the mash

In the distillation process, the mash is where raw ingredients come together for the start of something awesome. Our blog works the same way. We load up the hopper with relevant facts, smart insights and random thoughts, then watch new ideas bubble up.

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When the brand is you: two companies that made our individuality their success

The strength of your “fan following” is also the strength of your brand. And one powerful way to build that loyalty is to allow your customers’ creativity to shine through in your marketing. Associate creative director Erin Kunz explores the brands that shaped her adolescence and how embracing user-generated content helped them build an even stronger identity.

One House, Multiple Families: Why America Needs Multigenerational Housing for the Masses

The sandwich generation isn’t just a social problem; it’s an innovation problem, too. At some point in our lives, many of us become filling for the so-called sandwich—caring for our own children and our aging parents at the same time. Or we experience transition, in our jobs, relationships, or health, and need to live with family or friends to bridge the gap. This need for multigenerational housing is in direct opposition to our current priority building single-family, nuclear homes in the U.S. Here’s why one writer believes that needs to change, and why it’s an untapped opportunity for the construction and design industries.

Home Affordability Gone Wild

Home ownership is a core part of The American Dream (if not *the* American dream). What does it mean for the construction building materials industry that so many potential buyers are squeezed out of the process? We explore the factors and how these players might best respond to the coming consequences for multifamily building and material costs.

7 Tips for Making the Most of Your Agency Partnership

You’ve put in the company’s time. You’ve devoted the company’s money. So naturally, you want to see a high return on investment in your agency. While a lot depends on choosing the right partner, there are seven things you can do to maximize your relationship and get the most out of the branding, marketing and creative work you commission.

Space Mountain and the Power of Curiosity

A Disney coaster experience was just one test case for our strategic insights manager Stephanie Gries. As a market researcher, she’s logged hundreds of hours in conversation with your potential customers. (And as a mother, even more hours with her own family.) Collectively, all those talks taught her the power of developing more curiosity in both our professional and personal lives—and she says it all starts with one easy-to-ask question.

Meta’s Threads: are you in or out? Here’s our take.

The new social platform from Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta was ushered to the market as a way to capitalize on the growing unhappiness with Elon Musk’s Twitter. We discuss its massive debut—100 million registered users in the first five days of release—and give a quick-read overview of how major brands are reacting and whether yours should follow suit.

your content doesn't suck, the algorithm does

You’ve hired the right team. You’ve invested in a social strategy. Yet you’re still not seeing the results you want on TikTok, the current king of social channels. According to our in-house social media guru Hayley Kandik, it’s not you, it's the algorithm. Don’t be discouraged—with a few small tweaks, you can press forward with creating an identity for your brand on TikTok that serves both your goals and your audience.

How adaptive ball fields are bringing a community together—and what it can teach us about inclusive building  

When the city of Mason approached the Challenger Baseball League about building an adaptive field, Jen Christmas was all in. Not only did she co-lead a $2.5 million capital campaign—she discovered the game-changing power of having the right people ask the right questions. It leads to adaptive construction that does more than comply with laws; it brings together a community of people in ways that weren’t possible before.

The new, targeted TV landscape—and how not understanding it could cost you wasted ad dollars

In the world of advertising, endings can bring about better beginnings. The decline of cable in favor of streaming means the ability to target TV audiences at a more granular level than ever before. Learn how Connected TV (CTV) and Over The Top television (OTT) give you key advantages when trying to use your ad dollars as wisely as possible.