There are few ad blogs left standing today. Most of them are toast. One ad blog that curious minds like to visit is The Agency Review by Martin Bihl, a site full of excellent book reviews and more. I was reading Bihl’s interview with Luke Sullivan, a.k.a. Saint Luke and this one passage stood out, […]
Ad People
David&Goliath Helps To De-Stigmatize Mental Illness, Provides Staff A Mental Health Day
Did you know that one in five people living in the U.S. experience some form of mental illness? For people working in creative professions, the number is even higher. Yet, 63% don’t get the support or help they need. Primarily due to the stigma associated with it. To shed light on this jarring statistic and […]
From Brighton Beach to Madison Avenue Lets The CPA Have His Say
Perhaps the biggest legacy of the TV show “Mad Men” was how it prodded numerous ad industry veterans to write their memoirs and tell their tales of a business that’s changed immensely over the decades. But if you’re thinking, “When is the accountant going to write his book,” here you go: David C. Wiener’s From […]
Oddly, Workplace Ghosting Is The Trend That Reveals
Do you know what ghosting is? It started with online dating, but the practice of disappearing in the middle of a project you’re working on, or a job interview you’re in the middle of, is now widespread. It’s a sickening trend and its end is not now in sight. The LinkedIn post I made about […]
What Did You Learn Today?
When I was a boy, my grandpa would ask me the same question over and over. “What did you learn in school today?” The repetitive nature of his questioning helped to create an awareness in me that school was important and that I needed to bring focus and attention to it, to get the most […]
How and Where Do You Learn the Art and Science of Advertising?
Advertising is omnipresent; yet, most people, especially on the receiving end of advertising, have little concept of who and what’s behind it, and no idea how it gets made. There are a handful of schools that endeavor to teach advertising, but most practitioners learn on the job. Because there are thousands of agencies, each with […]
Small Teams Generate Big Ideas
In any given year, the number of agencies who win awards and earn accolades in the industry press totals about 500 to 600, give or take. These name brand shops paint a picture of an industry in transition (some would say decline). But, limited views provide limited information to base conclusions upon. Here’s a conclusion […]
Will Turf Wars and Posturing Ever End?
Agencies, like any business that make things and/or produces intellectual property, are protective of their turf. It’s natural to adopt a defensive posture, but is it healthy? Chris Wallrapp, president of Hill Holliday, wrote a powerful piece for Media Post’s Agency Daily, in which he calls upon agency workers to adopt new practices and better […]
The Week In Advertising
The agency business is a fertile place for creative people. That’s the dream. For the dream to be a reality, the agencies where creative people work must be viable businesses. Once upon a time, agencies added 15% to their clients’ media buys and called it good, but those days are long gone. Today, it’s all […]
We Can Eliminate Bad Advertising, But It Will Cost Many People Their Jobs
Clients the world over are preparing to throw more money at their communications problems. According to 1,000 marketing chiefs surveyed in 10 countries by the Dentsu Aegis Network, fifty-four percent expect to spend more on digital platforms in the next two to three years. It’s hard to say if this is good news or not. […]
Bogusky Is Back
Big news from Boulder this week. Alex Bogusky, one of the original founders of Crispin Porter + Bogusky, has rejoined the agency as Co-Founder, Chief Creative Engineer. Finally got to meet one of my all-time ad heros, Linus Karlsson. The timing sucks but we still had great fun. pic.twitter.com/jR2dhwJvYZ — Alex Bogusky (@bogusky) August 3, […]
The Adpulp Interview with Copywriters Jim Mitchem and Jason Fox
Copywriters are Sherpas. Their service to brands is both a bold adventure and a grueling test of endurance. There’s compensation, but all glory goes to the client (who would never see such elevated heights without a dedicated support team). Jim Mitchem and Jason Fox are copywriters who have been to the mountaintop and back. Both […]
