• Building success for Established Businesses and Knowing the Key Success Factors



• Inspiration - The BrainStorm Culture and DNA



• A word from the BRAIN part of the STORM



• Creatively Speaking - How to inspire desire



• Cost Savings - A Western Philosophy



• Targeted Direct Marketing at BSG - A History of Redemption



• Excuse me, do you speak French?



• Justifiably Online



• I Wish I'd Done That



• What is your website telling the world?



• Tailor your site to strengthen your brand



• Online support can take the pinch out of picking a bra

Excuse Me, Do You Speak French?
By Penny Hipolito - The BrainStorm Group

When someone asks me if we do any work in French, I ask them to glance down at the piles of ads that we are sending out for our clients to the Quebec market for national campaigns like Canon, Baxters Soup and ADP. "Absolutement!" I tell them.

Here's how we address the market needs. First - we determine if there is a need for an entirely separate strategy for the Quebec market. Usually in close consultation with the client who may or may not have an understanding of their brand as it relates to Quebec. If there is a need to start from scratch, we have the experience and partners to guide our clients through this process. If the current strategy for English fits Quebec, we determine if the need is adaptation or translation. Sometimes it's both, and it's usually highly specific to the individual client. For Canon for example, there is both technical information, which requires a specialized translator, and larger campaign messages which need to be adapted to ensure applicability for Quebec.

Whether it is print, radio, or television, we effectively determine what needs to happen. For example, where we utilize new talent for radio campaigns for Canon, we have simply used voice-over to replace the speaking voices in television campaigns for UFile.

On occasions where merely translating the text gets the right message, we have excellent working relationships with numerous translation sources - as well as copywriters where necessary for more detailed occasions.

It is not unusual for us to adapt creative to suit the nuances of the French language, and we've had great success in ensuring nothing is lost in the appeal of the advertisement. Our relationship with our Quebec creative partners is long standing, predating BrainStorm to the days when the partners created Health Canada anti-smoking ads for both Quebec and the rest of Canada.

If someone asks me how our work stands up in Quebec, I point them to the success we've had keeping the clients we have there in the number one position in their category. "C'est bon!"