Why we did it
We believe in transparent ideas that invite people in. Instead of sending a glossy montage, we opened the door to how we think. As you’ll see, the card is built around a quick brainstorm with some of our bright teammates across the agency. We used our AI tools in creating the experience where they would accelerate production and kept the choices simple so the idea could breathe.
What we shipped (in one simple desktop)
A single link reveals a clean, retro-modern “AGM OS” desktop with five icons—each a bite-size moment that adds up to an integrated greeting.
- committee_brainstorm.mp4: ~1 minute of real moments from our planning call, cut for levity. The meta wink: “Is this our holiday card?” “It might be…”
- holiday_dashboard.html: four looping tiles: Holiday Cheer Index, Out-of-Office Heatmap, Cookie-to-Coffee Ratio, Meeting vs Merriment Balance. Light, quick, readable.
- Deck_the_Halls.pdf: a literal deck of halls: a quick, funny flip through of unusual hallways and “hall” Easter eggs. It lands on our logo, tagline and a short thank-you.
- recipes.txt: team-shared recipes gathered from Allied offices around the world, written simply so you can scroll, print, or save.
- Allied_Global_Marketing_Website.html: a tidy handoff to our site for anyone who wants to go deeper.
Why this mix: It shows a simple idea working in an integrated way; content, motion, data, and utility—without asking the audience to work hard. One link, a few clicks, a smile, and a sign-off.
The insights that shaped it
- Make the process the product. People engage when they’re invited behind the curtain, even briefly.
- Keep exploration optional. Each piece stands alone; together they feel greater than the sum.
- Let craft carry the joke. The humor lives in details and restraint, not long copy.
- Speed where it helps. Use AI and lightweight tooling to move faster on comps and loops, then tighten by hand.
What this says about how we work
- Integrated by default. Even a playful element is a system: strategy, story, design, motion, data, and distribution working together.
- Clarity over complication. Simple ideas scale when every element has a job.
- Craft earns attention. Small touches—iconography, pacing, micro-interactions—beat long explanations.
Timeline and constraints
We had just a few weeks to concept, build, and ship—working around Thanksgiving and big year-end client priorities. That constraint forced focus: a small, well-made set of pieces instead of a sprawling build.
How did we do?
Results matter to us across client work and always — so we measured this the same way we would any campaign: did it earn attention and drive meaningful engagement? Two highlights, framed only against industry benchmarks (MailerLite 2025 Email Marketing Benchmarks, Marketing & Advertising category):
- Open rate: approximately +29% above the industry average.
- Click-through rate: approximately +917% above the industry average.
Benchmarks vary by provider and methodology; we use them as conservative guardrails to pressure-test whether a seasonal, broad-audience message is truly landing; and then we focus on what we can learn and apply to future work.
Thank you
To our clients, partners, and teams: thank you for a big year — for the collaboration, the trust, the sharp questions, and the shared wins. We don’t take for granted that you let us into your brands, your timelines, and your toughest moments of execution. This holiday desktop is a small thank-you from our side of the screen.
Take a look
If you missed it (or want a quick smile even as we ramp up 2026), we’d love for you to take a peek.