(Photo above: Business Director Andrea Walker and her husband & Creative Director Kelly | courtesy of Resonant)
Resonant Agency Masters the Art of Getting Attention
In an environment over saturated with content, a brand’s ability to resonate through the clutter of competing voices is paramount.
Resonant Agency, owned by Andrea Walker of Bend, recently announced its launch as the only Central Oregon firm of its kind, specializing in the fine art of getting attention. Their neo-Classic brand identity reflects an approach that integrates the timeless wisdom of creative industry Greats—like David Ogilvy, William Bernbach and John Caples—with the tools and techniques of the 21st Century media context.
“A lot of companies know how to develop marketing technology and tools, but few are rooted in the psychology of advertising and the core principles of brand development,” according to Resonant Creative Director, Kelly Walker. “Your brand can be in the right media at the right time, but fail to engage because it lacks ideas that hijack the imagination©.”
Andrea cites a quote by consultant and author, Faris Yakob: “Advertising agencies are not in the business of making cool stuff. They are in the business of making money for clients, using creativity…successful art is also very commercially minded, by definition…In a world where mainstream media is increasingly supplemented by the media of the masses, one of the leverage points for creativity is earning attention.”
Kelly explains what makes Resonant Agency’s focus unique. “The word advertising comes from the Latin advertere, which means ‘to turn toward.’ Our expertise centers on turning attention toward our clients, earning them a competitive advantage through high-level strategic creativity that makes their brand communications impossible to ignore©. We create ideas that engage emotions; a voice that resonates throughout all a company’s media.”
Inherent to Resonant’s specialization, says Kelly, is the concept of strategic creativity. “Creativity must be built on a strategic foundation, or it is merely aimless entertainment. But strategy without radical creativity is dead. Ryan Carroll put it well: ‘Great creatives are also closet strategists. They can see the opportunities inside of a problem, they study the behavior of their audience, and then combine those two things to create an idea that is persuasive.’”
As a wife and husband team, Andrea and Kelly Walker are long-time Bend residents who have, between them, founded two successful marketing agencies; they have produced award-winning corporate identity, marketing and advertising campaigns spanning the past decade-and-a-half in just about every conceivable medium, from traditional to social and digital. Recent clients include Cascade Alchemy Distillery, Paleo Eats, Duke Warner Realty, ProCFO, Mid Oregon Personnel and several national clients.
Andrea came up with the idea for a new program called Emerge, which makes high-end brand development available to small business entrepreneurs in small group work sessions. “Our first group of three local businesses has been meeting one-on-one with professionals in various marketing & branding disciplines, and we’ve already been able to accelerate their brand growth,” she says. “For example, we produced a very funny video ad for Paleo Eats that got over 7,000 views in its first day.”
“A lot of people come to us with underdeveloped brands, inconsistent advertising and misguided expectations,” Andrea says. “The father of advertising,avid Oglivy, said that ‘a million dollars’ worth of effective advertising can sell more than ten million dollars’ worth of ineffective advertising.’ We hate to see people throwing good money at bad advertising, or losing market position due to outdated branding, so we decided to focus our expertise and do something about it.”
For more information and to view a select portfolio of Resonant Agency’s work, visit resonantagency.com. Contact Resonant Agency at hello@resonantagency.com or by calling 541- 419-9976
Resonant is a woman-owned business run by Business Director Andrea Walker and her husband & Creative Director Kelly
