Stefan Wissenbach has a mission: to help others take control of their lives, achieve more in life than ever thought possible, and have a lot of fun along the way. To do that, he and his UK team created Magic Number — and sought an agency to help make this dream a reality. After months of hard work and collaboration between EIM and the Magic Number team, we are excited to announce the beta launch of Magic Number.

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In just a few easy steps, anyone can get their Magic Number — the amount of money they will need to make work optional when, and how they want. A fully interactive experience guides each user through their own vision of how they want to live: what kind of house they want to live in, how they want to spend their time, what they want for their family, and much more.

After receiving your Magic Number, the website provides insights and guidance to help make your dream a reality. Future releases of the website will provide enhanced tools for keeping track of your vision and goals.

In late 2012, a Goal Manager will be released, to help “break down your big endeavors into manageable tasks.” Upcoming releases will also include a Habit Tracker to help stay on task toward your Magic Number; and a Vision Board to help you visualize what’s really important to you, and to keep you motivated.

To celebrate the beta launch, Magic Number is giving the first 2,500 subscribers a free lifetime membership. That means you get your Magic Number, and get to experience all the great upcoming tools and features, free and forever. We’ve all signed up, and shared with our family and friends, and we encourage you to as well!

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Blog readers, meet Ari Franklin. He’s the new Associate Project Manager who joined our team last month.

Ari comes to us from the account team at a large branding agency here in Chicago, and he’s now helping to coordinate and streamline the production of envisionit media’s interactive projects. Since he began, Ari’s experience and strategic thinking has been upping the momentum of our projects and helping to cement our many new client relationships. As he continues to settle in here, we look forward to the ways in which he’ll help our team create work that stays on schedule and on strategy.

When asked the old “what do you like most about being here” question, Ari mentioned the supportiveness of the envisionit media team. When asked him what he does for fun, he sort of blanked out in that way people do when asked to talk about themselves.

So, in the spirit of supportiveness, I’ll fill in the blanks based on what I’ve observed over the past month: When Ari’s not working, he’s messing with his Droid, eating gigantic sandwich wraps from Rosati’s and keeping up with interactive blogs and websites.

Welcome aboard, Ari!

There’s no telling what could happen inside Wrigley Field anymore. Brawls? Drama? Defeat? Gasp…Victory? Yes, those lovable losers are at their MOST lovable this year, but the good news is, no matter what’s going on inside the ballpark, you now can always, at any time, see what’s going on outside the park.

Our friends at CubWorld.com have recently added a cool, new, live-streaming Wrigley Field web cam to their site. Perched at CubWorld.com’s brick & mortar location, Sports World, across the street from and with a full view of the front entrance of the ballpark, the camera gives you a live feed of all the action! Visit it the day of a game to check traffic, weather, crowd level, or just to get a taste of the action when you can’t make the game. Oh, the stories it would tell if this camera could only talk….

While you’re on the site, you can of course mosey on over to their great selection of Cubs jerseys, hats, shirts, and other Cubs merchandise (including a Zambrano “Blow Up” sale…seriously). And if you do venture out to support the Cubs (c’mon, they need you more than ever!), be sure to pop into Sports World for some goodies, then wave at the camera on your way out!

envisionit media enthusiastically welcomes to our interactive agency: Marquette Companies!

Founded in 1983, today Marquette serves as private real estate company committed to investment excellence in real estate assets across the U.S. Marquette Companies is involved in a number of local real estate properties, including the Ponds of Naperville and Lemont Lofts. The company also just moved their operations to a new office in Naperville, IL.

envisionit media has extended a warm, summertime welcome to one of the newest clients to our interactive agency, the ROOF at theWit in Chicago. The new relationship may require more than a few “user experience” visits on our part. Or, we hope so, anyway.

Sitting atop theWit, ROOF is Chicago’s unparalleled stargazing destination. A glamorous, 7,000 square foot, year-round indoor/outdoor lounge, ROOF offers stunning city views, roaring fire pits, handcrafted cocktails, live music, and–get this: a suspended, glass-enclosed table for eight that literally dangles 27 floors above the city. Rounding out this perfect experience is acclaimed chef Todd Stein’s menu of Italian-inspired small plates—American cuisine he created during his time as Executive Chef at MK restaurant.

We at envisionit media are raising our glasses high–very high–for the work ahead on this one. Welcome to our team, ROOF!

Today marks the first month of my internship here at EIM, and to say I’ve learned a lot since I started working here would be an understatement. When EIM declares themselves an “interactive agency”, they aren’t kidding, they really do live and breath interactive, and for some reason (although interactive is at the cutting edge of advertising) I was never taught these techniques in college.

After working here for a month, I’ve already learned various “new” advertising tactics (SEO/SEM, PPC, Social Media, and the list goes on) that leave those “old-school” techniques (my professors spent months talking about) in the dust. Don’t get me wrong traditional forms of advertising can be extremely beneficial to your business, and a great foundation for a campaign, but these days it’s about integrating both modern and traditional forms of advertising to create that perfect cocktail that tastes like nothing other than success!

I’ve quickly learned that this concept of integration is very important here at EIM, and something I am going to personally dub “the special blend.” It’s about analyzing each client, their target, and numerous other factors of their business, to ultimately create and apply the perfect mixture of online and offline marketing to generate them maximum return.

These tactics are something that the average person doesn’t understand, and even as a graduate in Advertising I didn’t understand, but as I continue to work at EIM (even though I’m only at tip of the iceberg), I can continue to delve deeper under the water and eventually apply my knowledge of this process to future prospects.

Come see what different combination of online and offline media we can apply to your business to create a recipe for success!

envisionit media would like to welcome its newest client, VOA Associates, to the agency! We are proud to have teamed up with Carolyn Grisko & Associates as part of an integrated marketing strategy.

For more than 40 years, VOA Associates has delivered award-winning design, architectural and planning services for an impressive list of clients in a wide range of markets, both geographic and sector-diverse. With offices currently on four continents and projects spanning the globe, VOA is unquestionably an elite and successful design firm that continues to shape our world!

We are proud to partner with them in their new marketing efforts!

We’d like to put a bug in your ear about our newest client, H.D. Hudson. envisionit media has partnered with H.D. Hudson as their interactive agency. Here’s the “buzz” about them:

H. D. Hudson Manufacturing Company is a long-standing, global company specializing in consumer and professional sprayers and dusters since 1905. The Hudson brand is recognized and known for quality, service and value throughout the world. H.D. Hudson’s company headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois with products distributed and sold worldwide. The lady bug sure can travel!

We would like to welcome the H.D. Hudson team to the envisionit family. You have inspired a new passion for our gardens this year!

We are very excited to announce that NTN Bearing Corporation of America has retained envisionit media as their interactive agency!

NTN Bearing Corporation of America manufactures and distributes throughout the U.S. a wide range of ball and roller bearings, serving the automotive, industrial and recreational markets. In addition to bearings of all sizes and types, NTN is also one of the largest producers of constant velocity joints for automotive front-wheel and four-wheel drive applications. Over 70% of the bearings sold by NTN in North America are manufactured by one of the seven manufacturing plants the company operates in the USA and Canada. The company maintains their primary website at www.ntnamerica.com.

Needless to say, we’re excited to get our ‘bearings’ around this new relationship!

I’ll admit, we have our fair share of Cubs fans here at the office. Even as I type this on the Cubs Home Opener, there are Cubs t-shirts proudly being worn today. Some discretely under blazers and others loud and proud. There’s already been some Sox vs. Cubs ‘sniping’ this morning (all in good fun of course, but it’s still early in the season).

To say this season is pivotal for the Cubs would be an understatement. There are new owners involved, the Ricketts family, so Sam Zell can no longer be blamed for Cubs misfortune. Tom Ricketts, the chosen media face for the family, has been all over Chicago speaking to business groups about the fresh air being brought to the Cubs organization. And when I say fresh air, I mean it literally. One stadium update you will notice this season is fewer concrete walls closing off outside views, allowing a lovely skyline to emerge and of course, more fresh air into the park. A telling omen for this season? Maybe we should check out the promised bathroom updates instead for better insight.

Next off, there is the new marketing campaign wrapped up with the slogan, “It’s a Way of life.” For diehard Cubs fans, I don’t think there could be a better slogan. Being a loyal Cubs fan IS a way of life, and that loyalty prevails whether the team is winning or losing. People move to the “Wrigleyville” neighborhood for the sole purpose of being close to the stadium.  Our creative director here refuses to dress his little daughter in a pink Cubs outfit for games, and insists on her wearing Cubby blue (she looks cute regardless). Talk to any true blue Cubs fan, and they won’t even consider following another baseball team, no matter what the stats say. It’s Cubs or nothin’.

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