish we had done!

A little long but pretty funny.

Happy Thanksgiving from GI

2008-11-26T20:48:00.000-05:00

Hello.
We at Going Interactive have a lot to be thankful for. We hope you do too.
Happy Thanksgiving from Going Interactive

Boxercraft & Social Media = Going Interactive

2008-11-21T12:36:00.000-05:00

Going Interactive is helping Boxercraft and MyBoxercraft reach out to their distinct audience of young tween and teen girls and boys.

GI is working on a creative plan to reach out over multiple social networks and provide content, design, videos and more for end users to interact with. This will also tie into an organic and PPC SEO campaign moving them into 2009.

To find out how you can include Social Media into your companies marketing plans, contact Going Interactive today.

Are you using Social Media in your marketing?

2008-11-12T16:49:00.000-05:00

A recent survey found that the majority of marketing executives are still in the early, experimental phases of using and measuring social media. 80% have not yet fully integrated the core elements of Web 2.0 into their marketing efforts, according to a survey from the Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG), reports MarketingCharts.

However, despite a lack of expertise, more than 67% report they will increase their social media advertising budget in 2009 and see many benefits to adopting social media. These include the ability to engage and communicate with customers and the relatively low cost vs. traditional media.

A few of the social media tools currently being used by some marketers are social networking sites - such as YouTube, MySpace and Facebook, blogs, forums, and video-sharing sites to name a few.

If you are interested in stepping creatively into the social media world, contact Going Interactive today.

To see some more stats click here.
Image taken from Facebook home page.

New GI Video Case Studies

2008-10-30T09:59:00.000-04:00

We've recently made live on our site and on YouTube two new video Case Study Overviews covering the UPS Paperless Game project and the PC Mall Reignmaker VoIP project.

On our site click under Work > Strategy to view nice Flash versions.

Here's an embedded YouTube version too.

GI's Halloween Classic "Zombie Interactive"

2008-10-24T09:45:00.000-04:00

Just like watching Charlie Brown's the Great Pumpkin on Halloween it's time for us to post again our classic "Zombie Interactive" video skit from 2005.

GI Takes Gold and Silver IABC Flames for UPS and Reignmaker

2008-10-22T14:52:00.000-04:00

We're proud to announce we took a Golden Flame Award for our work in the PC Mall Reignmaker Website and a Silver Flame for the UPS Paperless Adventure at last night's 2008 IABC Awards Ceremony.

Check out the work at pcmall.reignmaker.net and paperlessgame.ups.com

We've also added two new video Case Studies for these projects on our main website under Work > Strategy.

Your Visitors Expect Social Media

2008-10-20T14:48:00.000-04:00

It's true... A recent study of online American consumers found 93% of them expect companies to have a social media presence. With stats like that you've got to upgrade your online social media efforts. There's a big variety of ways to "spread the word" (YouTube, and Facebook, and Twitter, and MySpace, and Flickr, and blogging. etc.).

If you want to get a creative edge on social media, give Going Interactive a shout.

PS. If you are reading this then you are on our blog. That's social media!
(image from Going Interactive's Flickr Site)

Viral Videos are Integral

2008-10-16T09:55:00.000-04:00

A recent article found on MarketingVox spoke about the interest marketers have in utilizing online viral videos.

The "Viral Video Marketing Survey" surveyed ad-agency executives and media buyers and found that 80% are "very familiar" with viral video. Some 72% say their clients are "interested"or "very interested" in using viral video as an integral part of their marketing campaigns.

The majority of ad execs (56%) also reported being "pleased" with the results of a viral video campaign, while less than 3% say they have been displeased.

More than nine out of ten (92%) marketers labeled "exponential views" as the leading benefit to viral video marketing, followed closely with 87% choosing "brand engagement." Online reach and the brand seen as "forward thinking" were also rated as highly positive factors.

If your company is looking for a creative approach to online social media, contact Going Interactive today.

Future Foundation & Going Interactive

2008-10-14T10:46:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive is working with the local East Point non-profit organization - The Future Foundation to design and produce a dynmaic flash based website for tweens and teens which will include polls, quizes, lessons, and a fun online game.

The Future Foundation was started by pro NBA star Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Future Foundation is committed to shaping today’s youth into productive and responsible citizens. We believe that children are the key to our future and to sustainable change. Established in 2001, the agency exists because of visionary and founder, Shareef Abdur-Rahim. A Sacramento Kings Forward, Cal basketball star, coach, and Trumpet Award recipient, Abdur-Rahim envisioned an agency dedicated to supporting the youth and neighborhood, in which he grew up.

GI recently went for a photo shoot in order to include some of the real kids in the site design. Here's a sneak peak at the chosen design GI created and a candid photo of GI onsite. The site is expected to go live by early 09.

Two IABC 2008 Golden Flames for Going Interactive

2008-10-13T11:36:00.000-04:00

We're proud to announce Going Interactive has two winners in two categories in this years IABC 2008 Golden Flame Awards.

Firstly for our work on the "UPS Paperless Adventure" and secondly for the "Reignmaker VoIP for Business PCMall Portal".

The actual award event is Tuesday, October 21, at the Renaissance Waverly Hotel. We'll find out at the event exactly which versions of Golden Flames won that night (Bronze, Silver, Gold).

Drink Coffee. Do Good.

2008-10-09T09:23:00.000-04:00

A simple concept to think about. Well, it's actually true. The Land of 1,000 Hills Coffee House in Roswell IS doing good. The Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee is a place where you can have a high quality cup of coffee and know that it also provides a Living Wage to coffee growers, micro-finance loans to widows, and engages redemption in a very tangible way across the world.

Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee is on a mission to provide excellent coffee, support sustainable economic development, and to be a catalyst for reconciliation in Rwanda.

Besides all the good they do... it tastes good too!
A warm welcome awaits you at the Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee House in Historic Roswell, GA! We boast a laid-back atmosphere, large outdoor patio, free wireless internet, tempting pastries and desserts, and excellent coffee by the bag or the cup.

Going Interactive donated free of charge our services (to help do some good) and designed this WordPress driven blog style site for the local Roswell location. The coffee house can now totally control their site, upload photos, videos and more. If you're in the area, stop by and drink up!

"Drink Coffee. Do Good."

Fall Image

2008-10-02T09:38:00.000-04:00

Fall is in the air here at Going Interactive (or at least in the South). The sun is beginning to change where it begins and ends each day. This was shot with my iPhone this morning as the sun was shinning through my office window.

- Jason Davenport

GI Produces Talkster Presentation

2008-09-30T16:08:00.000-04:00

Here's some screens from a recent B2B trade show marketing presentation Going Interactive produced for Talkster.

Talkster is a cool Web2.0 type of service that let's people get free local numbers for them and their friends around the world.

Going Interactive produced an animated auto running presentation used at the Talkster trade show booth and by sales reps.

GI Doodles

2008-09-28T18:16:00.000-04:00

Every once in awhile we take a break from our focused interactive work for clients and just DOODLE.

I saw this cool doodle on GI Philbert's client notes printout. He finished it up and colorized it into this cool super doodle. Btw - That's Phil in the top left photo in the Talkster screen above.

Going Interactive Wins Adobe Site of the Day for UPS Paperless Adventure

2008-09-23T10:25:00.000-04:00

We're proud to announce that today Tuesday September 23, 2008 the UPS Great Paperless Adventure is Adobe's coveted Site of the Day.

Going Interactive concepted, designed, and developed this online viral game site for UPS Public Relations.

The site was a creative way to market UPS's new paperless global shipping service. Choose your location and a package destination. Then use your arrow keys to deliver your UPS package as fast as possible while avoiding reams of paper, birds of prey, and other obstacles in your way. This site was created with Flash to promote paperless international shipping.

Check it out here.

Atlanta Financial Center

2008-09-22T17:11:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive wrapped up the new site for Atlanta Financial Center. AFC is the iconic building Georgians drive under when they pass through the Lenox, Buckhead, on Interstate 400. Besides the great location, it's also getting some fantastic upgrades.

If your business is in the local Atlanta Georgia area and you're looking for a new place to locate your offices, check out the available suites at AFC.

Going Interactive also helped create an innovative media welcome center in the building with plasma screens, table presentations, and floor projections. Photos to come soon!

Introducing - MyBoxercraft.com Consumer Shopping Site

2008-09-17T09:58:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive is pleased to announce the launch of the all new consumer shopping site - www.MyBoxercraft.com!

The parent company Boxercraft®, is America's leading supplier of quality spiritwear, offering unique styles that are fun for young people and service that is profitable for our customers.

Going Interactive was brought on from conception of project. The goal was to create a unique online destination for Boxercraft's direct consumer retail outlet.

Going Interactive created the online strategy, overall site Information Architecture including front-end and back-end user paths. Some highlights are straight forward clicking, quick check out process, and showing "recently viewed" items throughout the users experience. Going Interactive created an original design which meets the needs of the prospective MyBoxercraft.com audience (girl tweens and teens).

Brand new sales were taken within the first couple hours of launching the site MyBoxercraft.com. Over the next quarter, Going Interactive will also create and online campaign to promote both MyBoxercraft and Boxercraft through a variety of social outlets including MySpace, YouTube, Google, Facebook, withe strategic SEO, videos, and more.

Need some new gear, athletic or casual? Then check out www.MyBoxercraft.com today and place an order online.

Charity T-Shirt Desgins

2008-09-16T16:52:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive was proud to donate a t-shirt design to a team in the Atlanta 2-Day Breast Cancer Walk in September.

Z came up with these nice designs.

New Toy Site Online

2008-09-15T09:49:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive just completed the new site for the new pre-K board game "Guess What I Am!".

The site will serve as the unique destination for consumers who want to find out more about the game, download extra playing cards, and just have fun. The Flash site has video, downloads, press content, games, awards and more.

GI also worked with Techno Source (the game maker) last year to produce the award-winning Rubik's Revolution product site.

The game is now available everywhere (as seen above on your local toy aisle), including online at Toys R Us.

Google Browser Online Comic

2008-09-02T16:32:00.000-04:00

Check out the "online comicbook" explaining how the Google Chrome open source browser is to work.

It's a very cool way to present a complicated process.

New Hospitalogic Site Now Online

2008-08-28T15:40:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive just completed the design and development of the new Hospitalogic website.

Hospitalogic (HLG) is a family of companies integrating leadership and business skills from within and outside healthcare; with the practice of medicine to create innovative strategies that achieve quantum success in community hospitals.

GI helped roll 4 company sites into one successful destination. The site also has a interactive cost impact ROI calculator and a Leadership Blog for on-going white papers, updates and assistance in SEO.

If your company needs help with a creative online strategy, design and development - contact us today.

Project Process: GATC Part Four (Green Screen Work)

2008-08-26T17:09:00.000-04:00

While our scene was being colorized we held a 1/2 day video shoot of Ron and Kim in our Going Interactive Green Screen Studio. The footage was digitized, edited and made ready to go into our Flash piece.

Project Process: GATC Part Three (Colorizing)

2008-08-23T21:10:00.000-04:00

After the inked version of the scene was approved we moved on to colorizing.

Next up: Green screen work

Project Process: GATC Part Two (Rough Sketches)

2008-08-22T17:04:00.000-04:00

After analyzing the reference photos we moved on to producing rough pencil sketches of the scene and then a final inked version. (Thanks to Mike Dyson at Guerrilla 808 Studios helping us out with this.)

Next Up: Colorizing

Project Process: GATC Part One (Reference Photos)

2008-08-21T16:56:00.000-04:00

Our first step in creating the new Flash based promotional site for Ron Clark's Great American Teacher's Club was to visit the Ron Clark Academy and take reference photos for the "scene" of the Flash site.

Half of Adults Text, Blog, Use Other Social Media

2008-08-20T18:04:00.000-04:00

This is some interesting data...

Over 50% of US adults use text messaging, blogging and other types of social media to regularly communicate with others.

For those 18-34 years old, the reigning form of personal communication is social media, which 85% of those in this age group say they use to connect with people they know. Read more here.

If you're reading this and thinking "wow?!", then email Going Interactive and let's see what kind of creative social media campaign we can get started on.

Contact us by email at Info@goinginteractive.com.

Tweens ARE online & they like to search to shop

2008-08-08T09:42:00.000-04:00

The research shows that a huge majority (83 percent) of tweens (age 10-14) spend at least an hour online per day, compared with 68 percent reporting they watch an hour of TV per day. That's big news for online products and services.

However, there's a couple other interesting points...
A minimum of 40 percent of tweens reported using search to gather more info about products/services about which they'd seen an ad. Some 78 percent said they use Google most often; 14 percent cited Yahoo instead.

Don't forget about the social sites too now - Six in 10 visit social-network sites at least once a day.

If you want to see all the fun charts and data, check out this Marketing Charts site.

All in all, if your audience is upcoming tweens (who are some of the first to grow up being on computers) then give Going Interactive a call or email to get the conversation started.

Going Interactive Designs New FLOWMETRO.com

2008-08-04T16:32:00.000-04:00

We're proud to announce the tasteful new site for the FLOWMETRO Group is now online.

FLOWMETRO Group (“fmG”) is a progressive real estate investment, brokerage, and advisory firm based in Atlanta. Since 1999, our principals have systematically and successfully completed more than $800 million in transactions in some of the most dynamic and transitional urban and suburban infill areas of the Southeast.

GI designed and developed the new site to be marketing savvy and SEO friendly.

Check out the site here.

GI and Ron Clark Green Screen Shoot

2008-08-01T15:03:00.000-04:00

We're delighted to be working on a new site for famous educator Ron Clark of the Ron Clark Academy.

We had a blast filming Ron and RCA Co-Founder Kim Beardon in our green screen studio recently.

Check back as we post progress as we develop a the site for Ron and Kim's new "Great American Teacher's Club."

If You're a Fortune 500 - You Better Be Bloggin'

2008-07-24T11:38:00.000-04:00

A recent article in PR Week points out that 15% of Fortune 500 companies are communicating with consumers via blogs.

Read the article here.

We here at GI feel have a company blog is a necessary part of a good web presence and always push it to our clients.

Contact us to see how we can help maximize your company's online strategy.

Going Interactive Now Hiring

2008-07-23T15:08:00.000-04:00

Interactive / Web Developer
Going Interactive is looking for that perfect Interactive Developer. Agency experience required.

This position involves forward thinking, creativity, and the desire to widen your perspective as a new media developer. You will be asked to combine design, content, navigation, motion graphics, and usability to create a powerful and integrated experience for the end-user. You will be expected to understand the client's needs and work harmoniously with a creative director, to ensure client expectations and project goals are met.

We're looking for someone who has a clean approach to development and design and pays close attention to the details. We want someone honest, dependable, positive, and constructive. Someone who is driven, works under tight deadlines, focuses under pressure, and doesn't mind 10 rounds of edits. Besides all that, you must have a great sense of humor and enjoy what you do. Experience working with B2C brands is a plus.

Job Requirements: Skills include: Flash 8 (Action Scripting 2/3), ALL about web development apps (CSS, ASP, PHP, HTML, AJAX, DHTML) Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut Pro, After Effects. Additional bonus skills include: DVD Studio, video editing, PowerPoint, and other interactive applications.

At least four years experience in the agency/design world, with an ideal focus in new media / web / flash / video / viral marketing.

Application Process: Please don't take it personally. We only respond to appropriate candidates.

No Recruiters Please!

No calls. Send ground-breaking links and portfolio samples to: fng@goinginteractive.com

What's the difference between Gen Xer & Gen Yer?

2008-07-22T12:35:00.000-04:00

Forrester did a recent survey comparing the two groups. I found it very interesting (and true!). The short of the story is that Gen Yers (ages 18-28) are setting the pace for new technology and adoption. They spend more time online for leisure AND work rather than watching the "old" TV. While Gen Xers (ages 29-42) are traditionally using technology when it supports their lifestyle or intersect with their personal needs. They are saying that Gen Yers are really the first native online population. Wow!

So this is really interesting stuff mainly because it's the group that YOU and US at Going Interactive will be marketing to more and more over the next (million years - ha ha). To see the charts and get more details check out the Survey on Marketing Charts.

Feel free to drop us a line if you'd like to take your communications to the next level.

Sincerely - Jason Davenport

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Sustainable Video for Kawneer

2008-07-16T14:21:00.000-04:00

Going Interactive recently wrapped production of a DVD video presentation for Kawneer's Sustainable Products initiative.

GI worked with Function ATL on the piece.

View sample of the piece here.

New Apple iPhone Apps

2008-07-14T17:29:00.000-04:00

Apple has done it again. The app store seems to have a number of really great items in it (Pandora, Shazam, Twitteriffic - to name a few). If you don't already have an iPhone... well, you may consider it soon. It really is a laptop in the palm of your hands. Check out your iTunes app store to see more.
(Image borrowed from Apple.com)

One-Third of Entertainment Consumed on PCs

2008-07-09T14:07:00.000-04:00

Wow - great research article about time spent on PC's vs. TV, Radio, Magazines, etc.

"36 percent of all entertainment is consumed on computers, according to Netpop Research, whose recent findings underscore the central role of the PC as a primary access point for entertainment, reports MarketingCharts.

Teens and adults (those age 13-34) with broadband connections now spend more time in front of computers than watching blockbuster movies or reading novels and fashion magazines, the study found."
Read the whole article here.

We here at Going Interactive spend most of our time on computers too! Give us a shout: info@goinginteractive.com

Slick image borrowed from: www.webopedia.com

Don't slow down

2008-07-08T08:50:00.000-04:00

This survey from AMA rings true...
"Some 60 percent of American Marketing Association member marketers say halting or reducing spend on key marketing programs is the biggest mistake marketers can make in an economic downturn." As reported on MarketingVox. Read the full survey results.

Apple TV - Great Alternative to Overdone Cable

2008-07-02T11:52:00.000-04:00

Channel surfing one night this week we (yet again) got frustrated in finding anything good on to entertain us. The same lineup of stupid reality shows, endless talking head news shows, home fix up shows, etc.

I have an Apple TV hooked up to our TV that we usually use to watch our photo albums on TV and now rent movies. Sometimes we watch Podcasts on the weekends.

It suddenly popped into my head to check in on some of my video podcast subscriptions, Namely, the Bitchin' Kitchen. However for some reason I didn't have any new episodes so I decided to look at Apple's "Podcast" directory on the AppleTV. There I http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifdiscovered a lot of little new video podcasts form major providers. But the best was T. A fan of the web site, I had no idea they were producing such slick and hilarious video podcasts. We spent the next 20 minutes watching great little skits.

It was breath of fresh air in the face of the endless cable television channel surfing.

Be sure to consider getting your own AppleTV. I think they are great and offer an awesome variety of major and "indie" entertainment options that you don't get on nightly cable broadcasting.

- DD

Adobe Says Flash Is Now Search Engine Friendly

2008-07-01T14:33:00.000-04:00

Could it be? Well, we're very excited about the recent news we saw on Marketing Vox today.

Here's a little of the scoop...

"With the launch of a Flash-reading tool from Adobe, marketers can factor Flash into their SEO efforts, instead of compensating for the presence of Flash with extra text.

Adobe, the creator of Flash Player, developed a product that interprets Flash applications for web crawlers, making it possible to index that data for searchers. The technology was released to Google and Yahoo. As a result of the service, text and links from Flash apps can appear in search results for users querying relevant keywords, just like ordinary content, Adobe wrote."

Flash Player already reaches over 98% of Internet-enabled desktops and more than half a billion handsets and mobile devices. Basically what all this means is... you should give Going Interactive a call today to discuss your next Flash project.

Designs

2008-06-30T13:43:00.000-04:00

Here's a couple weekend poster designs done by our own GI Zach.

Internet Advertising Projected to Pass $106 BILLION

2008-06-26T15:53:00.000-04:00

A posting on IDC.com says "Worldwide spending on Internet advertising will total $65.2 billion in 2008, which represents nearly 10% of all ad spending across all media."

Check out the article here.

We here at Going Interactive fully believe it!

Up With Mobile Commerce

2008-06-25T17:28:00.000-04:00

I have used my iPhone to buy music from the iTunes store a few times recently and thus I wasn't surprised to come across this:

Nielsen Mobile figures released at the Internet Retailer Conference in Chicago express that 9 million US mobile subscribers have used their mobile phone to pay for goods or services.

The article is here on Marketing Vox.

Social Media Marketing Intelliegence

2008-06-20T11:43:00.000-04:00

Did you know 37% of all blogs posts are written in Japanese?!

Here's a nice little article on Marketing Vox about gathering market intelligence from social media.

The article covers items like using Google Blog Search, Technorati Advanced Search, Meta Search Engines like Clusty, Serph and Zuula, Nielson BrandPulse, and Google Trends.

Stuff you need to know!

Staffer Look Alikes

2008-06-12T16:13:00.000-04:00

We made some interesting observations around the office recently about two GI members.

Companies Using Linkden

2008-05-29T10:12:00.000-04:00

Evidently ALL 500 of the Fortune 500 Companies are represented on Linkden?

Wow!

Here's a link to a great article on SiteProNews about why using Linkden is a good idea.

And since it's a good idea here's a link to our Linden profiles....

Doug Davenport Jr.

Jason Davenport

Going Interactive Wins Gold Communicator Award for UPS Paperless Game

2008-05-23T12:33:00.000-04:00

We proud to announce that Going Interactive has won a Gold Communicator Award for our UPS Paperless Adventure viral flash game.

GI also received a Silver Communicator Award for RubiksRevolution.com

The Communicator Awards is the leading international awards program honoring creative excellence for Communications Professionals. Founded by communication professionals over a decade ago, The Communicator Awards received over 8,000 entries from companies and agencies of all sizes, making it one of the largest awards of its kind in the world.

The Communicator Awards provides winners and their clients the recognition they deserve and gives communications and creative professionals proof and validation that their work is outstanding and highly regarded by their peers. The Communicator Awards provides an equal chance of winning to all entrants regardless of company or agency size and project budget.

"Street View" on Google Maps - Very Cool

2008-05-21T14:46:00.000-04:00

We saw a preview of this months ago.

Here's a cool video of how it works.

Georgia Tax Breaks Offered to Game Developers

2008-05-14T11:41:00.000-04:00

According to an article on theweekly.com Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue has signed into law the "2008 Entertainment Industry Investment Act" which is designed to encourage entertainment productions in GA.

The 20% tax credit for qualified productions are also eligible for an additional 10% credit if they include and animated Georgia promotional logo in the finished projects.

AND this also applies to video game productions.
(not just movies, etc produced in GA)

Here's a link to the article on theweekly.com

and one on joystiq.com