This month we published the latest in a series of interactive maps designed to reconnect city dwellers with some lesser-known but action-packed urban parks. The latest map – a collaborative effort between The Trust for Public Land and The North Face – is the second installment in an ongoing effort to help city dwellers enjoy nature without having to leave town. The map features the five boroughs of New York and includes over 20 parks.

The maps can be viewed at Planet Explore, The North Face’s online community designed to help individuals and families learn about and participate in outdoor activities and events in their area.

Read more about our interactive projects.

And as the medium grows in popularity, and advances in technology make its implementation cheaper and easier to utilize, more and more people are seeking to integrate video into their online strategy. This month alone we have been commissioned to integrate, or produce, videos for four clients. And while straight video has immediate impact, we are going to see an increase in interactive video, that allows users the chance to effect their own outcomes, and chose their own scenarios. If you’re not familiar with interactive video check out this simple example we generated for our holiday card this year.

While this isn’t new (fans of the medium will all remember the Subservient Chicken), cheaper costs and faster download times, mean it too will play an increasingly important part in people’s web strategy. Why should you care? Well, the real Holy Grail for web-based marketers is of course the “viral” campaign. An interactive piece so entertaining and compelling that viewers are prompted to email it on to friends, generating an authentic “buzz” that helps propagate interest for a given brand. With media budgets shrinking by the day, who’s not in the market for some free brand buzz?

• Need more on info about viral? Check out Selling It: The Path to Viral Success
• Get some more viral ideas

Straight after its launch, Astia CEO Sharon Vosmek emailed us to express her delight with the video’s reception, “Let me start with how amazing the response has been to the piece you created. People LOVE it. Thank you so very much! We are thrilled!”

• Read more abut the Astia it Conference branding project

Gary Snoman: Viral Phenomenon from Iron Creative on Vimeo.

In today’s fast-paced world, there are a lot of things competing for our attention. We’ve got IM windows open, a screaming email inbox and the phone ringing off the hook. Which is exactly why it is so important to use humor to connect with our consumers – even for just a few minutes.

Even hard-nosed business types are embracing the power of a little levity to help get their name out and reconnect with former clients. Take this rough cut of a holiday message we developed for Trident Capital as an example. It’s done in a traditional style, but is very much at the cutting-edge of corporate communication.

• Read more about our viral success stories
• Read more about our financial services work

A local VC firm with a small budget wanted to make a big splash. Who’d have thought an irreverent animated short about a self-made, self-satisfied snowman would, well, snowball!

The Challenge: Blueprint Ventures is a technology investment firm, which had done very little marketing in the past. In December of 2005, the firm contracted Iron to produce an online animated short, in hopes of gaining some brand awareness in the industry.

The End Result: The Gary Snoman series has become a viral phenomenon, spreading from viewer to viewer all over the world. Viewings over the last three years have numbered in the hundreds of thousands and mentions in the San Francisco Chronicle and a wide array of online publications have elevated it to one of the most anticipated annual holiday entertainment events in the Private Equity world. The ultimate result: the Blueprint brand is now known throughout the industry.