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MindFire continued its Addy award hot streak at the American Advertising Federation Cedar Rapids - Iowa City ADDY Awards Gala last Friday, winning four awards, including Judge's Choice.

The room was ablaze at the Quad City Advertising Federation Addy Award ceremony recently as the team of MindFire Communications arsonists was awarded a total of 11 Addy awards.

Remember me? Its me, your brand. The two of us used to be very close. I was the only thing you would think about all day. You used to focus all your attention on me. And we'd talk all the time.

The Kent State Folk Festival created a small ripple in the advertising world late last year when it released its print campaign to promote the annual event. Ads featured headlines like, "Let your memory download the music for a change."

Facebook now has more than 500 million active users. Five hundred million! That's a 5, with eight zeros behind it. And that's not all. Of the 500 million active users, 50 percent log on to Facebook in any given day.

Chances are the cell phone that's burning a hole in your pocket at this very moment is a smartphone. If that's the case, you're one of the growing number of people worldwide who own a Blackberry, iPhone, HTC or Droid.

Indulge us, if you will, with this little scenario: One morning you open your Outlook to find your inbox full of emails from friends, colleagues and clients who are shocked and outraged about a comment one of your employees made on an industry blog.

When banner ads were first introduced by Global Network Navigator in 1993, few people understood the impact this would have on the advertising industry. To sum things up - it was a preeeeetty big deal. Think wildfire on a desiccated prairie.

A strong brand is important if you're selling products or services. It's even more important if you're selling a mission. Every non-profit has a brand. It's the emotional connection you have with your audience. It's your story and how you tell it.

Have you heard of Google Caffeine? We're not talking about a brand new premium coffee product that will power super geeks for hours at a time. No, Google Caffeine is the new search index that was launched by Google at the beginning of June.

Take a minute and think about all the different ways your brand interacts with your customers, prospects, suppliers and employees. Then, ask yourself, "Am I in control of these interactions?"

The best brands are simple. Simple to articulate. Simple to understand. Simple brand ideas result in powerful and memorable branding that people immediately connect with. Those ideas have to make it clear that the brand is different and relevant to their