by thesavageway | Jul 24, 2023 | clean graffiti
We love all of the creative uses of Clean Graffiti that we can offer our clients. From general brand awareness campaigns to feel-good inspirational messages on the sidewalk, the possibilities are vast with this medium. We wanted to showcase a few of our favorite creative uses from over the years. Maybe this will inspire your next campaign with us.
For those that don’t know, Clean Graffiti is an advertising and messaging medium that The Savage Way has been offering for over 10 years now. We’ve been in 70+ markets across America and we continue to be the leaders in the U.S. in this space. Also known as Reverse Graffiti, Clean Graffiti is created using a stencil, pressure washer and naturally dirty sidewalks. We use high-pressure water to clean a message onto the sidewalk. We are not painting, spraying any chemicals or altering the integrity of the sidewalk in any way. It’s just water. 🙂 Check out some frequently asked questions here.
Now on to the creative uses of Clean Graffiti that we have loved over the years.
Tend Dentistry: New York City: The folks at Tend Dentistry in the Flatiron District in Manhattan came to us with this cheeky play-on-words that we could make into Clean Graffiti. The fact that we are both just cleaning away dirt (aka plaque) was just perfect. Love when brands can get playful and fun with their advertising.
OrthoCarolina: Multi-cities in North Carolina: OrthoCarolina had been a client of ours for a while and we had done tons of branding campaigns together (check out past project blogs for more details). However, as a group of private orthopedic surgeons who specialize in fixing broken bones, we thought of this clever “Watch Your Step” Clean Graffiti campaign. The idea was while we were out executing campaigns and we saw dangerous, broken sidewalks, we would put down this safety message for pedestrians or cyclists brought to you by OrthoCarolina. Just a subtle reminder that *if* you did need a bone specialist, you would know who to call.
(Left) Greenpeace #IStand4Solar in Charlotte, NC: The global non-profit, Greenpeace, asked us to create an impactful Clean Graffiti campaign for the Charlotte market. We wanted to do something that was not only a directive (stand here and notice) but told the passerby to use on social media (using the #). We saw great interaction with the Clean Graffiti which led users to learn more about the Greenpeace mission – to use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future.
(Right): NC Department of Transportation, Watch For Me Campaign in small beach towns in NC: This was a campaign that we ran for several years that focused on pedestrian and cyclist safety, Watch For Me NC. We put these down across coastal beach towns that saw a huge influx of tourists in the summer months. The NCDOT gave us specific data that pinpointed where vehicles crashed with pedestrians that either ended in an accident or fatality. There are such limited advertising opportunities in these small, rural towns, so Clean Graffiti was not only a viable option, but it was welcomed as an opportunity to actually make meaningful communication with the community.
(Left) Not Just Coffee, Charlotte, NC: Not Just Coffee is a locally-owned coffee shop that came up the same time that The Savage Way did. We are friends with the owners and we pitched them the idea of Clean Graffiti with a play-on-words with their name. We know that everyone LOVES coffee and social media posts with anything coffee related always got great engagement, but NJC was so invested in the community that they were more than just a place to grab coffee. We came up with “Love People, Not Just Coffee.” Genius. We partnered with local artist, Matt Hooker, to help with the creative and this beautiful message was born!
(Right): #ExploreYour704 NoDa Brewing, OrthoCarolina in Charlotte, NC: #ExploreYour704 was an intricate idea that we came up with that included a Clean Graffiti “Scavenger Hunt,” huge mural on the side of a brewery, multiple vendors and a big launch party that encouraged walking. To say this was an unusual case study is an understatement. In fact, doing a Clean Graffiti scavenger hunt is not something we even offer, but we are obsessed with how we used dirty sidewalks to create a movement game, celebrate the city we live in and bring awareness to our clients at the same time. Read more about it in the blog.
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So that’s a quick snapshot of some of the creative uses of Clean Graffiti over the years. Check out our instagram for more examples. We look forward to creating more marketing magic using our eco-friendly advertising alternative.
by thesavageway | May 23, 2023 | moss art
Green Moss Walls are all the rage in interior design in 2023. There is something to be said for having the healing power of nature indoors and without any of the maintenance – it’s glorious. In fact, this is known in the industry as “Biophilic Design.”
The term Biophilic Design may be new to you but you’ve experienced it every single day without realizing it. Design industries are just now getting more intentional with it. Biophilic Design is someone’s innate attraction to nature and living things. It can be found in everything from architecture, landscaping, water features and pocket parks, to simply adding plants into a space or listening to elevator music that sounds like rain – the list goes on and on. Our offering, Moss Art, is a great example of Biophilic Design. We are using elements of nature and bringing them into corporate office, small businesses, restaurants, banks, etc to help create the glorious effects of Mother Nature.
As you know, when you spend some time in the woods, go for a hike or just put your bare feet in the grass, a sense of calm comes over you. You feel like you can breathe a little easier. The world slows down and you stop to appreciate beauty at every turn. That is what we are doing with Moss Art – it’s calming, grounding, and beautiful to look at. You can notice something different every time you stare at a piece of our art.
We wanted to share some of our larger scale green moss walls that bring this Biophilic Design into interior spaces. We are so proud of this work.
Green Feature Wall: Truist Bank now has a 40′ long Moss Wall with custom signage on top.
Moss Walls with Neon Signs: Carolina Pharmacy (left) UNC Charlotte Dining Services (right).
Reindeer Moss Wall: The Oliver Apartment Complex in Charlotte, NC.
ALTERNATIVE GREEN WALLS
You don’t always have to cover a wall edge to edge with Moss to make an impact. We have found great success with using negative space, designing with a shape in mind when a “VE Option” is required (value engineered cost savings) or using a structure that already exists. If a green wall is desired, we can always find a way.
A variety of projects using existing wall features and moss: UNC Charlotte Dubois Center (top left) | Crowntown Cannabis (top right) | Forgotten Road Ales Greensboro (bottom left) | PARA Charlotte (bottom right).
Above: Both photos feature the work we did at Credit One Stadium in Charleston, SC. Three separate Green Moss Art installations were created. Even ceiling acoustical panels.
Mixed Moss Wall with Mushrooms: NoDa Canteen in Camp North End, Charlotte, NC.
Unique Green Walls: Damn Good Brands reindeer moss drip | Crave Dessert Bar in Asheville.
No matter how you design it, incorporating Moss Art into your space is a great way to bring life, grounded energy and interest into a space. If anything here inspires you, please reach out. Our team of artists are ready and excited to help bring your vision to life. (Email: [email protected])
by thesavageway | Jan 23, 2023 | moss art
We recently had a project that took us to Charleston, SC. Our client, Emily Adams with State Farm Insurance, wanted a green moss wall feature for her gorgeous new office space on John’s Island.
Our team and Emily’s team brainstormed several ideas for the feature wall and we landed on creating a piece that highlighted the Angel Oak Tree that is native to the Charleston area. We used preserved Mood Moss and Sheet Moss in a lush green color and then topped with a massive oak tree sign. The moss wall was inset into a nook that then had lights to showcase the detail. Creating a green moss wall like this is no small feat. The amount of detail it takes to intricately weave the moss in all of those crevices is something to be applauded.
Moss Art is a great solution for corporate interior design. The product requires no maintenance so there is no need for expensive drainage systems or access to natural sunlight or ongoing maintenance packages that some living walls can require. With moss, you are able to get all of the look and energy that a plant brings into a space without the headaches.
We love having clients who trust us with the creative process. Emily was very much involved in the the design discussions but allowed us to lean on our expertise and bring her vision for this space to life. To give you an idea, a project of this size (10′ w x 5′ h) that was a full moss wall with flush-mounted tree logo inset into a nook, took over 20 hours of mossing in-house plus on-site touchups over two days with the install team. It also took over 20+ pounds of moss to complete the look. All of this on top of the design time! So much gratitude for our team who brought this to life.
by thesavageway | Jan 17, 2023 | clean graffiti
Clean Graffiti is a service that The Savage Way has been offering for almost 10 years now, and everyday we still explain it to someone for the first time. When you have created a new way to do something, this is an inevitable reality. We wanted to breakdown exactly why Clean Graffiti is a great option for clients looking to spread the word about their business.
Also known as “Reverse Graffiti,” Clean Graffiti is ideal for clients who are looking for innovative brand awareness, spreading the word of an event-driven initiative, or looking to increase their Corporate Social Responsibility. Clean Graffiti is the perfect addition to your traditional media buy because we are able to directly target your customer with an untapped resource – the sidewalk. And best of all, it’s just water – no paint, no chemicals, just water.
Seriously, let’s break it down. This is why Clean Graffiti is an amazing out-of-home marketing opportunity for your clients.
It’s Just Water (aka Eco-friendly Advertising)
Yes, it really is created simply using high pressure water and dirt. It is an eco-friendly alternative to other outdoor advertising opportunities (think billboards, bus stop ads, posters, etc). Using a pressure washer and a technologically advanced stencil, our team sprays the water on top of the stencil and leaves a clean message on a dirty sidewalk. That’s it… no chemicals, no bleach, no acid, no paint… just water! Check out this video to see a glimpse into the process.
Targeted Marketing
Clean Graffiti allows you to target your customer exactly where they are walking – the sidewalk. In this social media-crazed day-in-age, everyone is already looking down at their phone, why not leave an unexpected message on the sidewalk to drive your brand home? We always get the question of ROI. We wish we had a way to tell you exactly how many eyeballs are on your ad, but much like postering or other guerrilla style marketing efforts, we can give you a ballpark. Our team is experienced in marketing & advertising and our Founder did Media Buying for 10 years before starting The Savage Way. We know where the people are walking in these hot neighborhoods that will give the best reach for your campaign.
It’s Innovative
When you are buying media for yourself or a major client, they are always asking for the next best opportunity to get their name out there. They want to “go viral” which translates to being seen by their customers. Clean Graffiti is a great medium to pitch to your clients. It’s innovative and different and let’s them get their name in a place they have never been able to before – the sidewalk! Especially when reverse graffiti is a part of a larger media plan, we find that this non-traditional advertising purchase works so well.
Guerrilla Marketing at its Finest.
We always joke that we never thought we’d be strategically cleaning sidewalks for a living, but here we are! We get to operate in a gray area and that allows us to get creative with placements. By all means we respect the public space and are always mindful of the message in regards to the content and the actual placement (aka – we would never put a media spot directly in front of a competitor). We know that we are a new medium for people and we are always looking to partner with cities and county boards, not piss them off. Because at the end of the day we are simply taking something OFF the sidewalk. 😉
Get Creative with Branding
Clean Graffiti is a great way for companies to have some fun with their branding. We always encourage a message that is fun, witty or will make a person stop and smile. A supreme example of this was a campaign we pitched to an orthopedic surgeon’s practice where we found broken or uneven sidewalk squares and put down a “Watch Your Step” Clean Graffiti message. It was just genius – helpful to the public AND brought to you by a client who could help you if you DID fall.
Create Organic Third-Party Content
This type of unexpected messaging under your feet is an excellent example of an advertising campaign that someone will take a picture of and post to their own social media. When is the last time that someone took a picture of your client’s billboard or bus ad?? Not that often! But Clean Graffiti is cool, eco-friendly and *hopefully* a fun, lighthearted message that simply helps spread brand awareness. That organic third-party content is something that you just can’t pay for normally!
The Savage Way Team is Experienced
We have been blessed to work with so many amazing clients. Here are some of the highlights: The Rolling Stones, Talkspace, Diet Coke, Bud Light, Novant Hospital, Atrium Health, Mecklenburg County, Carolina Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, The ACC Tournament, Clean Juice, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte FC, Lululemon, MetroHealth Cleveland, Whistlepig Whiskey and many more.
Cost Effective Out of Home Advertising Alternative
We get it. Billboards and bus ads are expensive. It is a costly investment for a 1 month run of an ad on a typical billboard opportunity, especially if you request a high-visibility board. That is what makes Clean Graffiti a fantastic alternative. Clean Graffiti gets you RIGHT under the feet of your target market for a fraction of the cost. And best of all, our spots can last anywhere from 1 month to 8 months.
How A Campaign Looks
Campaigns can all be customized but a typical package is 1 specially designed stencil, 10 Clean Graffiti media placements within a 1-2 mile radius in a targeted neighborhood/city. Our team executes end-to-end and then we provide a full recap with maps, list of locations and photos for social media use. We operate all over the USA and have been in over 75 cities. Our team is experienced and can travel almost anywhere for a job.
We find that the best practices for a Clean Graffiti campaign include using the medium for brand awareness with a funny/witty/eye-catching message. No one really likes to see just a logo on the ground. Making note that way-finding can be tough – it has to be the most perfect concrete and there is no guarantee it will be dirty on the corner to show an arrow (make sense?). We find that flexibility and trust in our team always makes the end product better for the client.
So now that you know the ins and outs of a Clean Graffiti campaign, hit us up when you are ready to finally do something different!
by thesavageway | Jan 4, 2023 | clean graffiti, moss art, Uncategorized
Hello 2023! There is a genuine excitement and readiness that comes with the beginning of the year. The energy is palpable. I know The Savage Way team was lucky enough to take the holiday break to relax, spend time with friends and family and reflect on the previous year.
2022 HIGHLIGHTS
- 10 Year Anniversary: how is that even possible, but we celebrated our decade in business. The amount of love that we felt from our clients, friends and family was extraordinary. It was the perfect moment to celebrate what we’ve accomplished and ignite a new passion for 2023.
- 1 Year in our new Warehouse Studio!
- Tons of new Clean Graffiti clients & we traveled to San Francisco, CA, and Racine & Kenosha, WI this year!
- Over 80 Custom Moss Art projects including installations in Credit One Stadium in Charleston, Truist Headquarters in Uptown Charlotte, Keller Williams Chattanooga, TN, and many more.
- Introduced our Moss Art Rental Walls. (reach out to us for more info!)
- Welcomed 5 new Moss Artist team members! Plus brought on some amazing contractors for Graphic Design, Sign making / Vinyl Printing and installations.
- Had our first year of The Savage Way Shop! Big things to come here.
- Launched our Email Blast! Sign up here.(just scroll to the footer!)
- Featured in the Mint Museum Uptown Charlotte for the Yasuke: A Hidden Ronin Exhibition.
- Featured in Home Design & Decor Magazine!
The Savage Way has big visions for our future. We are constantly improving, innovating and finding ways to reach new levels. We push ourselves in both Moss Art and Clean Graffiti. Here is a glimpse into these two sectors and what we are calling-in for the next 365 days.
MOSS ART
Moss Art / Biophilic design is huge in the design world and we are grateful to be a big part of it. Our experience and creativity help to make us a go-to, local source for preserved green walls. In addition to the green walls, acoustic panels, and logos that we are known for, we are pushing the line with our integration of paint and moss. Our incredible team of artists collaborate on ideas and we CAN’T WAIT to bring some new styles and lines to our online shop this year.
CLEAN GRAFFITI
Clean Graffiti continues to be a sleeper horse for marketing and advertising companies across the country. Our eco-friendly sidewalk messaging is the perfect shake-up to the media buy. Clients are constantly asking for the next best thing, what else can they do beyond magazine ads, billboards, and digital ad buys. Clean Graffiti (aka Reverse Graffiti) allows the client to target their audience exactly where they walk everyday – the sidewalk. Everyone is looking down at their phone already, so what better way to reach them than to put a positive, fun, applicable message pressure-washed onto the dirty sidewalk?! It’s eye-catching, innovative and sure to spark a conversation. The beauty of working with The Savage Way on a guerrilla-style marketing campaign like Clean Graffiti, is that we’ve operated in 75+ cities across the United States. Our team is experienced, target-audience focused and a breeze to work with.
THINGS ARE LOOKING UP
2023 is going to be full of creative energy. We all feel that we are just scratching the surface with some of our offerings. Our heads will be down working, researching, and finding new ways to integrate into the art and marketing scene. If you, your company or clients are looking for a new, creative approach to get your name out – either with a preserved moss branded logo, or sidewalk ads – The Savage Way is the team for you! Reach out to us at [email protected] to start the conversation.
Happy 2023!!
