Word of Jared (working title)

I’ve tried making a stop motion video. It’s really...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:25:26 -0500

I’ve tried making a stop motion video. It’s really fucking hard and takes forever. I’ve made guacamole hundreds of times. It’s easy to make good guacamole, it’s a lot harder to make perfect guacamole.

#25 - My New Website!

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 03:54:03 -0500

#25 - My New Website!

#24 What a creative typeface. Officially called the...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 19:56:00 -0500

#24

What a creative typeface. Officially called the “6-Pack” typeface. You may have to give each letter a close look to really see it, but when you do, it’s awesome.

James Reynolds, the creator, is a photographer and designer living in London and has other great work on his website.

#23 George Lois’ new book Damn Good Advice (For People...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 19:43:26 -0500

#23

George Lois’ new book Damn Good Advice (For People with Talent) sounds like a book I should check out. I’m not saying this because I think I’m one of those “people with talent”, although I may be. I’m saying this because it sounds awesome. Advice from one of the most successful, iconic “Mad Men” of the 60’s sounds like a must read to me.

His Muhammad Ali “Esquire” cover is my favorite magazine cover ever, hands down. It is just so stunning and eye catching. Based on this piece of work alone I’d call myself a fan but the fact is, you could fill a library with Lois’ work.

#22 “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper” My favorite...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 19:31:00 -0500

#22

“Lunch Atop a Skyscraper”

My favorite photograph.

This is my favorite photo for a number of reasons. Beyond the beauty and guts of the photo itself, it has sentimental value. This image will always remind me of my dad who grew up in New York City and the bagel shop we went to when I was growing up. One day I’ll have a large, framed print of this hanging somewhere in my house. For now, it resides on my desktop.

#21 I’ll be the first to admit it, I can be a sucker for a...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 15:06:42 -0500

#21

I’ll be the first to admit it, I can be a sucker for a Hollywood Blockbuster. Sometimes the spectacle just entertains me. I know they’re not the best films but if I see some cool shit I’ll stick around until the end. I might even do it twice. So with little shame, I can confess that I’m looking forward to The Avengers. Yeah, I thought Thor sucked in a major way and I was over Robert Downey Jr.’s Ironman shtick before the second one came out but those were just teasers for the real thing. I’m going to walk into that theatre and expect my mind to be blown. So what if I’m disappointed, something’s going to blow up.

#20 This is brilliant, hilarious work from Chacho Puebla. My...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:51:00 -0500

#20

This is brilliant, hilarious work from Chacho Puebla.

My grandma never imagined having to warn me of the dangers of “Facespace” and “Tweeter”. She reminded me not to take candy from strangers or get into their car. She never thought of me meeting strangers in a cyber world. Those dangers are a reality now.

Just thinking about the dangers that my grandchildren will be faced with makes my head hurt. I’ll probably just pass on what granny told me, “stay away from the man in the overcoat”.

#19 What gorgeous storytelling and beautiful cinematography. On...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:40:58 -0500

#19

What gorgeous storytelling and beautiful cinematography. On top of that it’s telling a story that needs to be told. One of environmentalism and transparency.

#18 DirecTV’s new campaign illustrating the domino effect...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:26:27 -0500

#18

DirecTV’s new campaign illustrating the domino effect of bad decisions that comes from choosing regular cable is one of my favorite that is currently running. In the newest spot that I’ve seen, they’ve managed to successfully feature Charlie Sheen. After Sheen’s spin out of control last year, I think that you have to make fun of him if he’s in your ad. That’s what DirecTV does here. Less than twelve months ago Charlie was all about #winning, DirecTV does a great job of showing him losing.

#17 Check out AdWeek’s ad of the day, March 1 I,...

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:11:47 -0500

#17

Check out AdWeek’s ad of the day, March 1

I, personally, never expected such a cool campaign to come from a newspaper. This is one of the things that’s so exciting to me about the industry. Good work surprises people. It doesn’t matter who the client/brand is, good work can be made. This relates to one of my biggest take-aways from Tracy Wong’s guest lecture. He talked about looking at everything as an opportunity. Don’t stick your nose up at a brand/product that doesn’t have a huge name. Instead, make great work so that other people wish they worked on the campaign.

#16 In Jimmy Kimmel’s trailer for his fake new movie...

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 14:58:18 -0500

#16

In Jimmy Kimmel’s trailer for his fake new movie coming out this Thanksgiving and Christmas and summer we see some of the best actors and comedians of our time poking fun at themselves and Hollywood. You gotta love a person in the limelight that doesn’t take themselves too seriously. When it comes down to it, they’re not afraid to make fun of them selves. So I wonder… is this a good trait for a brand? It’s hard for me to decide and I don’t think there’s a true answer. In certain cases it is. For example, a footwear and apparel company doesn’t have to take them selves seriously but a medical supplies company probably should.

I’d love to hear other people’s thoughts.

#15 This may be a little out of place on this blog but since...

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 00:55:00 -0500

#15

This may be a little out of place on this blog but since both ESPN and Sports Illustrated left it completely off their website’s front page I got to give it some love. This should be the biggest story in sports today. This is the first time the US Men’s National team has ever beaten Italy. Ever. This is also the first time the Italian squad has lost in Genoa. Ever. I’ve been waiting the better part of 21 years for this sport to catch on in America and it pains me to see that it hasn’t made much progress.

#14 You gotta love the way people look at everyday, ordinary...

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 22:52:21 -0500

#14

You gotta love the way people look at everyday, ordinary objects think about how they can make them come alive. This video was produced by New York Magazine a few years ago and I’ve thought about it many times since I originally saw it.

Now I have to figure out how it can work in advertising or brand development. It would have to be the right product, in the right place, at the right time but it could be amazing.

#13 Vice x Project X : Party Legends I like this viral...

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:11:10 -0500

#13

Vice x Project X : Party Legends

I like this viral campaign that Vice has put together for the upcoming film, Project X. Project X is a “found footage” film from Todd Phillips about a couple of high school students throwing a party in order to up their popularity. It may be a played out plot line but the “found footage” part puts a little spin on things and Todd Phillips brings some added intrigue.

I think the campaign does a great job of establishing a feel for the film and what it’s all about. And in a time when people are obsessed with everything celebrity this does a great job of grabbing attention.

#12 Last week Michael Jordan, an American legend in my mind,...

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 22:36:45 -0500

#12

Last week Michael Jordan, an American legend in my mind, sued the Chinese company, Qiaodan for using his name for their products. Apparently, Qiaodan is the name “his airness” goes by in China. I have mixed feelings about this whole situation.

First of all, I understand the importance of a person’s name being an identifier of their personal brand. This is especially true of people in the spotlight. The Jordan Brand is one that has had great success all over the world. The jumpman symbol is one of the most iconic athletic wear brand logos along with the swoosh of its parent company, Nike. Without control of his own name the Chinese company can portray Jordan however they want and do not need his approval. They can lead the Chinese consumers to think they are getting a shoe or other product that the great star has some relation to. This just isn’t true.

While the Chinese people may be misled, the company is not making replicas of any Air Jordan Brand shoes. They make their own models under the basketball star’s moniker. So my thought is “what is a ‘Chinese name’ anyway?” Is it like in my 4th grade Spanish class when I called myself “Diego”? Does this really mean anything. I guess to Michael Jordan, it means a lot. And as much as he says it isn’t about the money, I have a hard time believing that.

#11 “I almost feel bad for people who hashtag things on...

Tue, 28 Feb 2012 01:17:47 -0500

#11

“I almost feel bad for people who hashtag things on facebook…”

This is a tweet from yours truly earlier today. I got a retweet or two but I’m sure there were people out there that didn’t get it. So here is my explanation in more than 140 characters.

The hashtag is a useful tool on twitter because it allows people to make connections and build a web. If you click on a hashtag you are given a list of the tweets that use the same tag. If the hashtag is used enough it becomes a trending topic. Using a hashtag can start a movement. Personally, I see this as one of the main characteristics that distinguishes twitter from the other social media websites.

I’m not gonna lie, when a person uses a hashtag on facebook the first thing I think is, “well… this person thinks they’re clever”. But more importantly they don’t realize the power that symbol has around the block on twitter street. Facebook takes away its power. On the FB it reads, “I don’t have a twitter”.

So maybe I’m just hating. You know what they say, “Haters gon’ hate”.

We all have out pet peeves.

"You will fail, so fail hard."

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 21:53:00 -0500

““You will fail, so fail hard.””

- Scott Bedbury

Last week we had the privilege of hearing Scott Bedbury speak for a an hour and ask him questions for another 30 or so minutes. Here are some of the many things that I felt compelled to write down.

“It’s not what you do but why you do it. Have a higher purpose.”

“Testing shaves of the edge and creates perfectly unremarkable marketing.”

“Show up stupid - be forever curious.” - Dan Wieden

“Use your superhuman powers for good.”

“It is impossible to have too much brand goodwill.”

#9 Throughout the term in #UOCreativeStrat we’ve talked...

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 16:24:00 -0500

Throughout the term in #UOCreativeStrat we’ve talked about brand thinking and within the last week we’ve discussed brand responsibility or brand karma. Just today, while surfing the interwebs, I stumbled upon this Chipotle ad that evidently aired last night during the Grammy’s. Although I boycotted the Grammy’s this year and didn’t catch this one on TV, I am amazed at what an amazing spot it is. Not only does it tell an amazing story about the brand, it encourages (maybe even dares) it’s viewers to do good. To me, it doesn’t even matter that it’s two minutes long; this one is gold. Great music (Willie Nelson covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist”), great animation, great story, great call to action. This is what all idea/advertising people should want to do. It is definitely what I want to do.

#8 We talk about growing and building brands for companies all...

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:33:00 -0500

We talk about growing and building brands for companies all the time but what about the brand of an artist? Becoming a relevant artist whether it be an actor, musician, painter, or sculpture, is even more difficult in this day in age when everyone with access to the internet can call themselves an artist. We’re surrounded by art so we have to weed through mounds of garbage before we find the gems.

This is what fascinates me about the recently XL signed singer-songwriter out of Chicago, Willis Earl Beal. WEB took an amazing route to a record deal that I think needs to shared. While living with his grandmother on the South Side of Chicago with no day job he hand drew some fliers and began posting them around the city. On these fliers he promised to sing a song or draw a picture if you called or wrote him. This is beautiful grass-roots advertising. With the budget of 100 copies at Kinkos and a true love and passion for his art, Willis Earl Beal was able to paint an amazing picture of his brand. One that is passionate, creative, and truly committed to the art and the fans. Without having ever performed his music in front of a crowd, he was able to grab the attention of record label executives and get paid for what he has done and what he loves to do.

WEB will still sing you a song and draw you a picture but his label has paid for him to use a cell phone and PO box instead of his grandmother’s landline and home address.

Check him out here and share the inspiring story.

#7 Superbowl Sunday has come and gone and the New York Giants...

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 02:17:28 -0500

Superbowl Sunday has come and gone and the New York Giants will hold the title of Super Bowl Champions for the next 365 days. But who won the competition that took place in between the hard hitting action? Who will wear the #BrandBowl2012 crown? According to the brand bowl website hosted by Mullen, Doritos was the most successful in the eyes of the voters. Personally, due to a pretty uninspiring year, I can’t argue with this outcome. I think that Doritos’ entire offering of a few different ads stuck out in people’s eyes because of a lack in quality of competition more than anything else. Yeah, they managed to fight a chuckle out of me but is that really the best they could do? Past years suggest otherwise.

It is kind of hard to choose any single spot that sits above the rest but if there was a polar bear holding a gun to my head and I had to, I think I’d go with the Cars.com ad above. First of all, it’s funny. Second and maybe more importantly, it has a message. If you use cars.com you’ll no longer be intimidated by a pushy salesmen. You’ll diddybop your way into the dealership and call your own shots. Cars.com will give you the knowledge to find the car that will be right for you. With that said, I think the message could have been more powerful with a different casting of the car dealer. Imagine if the the commercial featured the classic car salesmen type: slicked back hair, mustache, maybe a cigar, maybe a fedora. A real greasy dude ready to take advantage of anyone looking to upgrade from their ‘94 Volvo station wagon. Wouldn’t the contrast between this guy and the singing confidence growth illustrate a more vivid story? I think so. It might even be funnier too.