Powerful Annual Report Theme Sparks a Unique Special Event
The theme of the 2008 Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC annual report, "Everyone Needs A Hero" was created by the agency to emphasize the importance of mentoring and its powerful influence on children-at-risk. The theme also gave birth to a memorable event involving the participation of one of New York City's renowned art schools and a group of BBBS' "Littles" and "Bigs."

To carry out the "hero" theme visually in the annual report, our design featured drawings by the "Littles" depicting their "Bigs" as superheroes. To provide the artwork we proposed creating a "Superhero Drawing Workshop" for the "Littles" and "Bigs," in collaboration with New York's School of Visual Arts (SVA).

The school was immediately responsive to the idea, and asked one of its pre-eminent instructors, Phil Jimenez, to conduct the workshop. Mr. Jimenez is a noted artist/cartoonist whose clients include Marvel Comics, DC Comics and Sony, among others. Under his direction, the "Littles" produced the wonderful drawings that are the highlight of the annual report. What's more, the workshop drew one of the largest turnouts ever for a BBBS-sponsored Saturday event.

Print Advertising and E-Marketing Successfully Promote Air India's Special Offers
A combination of newspaper ads and e-mail blasts proved to be a timely and highly effective means of announcing a series of limited time special offers for Air India. The offers were targeted primarily at Indians and other South Asians living in the U.S. They were designed to offset the effect of fuel surcharges and other extra charges that had been imposed by the airline and virtually all other international carriers.

To promote the offers, which included a rebate, free airport transfers, and free travel for a second child, four-color ads were placed weekly in the largest circulation nationally distributed South Asian newspapers. Simultaneously, a series of e-mail blasts were deployed to a database of over 90,000 members of "Flying Returns," Air India's frequent flyer program. The response to the e-mail blasts was immediate, with an average click-through rate of 30%.

Together, the impact and frequency of the newspaper ads and the targeted e-marketing succeeded in creating timely awareness of the special offers — and the result was the boost in bookings that Air India was looking for.

New Websites for Sister Companies in Shipping
and Logistics Pose a Unique Challenge
Herman Associates was tasked with developing new websites for two divisions of the newly formed American Shipping & Logistics Group. A key requirement for American Roll-on Roll-off Carrier (ARRC) and American Automotive Logistics (AAL) was that their new websites maintain the distinct identities of the two companies while reflecting their corporate relationship.

To achieve that goal, the agency developed a basic design format that
would accommodate the content of both websites, and created color
palettes for each that would be harmonious. Special features of the ARRC website included interactive route and office location maps. Customer education videos and an appointment scheduling module were incorporated into the AAL website. The entire project was closely coordinated with the parent company's IT department.

ARRC is one of the leading U.S.-Flag ocean carriers who serve the
Department of Defense and other government agencies. AAL provides comprehensive shipping, storage, and logistics services for military service members' personally owned vehicles that are being shipped abroad. See www.arrcnet.com and www.whereismypov.com.