Tiny Envelope, Big Win
What We Brought to the Prize Table
Problem
Making a valuable but visually underwhelming prize stand out next to bourbon and beautiful gift baskets.
Solution
We used clear, clever messaging to reframe the prize and position our brand as thoughtful, strategic, and memorable.
At a recent Business After Hours hosted by the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, Write Design Group joined dozens of local businesses for an evening of networking and a little friendly competition at the prize table.
The rules were simple: donate a prize worth at least $300 and stay until the end of the evening for a drawing. The table was packed with impressive gifts, from elaborate baskets to bottles of bourbon. The most eye-catching prizes came from companies with products that naturally lend themselves to giveaways: alcohol, food, accommodations, and retail goods.
But for service-based businesses, it’s a little trickier.
Our challenge
As a strategy, content, and design firm, Write Design Group doesn’t offer anything you can sip, snack on, or display in a gift basket. So we decided to do what we do best: tell a story.
We contributed a thoughtful package—a one-hour consulting session paired with a t-shirt design from our sister brand, Sub Shop Press. Practical? Absolutely. Valuable? No question. Visually exciting on a crowded table? Not exactly.
So we created a sign to do some of the talking.
The message
We wrote directly to the audience about the situation they were in at that moment:
Be honest. You’re eyeing the bourbon, right? We get it. And the gift baskets look ah-mazing. But this little thing? It punches way above its weight. Tiny envelope. Big win.
The goal wasn’t just to draw attention—it was to position our prize as strategic, high-value, and aligned with our strengths. And it was to position our small company as one that punches above its weight.
Design isn’t about looking nice. It’s about gaining understanding and being understood.
The takeaway
Events like these are a great opportunity to be remembered. When you align your giveaway with your brand’s purpose, you’re not just giving something away—you’re demonstrating what you do and how you think.
At Write Design Group, we believe even small things — an envelope, a t-shirt, a single consulting session, or a small sign on the booze table — can have outsized impact when they’re designed with intention.
That’s how we approach our work. And that’s what we brought to the table.