Come one, come all – come on, it’s Gustothon!

You may have heard that “spring has sprung,” but here at Gusto we think longer, dream in detail. And this month, instead of wrapping seasonal cliches in a warm hug, we invite you to take a fresh Gusto for a spin.

Here are some ways you can take advantage of this unique offer: 

• Interview Tim, Nicole and Joe about animation process for your podcast! 
• Write a guest blog about your favorite topic for THE FORUM! 
• Spend a day in the Gusto studio and instantly become an influencer!* 
• Photoshop our mascot, Glovey, into your vacation photos! 
• Boost the Gusto van (or one of its rad variations you see above) and take it for a Grand Theft Auto style police chase around Newburyport! 

However you choose to engage with Gusto this Gustothon season, please do so responsibly.* 

But First, We Drink.

When Corinne Hennessey of @cocktailswithcorinne offers to spin up a gustomized drink for you in honor of World Cocktail Day – trust us, you say yes.

Behold… THE FANCY FOOTWORK!

• .5 oz LEATHER 
• 1.5 oz of PUNCH  
• 3/4 oz #FF2B20 RED 
• 3/4 oz PIZZAZZ 
• 1 oz ZING  
• 1/2 oz GUSTO

There’s a rinse, a stir, big cube and even a float… let’s just say this badboy packs a punch!

Sounds good, right? Bonus points if you can guess what spirit gives it the Gusto red (aka, #FF2B20).

Check out the full process video we shot at our Newburyport studio (which you can rent on PEERSPACE) with Corinne herself to learn how to make this potent potion.

Speaking of Potions... Video > Magic (for SEO, anyway)

Calling all wizards, witches, sorcerers, enchanters, necromancers and mages! If you’re hoping to apply your craft to SEO, save the astral projection for another day because you’d be better off just shooting a quick video.

Here's why: Search engines prioritize content that’s easy to engage with, such as video. That’s no offense to the words on your blog or landing page, but including a video increases the likelihood that a visitor will spend more time there (and maybe even read your incredible words). Videos also give you an opportunity to include more indexable content, like transcripts, titles and thumbnails. Mix it all together, and you’re working with something stronger than a level 5 charm spell.

So, put away your runes. Stash your wizard staff. And don’t even bother pulling that grimoire off the shelf. Video is the most powerful force in all the realm (when it comes to quick and effective SEO tactics, anyway). 

Read the full blog by clicking HERE or on the magical thumbnail (courtesy of Joe Skoniecki) above!

SPOT THE BOT // Ridiculous Car Commercials

With the decline of broadcast tv and (certainly) radio, we’ve lost more than just a bunch of mediocre programming to play in the background of our lives. We’ve lost consistent access to strange, horrible and often misleading local car dealership commercials. 

Today, we give you an opportunity to relive the golden era of car ads and test your ability to tell reality from AI-generated fiction. At least one of these is fake – can you spot which one(s)? 

1. Wherein a Stepford-esque wife leaves her boring husband for a middle-aged rapper named Credit MacDaddy. Also, there's pie. 
2. A man describes a late-night encounter with aliens and how the monkey in his trunk saved him from being probed.  
3. In which a suit-clad car dealer smashes out the windows of a Chevy Impala to demonstrate his willingness to do anything to get you into a new car. 
4. After a mysterious cosmic event, a Ford Mustang GT and an inflatable tube man come to life and go on the adventure of a lifetime. (The finale is sad, but beautiful. 98% on Rotten Tomatoes.)
5. “Junk in that trunk” takes on a new, very literal meaning as this group of auto dealers attempt to sell you a car with a fully loaded rear end.  

Scroll to the bottom of the newsletter to find out the answers (and get links to the real ones)!

Behind the Scenes: Unique Perspectives

Under the hood of every live action video, podcast recording sesh and branded event orchestration, you’ll find a dedicated Gusto crew who takes pride in finding new angles of approach.

From helmet-cam POVs and dramatic steadicam shots to literally chasing a horse around for two days, May has been a crazy busy month for the gang. Here are some snaps for your enjoyment! 

Here we find Director, Colin Davy , on the bank of lovely Mohonk Lake in the Hudson Valley of NY. Outfitted in his trusty camera rig, Colin takes a silky smooth aerial perspective of a boat recently transported from Lowell’s Boat Shop.

Meanwhile, back on the ranch, the Gusto team — ever at the ready for a chase — is in fast pursuit of the perfect action shot perspective (featuring Matter colleague Izzy and her horse) on set with W.F. Young.

And who’s that with Colin and DP, Colby Todisco ? Why it’s Producer, Mandy Lawson , with a camera on her head (Getting ready to capture the perspective of an audience member on the way to the PR Club’s Bell Ringer Awards)!

If you’re looking to change your perspective and find fresh, new ways to connect with your audience, reach out for a no-cost consultation!

Going Rounds with… Trent Toner!

Have you heard? Gusto’s “Going Rounds” podcast is in full swing, inviting some of our favorite collaborators to give insights and talk about what makes them tick.

This month, we caught up with our long-time sound guru, Trent Toner of Rian/Hunter Production. Hear about his journey and learn how innovative approaches to audio don’t just make things sound better to your audience – they make your audience feel better about your brand.

Listen to Trent’s story wherever you get your favorite audio content (or by clicking here)!

And if you’d like to join us on an upcoming episode, please reach out. We love great conversations with brilliant people!

Humble Brags (aka, The Claw Machine Corner)

Wait… have we mentioned that we have an old carnival claw machine in lieu of a trophy case at our Newburyport studio? Well, we do!

We got it in Nashua, NH – because where else would you acquire something like this – and we use it as a fun and interactive way to showcase and low-key brag about all the hardware we’ve won over the last 12 years.

And good thing we do, because yowza we just won big* at this year’s Telly Awards!

Collectively, these represent the hard work our team puts into every project. But individually, they demonstrate the hard work these projects are doing on behalf of our client partners out in the real world.

It’s a win/win/win/win/win/win/win/win/win/win/win/win situation.

Learn more about what our crew can do to amplify your message with award-winning content and connect your work with your audience!

SPOT THE ANSWERS // Ridiculous Car Commercials

OK… so maybe we overstated how much we miss these weird, misleading car commercials. But the question remains: could you spot the fake? Or were they all too real?

Either way, here are some videos of varying quality for you to enjoy.*

1. REAL, Georgia Car Credit in Moultrie, GA // Trigger warning: the rapping is extremely bad. 
2. REAL, Suburban Auto Sales in Portland, OR // Weird, but weirdly good? You be the judge.  
3. REAL, Imperial Superstore in Mendon, MA // FWIW he also has a backhoe crush it before offering you the Impala for free. 
4. FAKE // But it feels very Maximum Overdrive to us.  
5. REAL, United Auto Sales in Columbia, SC // You can just imagine how this brainstorming sesh went down... 

How’d you score? Let us know and maybe we’ll send you some official Gustothon swag... 

GUSTOTHON: We hope you enjoyed the ride 🚐

Because as far as things we made up for newsletters go, this one was pretty dang fun for us. Especially because this was truly a team effort, with everyone on the motion design team having the opportunity to contribute. Hopefully you got as much out of the art/enthusiasm/vibes as we got out of developing and purveying them.

And if you’ve made it this far in the newsletter – strap in – because we have a real treat for you.

Did you know Gusto’s very own Motion Designer (and the brain/vision behind this month’s art) Joey Sullivan was, in a past life, the star of many car commercials himself? Oh yeah he was!

So, if you’re prepared to have a very convincing young man sell you on the virtues of a Mazda CX-30, we highly recommend this video. (And for an extra treat, check out his other car vids and the insane things people write in the Youtube comments.)

With that, we’ll say goodbye until next month. Thanks for accompanying us on this newsletter journey – for real, we do it all for you!

Sincerely,

Team Gusto

THE FOOTER

* FINE PRINT (because every good car-themed email needs a list of disclaimers LOL): Gusto does not condone unsafe driving, stealing production vans, or excessively violent video games. No animals or pedestrians were harmed in the creation of this newsletter. Life-altering transition to career as influencer not guaranteed. Gusto does not agree with virtually any of the things said in these car commercials or stand behind the quality or contents of the film “Maximum Overdrive.” Gusto recognizes that gold is better than silver, and even to a factor of 12x the official value is not reasonably comparable. But also that the real value comes from the hard work that the award-winning content does on behalf of our clients… so who are we to argue with results?