justkake-blog

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MARKETING TO MILLENNIALS

MARKETING TO MILLENNIALS MILLENNIALS WANT TO KNOW WHY (instead of WHAT)MAKE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE PRODUCT ITSELF. | Create Infographics

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MARKETING TO MILLENNIALS MILLENNIALS WANT TO KNOW WHY (instead of WHAT)MAKE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE PRODUCT ITSELF. | Create Infographics

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: How feeling grateful can improve your work life

Sources:

Harvard Business Review: http://blogs.hbr.org/2014/04/gratitude-is-the-new-willpower/

FORBES: http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikaandersen/2012/10/26/want-to-succeed-in-business-and-have-a-great-life-start-by-being-grateful/

Miami Herald: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/12/24/3829606/seven-reasons-being-grateful-can.html

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: KEY VISUAL MARKETING TOOLS

VISUAL MARKETING | Create Infographics

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: The Benefits of Business Blogging

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COLUMBIA PROFESSOR VICTORIOUS IN HIS QUEST FOR ACADEMIC FREEDOM

After Iymen Chehade’s class at Columbia College Chicago was cancelled, he realized that his academic freedom had been violated and skillfully protested until his class was reinstated. In this exclusive KAKE interview, Chehade discusses the importance of recognizing and fighting for academic freedom in schools across the globe.

Issues first arose when Chehade showed the Academy Award nominated film 5 Broken Cameras to the class he teaches on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. His ultimate purpose in showing the film was to humanize the issues often discussed in class. Soon after, Chehade was reported by a student who complained this action was bias, and as a direct result, his classes were cancelled. Through our conversation, we discover how Chehade tactfully won his battle against the college and brought a larger issue to light.

Rather than scratching at the surface in our questions, KAKE delves deep into the creative hustle for 300 seconds of real. 300 hones in on genuine conversation for others relate to. 300 promotes the lives of flourishing artists, entrepreneurs, and creatives alike. At KAKE, we pride ourselves on having the ability to find your strengths and help you capitalize upon them. KAKE is a visual media production house geared towards creating progressive marketing strategies. KAKE uses its optimal visual, digital, and communicative departments to put gear your business towards that vision. KAKE prides itself at being at the forefront of modern marketing and innovation. Ride with us.

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: The Art of Planning for the Worst

Throwing an event SUCCESSFULLY takes weeks and weeks of preparation- depending on the scale of the occasion, of course. There are many meetings, shopping trips, and good old fashioned leg work (lugging equipment back and forth) beforehand. Some people forget the most important prep: CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS, aka, planning for disasters. At KAKE, we have these meetings before every event. At our last meeting, we opened with the question "What if nobody shows up?" The answer? Dead silence.

Make Way for a Lone Wolf

This question is that no one wants to plan for. As much as we'd like to be positive and confident in our plans, experience yields that havoc is somewhat inevitable when it comes to planning and executing any sort of event. Best put by famous pyschologist Daniel Kahneman, "The planning fallacy is that you make a plan, which is usually a best-case scenario. Then you assume that the outcome will follow your plan, even when you should know better." 

Be Prepared

More important than imagining the hypothetical "fire" is bringing the tools needed to put it out. It's not about what happens, it's about preparing and making good decisions to handle unexpected situations.

Always create "emergency" supply box complete with materials such as tape, extension cords, trash bags, and other things that may be needed. We had a supply of back up lights, a set of keys to make sure we could access the event space on time instead of relying on others to let us in. The KAKE team met with the owners of the space to organize the flow of the event. Everything was dropped off at the space in advance, and a team of staff was assigned their roles to make sure everything went smoothly. To ensure guest attendance, we collected RSVP's and sent reminder emails right before the event. 

Control What Can be Controlled 

At the last KAKE event, we felt more prepared than ever before. But of course, there were still some bumps in the road. Our car got towed while loading up some equipment, and we lost a staff person at the very last minute. 

There really is no way to predict car troubles, volunteers falling ill, or last minute space changes. 

At KAKE, we can't predict any disastrous situations, but we can plan for almost everything else. (If you have a good fortune teller, send em' our way!) Our team makes sure that everything we can possibly plan for is put together in such a way that losing a staff member and a car really isn't that big of a deal.

A crisis is always an opportunity- and experience has taught us how to throw a pretty damn good party! Stay tuned for some great photos of our latest event.  

Read a blogger's perspective of our latest event ^

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: The Importance of Maintaining Customer Relations

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SHAMELESS PLUGS: Lynn Millspaugh Photography

We love to showcase our talents. One of Kake's very own vendors and a very dear friend of ours, Lynn Millspaugh will be shooting photos for the look book at the #SSLAUNCH on Saturday! Lynn currently shoots for Time Out Chicago, Kake and has worked with a number of high profile clients in the past including The American Heart Association, the Chicago Cubs and more.

Her energy is great to be around and we cannot wait to see how the S&S look book turns out with her behind the lens! The launch is this Saturday at Lacuna Lofts, April 5th, from 12-3pm. If you haven’t RSVP’d to the #SSLAUNCH event, email us- hey[at]kakeme.com.

In the meantime, be sure to check out some of Lynn's work right here!

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SHAMELESS PLUGS: Sip Coffee House

We are another day closer to the #SSLAUNCH! We are so grateful for our amazing sponsors and would like to thank Sip Coffee House for being a part of the event! #SSLAUNCH Guests will be able to enjoy some of Sip's beverages, complimentary during the launch party. There will be also be exclusive promotional coupons to be used at the coffee house. 

Since 1999, Sip has been a lively independent coffee house in the West Town Area. It is now a neighborhood staple that offers an assortment of special coffee blends, teas and other refreshing beverages. We dig their spacious cafe with comfy couches and rock n' roll vibes. And... Just in time for summer - there are two lush outdoor courtyards for customers to relax and enjoy their beverages!

We are proud to have them play a part in the #SSLAUNCH, which will take place at Lacuna Lofts, April 5th, from 12-3pm.

If you haven’t RSVP’d to our event, email us- hey[at]kakeme.com.

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SHAMELESS PLUGS: EUROPEAN WAX CENTER

HEY ALL!

Our event for designer Sparkle and Sophistication is this Saturday, April 5th, at Lacuna Lofts. That's right, the #SSLAUNCH is only a few days away!

Thanks to our sponsor, European Wax Center, we have some amazing goodies to gift to #SSLAUNCH attendees. This is great news, since their products and services are absolutely AMAZING. Not to mention, we love the European Wax Center motto: "We believe luxurious waxing isn’t just for the privileged. It’s for everyone who wants gorgeous skin, whenever they desire." 

#SSLAUNCH attendees will get a generous sampling of several EWC products and services. We are so lucky to have the support of such a great company. 

If you haven't RSVP'd to our event, email us- hey[at]kakeme.com.

In the meantime, check out European Wax's Chicago locations - first time guests get a complimentary wax! 

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EXTRA! EXTRA! #SSLAUNCH Hits Lacuna Artist Lofts!

Due to an overwhelming response and a new sponsorship opportunity, KAKE and S&S are proud to announce that we will be moving the #SSLAUNCH to one of Chicago's premier event spaces, the Lacuna Artist Lofts! We could not be more excited, Lacuna got wind of the launch party and reached out to us with this amazing opportunity. The new address is 2150 S. Canalport Ave. 

Throughout the years, Lacuna Artist Lofts have become a staple in the Chicago artist and small business community, garnering praise from Crain's Chicago Business, NBC and the Huffington Post and more. The space remains a top choice for weddings, corporate events, record releases, photo shoots and more. There's still room for y'all to RSVP for yourself and a guest!

RSVP to hey[at]kakeme.com!  

Be sure to Tweet #SSLAUNCH and let everyone know what's good.

We can't wait to see you! 

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Started From the Bottom, Now We...Have a Slide? The Truth About the Modern Office Space

written by Rachel Lessing 

When I first sat down to write this editorial for KAKE, I was going to write about the differences between office spaces and the rise of the open floor plan. After doing some research online, I found that over 70 percent of today’s offices have an open floor plan. I did some more digging, and found repetitive lists like “10 Cool Office Spaces” and “World’s Best Office Spaces.” I then came across this ridiculous photo of an employee slipping down a slide in an office. What company would ever install a slide in their workplace? Well, you can Google the answer to that.

A slide in a Google workspace. Google also has fireman poles to slide down, nap spaces, massage chairs....etc. 

Yes, in recent years Google has become known for their crazy, playful, and expensive office spaces. There is nothing wrong with this. While the idea of this space is nice, it does not set Google apart from any other established and modern digital companies. In fact, I found Microsoft on the same “cool office space” list, and Facebook, and most companies that Google might deem as competitors. Clearly, the fun space is not as unique to Google as we once thought. 

Kake co-founder Na’el Shehade commented on the fact that Google started in a garage. I found that much more impressive than any sort of jungle-gym located in Google’s new office space. SERIOUSLY. A billion dollar company was founded in a garage? If a company so powerful could be developed in a tiny garage space, then why does it matter how fancy and fun their offices are? Without using Google, I quickly figured out the answer: it doesn’t matter at all.  

Pictured above, the tiny garage where Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin developed Google during the winter of 1998. 

Na’el, an entrepreneur and music producer, didn’t have much interest in discussing an open floor plan versus a tiny office space. He simply stated, “You could be in f*ck!ng dumpster but if  your idea is good then it will work. The focus should be on the work and not the space. Everything is possible, but everyone focuses on how cool a space looks. you should be worrying about what is going on in there.”

Artist Jean Deaux and KAKE co-founder Kellen Winters, working at the studio.

KAKE is a visual marketing company. We worry about how things look, because it’s important to us to make everything we produce for our clients to look amazing. I personally love the KAKE office- it’s a huge loft space with cozy furniture, tons of art, interesting books- and let’s not forget the amazing recording studio tucked away in the corner. But as cool as it looks, after talking to Kellen and Na’el, I realized everything in the space was there for a reason- and that’s the way it should be.

The KAKE/F17 office space. 

The cozy furniture serves as a place to relax after long hours, and sometimes overnight hours of work. The art and decor is mostly representative of past work that has been done in the studio, like frames filled with Chance the Rapper's early achievements with the studio and Na’el’s credit on Kanye West plaques. The space is for comfort, and is a reflection of everything that has been accomplished. And that's what makes it feel like no other place in the world. Kake co-founder Kellen Winters explains, “I think that when people come in here, this is a space that is very conducive to creativity. There’s always something going on, there are always multiple projects happening at once...but once you see someone accomplishing and creating great things, it inspires the same.”

Na'el making magic in his studio, located in the same studio space where KAKE was born. 

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SPARKLE & SOPHISTICATION NEEDS BUDDING FASHION DESIGNERS

CALLING ALL FASHION DESIGNERS!

Sparkle and Sophistication needs your help! This is your chance to partner and grow with a fashion line that is on its way to greatness

The graphic designer will be involved in developing the crafting patterns, tailoring, and kicking it up conceptually as S&S continues to grow and expand.The pallet is a vast one, and the brand is an evolving story.

Interested?

Send your resume, cover letter, and portfolio to hey[at]kakeme.com!

PS- Don't forget to RSVP to S&S's official launch party! Yes, you're invited. Get the 411 here!  

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JOIN THE CONVERSATION: How small businesses grow in clusters

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YOU'RE INVITED: S&S OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTY

On behalf of KAKE and Sparkle and Sophistication, we are thrilled to announce the arrival of Sparkle and Sophistication! For months, founder Nusrat Siddiqui has been gearing up to make a lasting imprint with the City of Chicago and beyond with the inception of her accessory line.

As a valued asset to the fashion community, we are pleased to invite you and a guest to join the official launch for Sparkle and Sophistication!

To celebrate, we will be holding an official look book shoot starring YOU.

The afternoon will begin with a bit of complimentary primping by hair stylist Ann-Marie Bautista and makeup by Kiley Cleckner of EWC Chicago. From there, you’ll have the opportunity to style pieces from S&S’s upcoming line, and serve as a model for her look book set to premiere next month with photos shot by notable fashion photographer,  MaTeo. Camera shy? No problemo. We’d still love for you to come and kick off of S&S. Your presence is a always a present! ;)

Enjoy lite bites and all of the swag brought to you by S&S, KAKE, European Wax Center, Sip Coffee, and more!

SPARKLE AND SOPHISTICATION’S official media party will be located at 2901 N. Lincoln Ave. from 12-3p.m on Saturday, April 5th.  

Be sure to send your RSVP request to hey[at]kakeme[dot]com by Saturday, March 29th.

This way, we can ensure all guests are properly primped!

Please note that as media for the #SSLAUNCH, you are required to cover the event by way of Social Media and your media platform.

If you have any questions regarding Sparkle and Sophistication or the media party please feel free to shoot us an e-mail at anytime.

Now let's rev it up!

Tweet #SSLAUNCH, and get the buzz going.

WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU.

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CHICAGO, IL----In this exclusive KAKE interview, Lili K. reveals her desire to breakaway from Chicago's bumping hip-hop scene and find her own path to success. 

Rather than scratching at the surface in our questions, KAKE delves deep into the creative hustle for 300 seconds of real. 300 hones in on genuine conversation for others relate to. 300 promotes the lives of flourishing artists, entrepreneurs, and creatives alike.