About Abstract Edge
Our Mission Is Your Mission
For mission-driven organizations, the Internet is a godsend where you can tell your story to anybody at any time.
Does your organization take full advantage of this power?
Abstract Edge helps our clients unleash their websites through smarter design. Let us help you:
- Reposition your organization with a fresh personality and look
- Grow your community
- Provoke real-world action
- Tell your story through search, social, and mobile technologies
- Improve traffic, conversion, and retention
- Empower a “DIY” staff
Does it work? Just ask the Million Mom March. In 1999, we showed them how to use online marketing to inspire and mobilize more than 850,000 people to “march” for common sense gun laws in only 9 months.
Or ask Malaria No More about the work we did with them and American Idol that helped raise millions of dollars to conquer malaria. Or the Simons Foundation, for whom we created an online community of the top autism researchers on the planet.
Our successes also include many “for-profit” companies that want to improve the world. Ask about the “Go Red For Women” campaign we executed for Clairol to help fight heart disease, or the platform we constructed for Discover Magazine that has empowered staff to improve science literacy in the US and worldwide. For Opower, we designed and built a website that persuaded consumers to exchange over 500,000 incandescent lightbulbs for energy-saving CFLs.
And we’ve helped so many more.
We encourage you to explore our blog and case studies, and we hope you’ll allow us to help you better achieve your important mission.
Now go out and make the world a little bit better.
What kinds of services do we provide?
Our primary services include:
- Inbound marketing campaigns, centered around search engine optimization, social media marketing, blogging and opt-in email marketing
- Website design
- Content management systems
- Web application development
In addition, many of our clients love our design work so much, they have us design all of their marketing materials.
What do we mean by “inbound marketing”?
Let’s start by explaining what inbound marketing is not. It is not banner advertising, email spamming, cold calling, telemarketing or other forms of marketing that come down to desperately trying to seek attention through interruption. These techniques have become way less effective. All of us are constantly awash in advertising. We’re all numb to it. Plus, we’ve developed technologies to help block it, from spam filters and pop-up blockers to DVRs and caller ID.
Think for a moment about how you actually buy products or services these days. Typically, you go online to do a Google search. Or maybe you ask your friends for a recommendation on Facebook or Twitter. Better, maybe you already follow a blogger who is in an expert in your area of need. This is the province of inbound marketing.
Inbound marketing is about setting yourself up like a magnet, attracting the interest of those trying to find products or services in your industry. The easier you make it for them to find you, especially at the exact point when they want to find somebody like you, and the more educational, engaging or entertaining you make your content, the more success you will achieve.
Compared with traditional interruption marketing, inbound marketing is:
- Less expensive
- More trackable (am I getting a good ROI?)
- More targeted
- Less objectionable for your potential customers
- An investment that builds on itself over time
We wrote a more detailed post on inbound marketing if you want more information.
Are there examples of our work online?
Please take the time to view examples of our work at our gallery website. Samples include:
Marriott Hotels
The challenge to put “heads in beds” became increasingly difficult for NYC hotels following the tragedy of 9/11. The smart marketers at the Marriott knew traditional tactics would not be enough. AE’s work to increase awareness, drive traffic and inspire repeat customers has included website design and development, email campaigns and membership growth initiatives, all of which are part of an integrated strategic campaign, including radio and print support. This relationship is characterized by strategic planning, measurable results and the flexibility to address unpredictable “soft-spots” inherent in the travel and leisure market.
Clairol
Clairol hired Abstract Edge to create an online brand experience that captured the personality and positioning of their sub-brands and products. As Clairol Pro’s Interactive Agency of Record, this long-term relationship included strategic planning, community building, CRM, sampling, surveys, sweepstakes, e-newsletters, and integration with offline campaigns, positioning Clairol Pro as an industry leader and angel – supporting artistic excellence and education in the beauty market.
Atkins
The new Atkins Nutritionals management team came to AE during a complete reinvention of their brand. They wanted AE to create an online experience that articulated this new business strategy and brand identity. We designed a website that reflects Atkins’ new corporate mission, provides product information and educational resources, and inspires active people to achieve the advantage they need to enhance their health and enrich their lives. Through innovative strategy and creative design AE helped Atkins to successfully launch a new business strategy.
Discover Magazine
DISCOVER magazine, the leading popular science magazine in the US, hired Abstract Edge to create a new website that would be more compelling to its community and subscribers. This high-traffic site, developed on the open source Plone content management system, contains thousands of related articles and allows DISCOVER to take advantage of advanced search, blogging, podcasting, photo galleries, and video technologies, and greatly facilitates the publication of the online magazine.
Give Kids The World
Few organizations are as heartfelt and meaningful as GKTW, whose mission is to create magical memories for children with life-threatening illnesses. The setting is a whimsical, fairytale resort only minutes from Disney World. Our work was to engage the members and inspire the community to raise awareness, increase partnerships and help grow this organization’s outreach.
Million Mom March
Starting with three soccer moms with the goal to end gun violence, the Million Mom March became the single largest grassroots movement of its time. The challenge was to engage and motivate a mass of people, in only nine months, to march on Washington. Abstract Edge was responsible for strategy and execution of all MMM online initiatives including outreach and fundraising, content management, over 250 local chapter microsites, e-mail campaigns, and community empowerment tools. Over 850,000 marched and millions of dollars were raised.
