As part of an integrated and collaborative McCann team, I designed, developed and deployed the online digital programme for Magic Hat, their flagship youth communications agency marketing platform.
McCann Erickson is part of McCann Worldgroup which is one of the world's largest marketing communications networks, boasting a roster of eight best-in-class companies collaborating toward the transformation of their clients' brands and growth of their businesses.
McCann Worldgroup includes:
- McCann Erickson, the world's largest advertising agency network.
- MRM, which focuses on digital communications and customer relationship management.
- Momentum, specialists in event marketing and promotion.
- McCann Healthcare, which handles medical/pharmaceutical communications.
- EXP, a global production services provider.
- UM, a leading global media management company
- Weber Shandwick, one of the world's largest public relations firms.
- FutureBrand, a brand consulting and design company.
McCann Erickson predicted the power and growing influence of the online youth market and the importance of conveying exacting information about that market to their clients. In the nature of this work we preempted the social media networking power of Facebook by several years.
The principle goals for the Magic Hat programme were to create an online communications channel that showcased McCann Erickson as a 'World Class' creative digital advertising agency and to generate youth engagement through the means of social and digital experience.
Part of the solution was to create a fantastical and interactive website that mixed a range of imaginative and inspiring topics presented with rich media to encourage young people to contribute with their own views and creative ideas.
From this forum McCann was able to better understand their clients potential target audience and demonstrate that this process of interaction is a very effective means of engaging with a target audience.
In terms of the website architecture content topics were divided into channels. Each unique channel used a different themed approach to emphasise Magic Hat's values and objectives for youth engagment.
The site was launched with provocative seed content to encourage creative dialogue with the target audience in a myriad of ways unique to the Magic Hat viral formula.
Interactivity included innovative ideas such as threading content to forums, validated multi media submissions, themed organic information architecture, dynamic email update tools, multi user toys and dynamically displayed searchable message boards, users also had the ability to customise the sites environment with user preference settings.
The website was split into three distinct areas of interaction. The first, presented with state-of-the-art online rich media techniques, informed the visitor of Magic Hat's advertising services and campaign achievments. The second was a secure collaborative project management client area. The third was a community environment populated with a combination of 'in-house' and user submitted content. The content, diverse and high calibre, was themed around creativity and the digital age and was presented in different formats and sub-channels.
Part of the brief was to create a unique, easy to use and inviting interface which registered users could both customise, submit content and post messages through. Once approved the content would be posted to one of the sub-channels - eZine, Hot Stories, Vox Pops, Cartoon Commetry, Voting Games, Video Interviews, Video Streams, Galleries, Fashion, Art, Musc, 48hr City Reviews, Whats On, Exhibitions, Forums, Bulliten Boards, Fun Stuff, Links, Private Messaging, Next Big Thing.
Although this website was created to target the youth market, the design needed to appeal to a wider audience, encompassing both existing and potential clients.
Through team collaboration the decision was made to style the graphical user interface (GUI) on early 19th Century theatrical posters for illusionist spectacles. In keeping with the brief I created the user navigations as Flash animations.
To illustrate Magic Hat as having cutting-edge knowledge of online technologies, I created an interactive virtual environment to showreel a selection of McCann's advertising campaigns. Based on computer game design I created a ‘first person’ interactive virtual experience whereby the user navigated an urban landscape (accompanied with soundscapes) and engaged with McCann Erickson’s promotional materials for example enlarged posters, playing audio and watching videos.
The backend solution was to develop a tailor made data driven content managment system with secure granular heirarchy access where all content elements could be managed via an easy to use administrative interface.
The Magic Hat website encapsulated McCann Erickson’s forward thinking, dynamic approach to communication in the advertising world. Contact Me To Learn More
