Jwabeke
RyanCarroll
Erin Eschen
thatgirl979
headhunterbob
jsimler
jessenwabeke
danielelchert
Michael Buffa
emilysfeet
dcady001
maddieeldridge
jessica hutsonIt looks like this REBUS thing is catching on. Well, sort of. The HOW Design Conference in Denver has studio/agency tours as part of the conference. For a mere $175 ($325 if you aren’t dropping $1000+ on the rest of the conference) you get to go on 6 agency tours. For the mathematically challenged out there, that’s $29 for each tour. But hey, at least they have alc—wait, nope … not a drop of alcohol either.
Meanwhile, REBUS events are still free to Ad Club members and a measly $10 for nonmembers. Plus, there’s usually plenty of beer (or liquor, as was the case with Moosylvania). Plus, you can network with a lot of people in the St. Louis area. Plus, you don’t have to pay for a flight to Denver. That’s a lot of pluses.
All that being said, if you can ever trick an employer into paying for a trip to the HOW Design Conference, do it. It’ll be worth it.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Advertising, Bad Commercials, Daniel Cady, Taco Bell
Ever wonder what kind of crazies actually write letters to huge corporations because they don’t like an ad? Check out this letter I found on the internet wrote.
April 8, 2010
Dear Taco Bell,
I write you today not only as a disappointed customer, but as a concerned shrimp blogger. While I usually love the authenticity of your food, your new commercial for Pacific Shrimp Tacos to be deceptive and grossly inaccurate.
First of all … yes, I’m a shrimp blogger. A real one. I maintain a highly respected web log (aka blog) that provides commentary on the many pressing issues in the shrimp community. Have I traveled seven continents in search of the perfect prawn? No. And for two reasons. One: prawns are not shrimp. Aside from both being similar looking and tasting decapod crustaceans, they are completely different. Two: there are no shrimp in Antarctica. And don’t you even say that NASA recently discovered shrimp there. Those space nerds found a Lyssianasid amphipod which is a very distant relative. That’s like confusing a Southern Pink Shrimp with an Atlantic White Shrimp! Any true shrimp blogger would know the difference!
Secondly, why is this supposed “shrimp blogger” British? Does your liberal, left-wing ad agency think that makes him more credible just because they watch BBC instead of real American news? This makes no sense.
Third, there’s also no such thing as the Hercules shrimp. The largest reported shrimp was a Black Tiger Shrimp found off the coast of Columbia. That’s sooo 2006.
After all is said and done though, I do love the Pacific Shrimp Taco. I mean, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and six Chinese-farm-raised shrimp slathered in lightly flavored mayonnaise all rolled up in what I assume to be a flour tortilla? DELICIOUS! And at only $2.99 plus tax for each one, they’re a steal!
Sadly, because of my many said grievances with your current advertising, I refuse to continue eating your Pacific Shrimp Tacos, and I’ll be telling all of my blog’s faithful readers to do the same.
Sincerely yours,
ShrimpBlogger_73
Mayo on a taco? Really, Taco Bell? Really?
Have plans on May 20th? Well, if you’re an aspiring creative, cancel them. Portfolio Night 8, created by ihaveanidea.org, is coming to Chicago and tons of other cities all over the world.
What is Portfolio Night? It’s a chance for you to show your work to creative directors and get some honest feedback. No calling, sending email after email, or restraining orders. Plus, if your book’s good enough, you just might leave with a job. If nothing else, you’ll leave with some great contacts. Plus, Chicago isn’t that far away, and the ticket’s only $40. Eat ramen noodles for a few weeks if you’re that poor. It’ll be worth it. Just look at the lineup of creative directors that’ll be there.
And while I haven’t actually been to a Portfolio Night, two of my really good friends have. One of them went to the one in LA two years ago and got a job on the spot. True story. He went home to pack over the weekend, and started work on Monday. At 180LA. In a word: sick-nasty-awesome. He works on Adidas and Sony now.
So, what’re you waiting for? Buy your ticket now so you’re less likely to back out, and get to work. Once you get used to the rank smell emanating from Wrigley Field, you’ll be fine.
Want to feel like you’re living in a movie trailer?
Want to feel like you’re in a montage … while collating conference reports?
Want your first week of spring to beat down and humiliate all of your friends’ first weeks of spring combined?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, check out music that makes you feel important. You’re welcome.
Happy Spring!
So, you got a job as a creative? Congratulations. Have you won anything yet? No? What the hell is wrong with you? You’re fresh out of school. You’re full of piss and vinegar. You’ve stormed the agency with fresh ideas and enthusiasm. And you still haven’t won an award?
Well, calm down. Don’t worry. You have to start somewhere. Not everyone gets the chance to work on Nike, Burger King and Old Spice straight out of school (and if you did, hook a brother up … wink, wink). Making great ads is just like doing well at anything else. It takes a lot of hard work.
Just look at Michael Jordan. He didn’t make the varsity basketball team when he was a sophomore, and he turned out all right.
Practice makes perfect.
Rome wasn’t built in a day.
And Luke Sullivan wasn’t born an advertising god.
Don’t believe me? Check out FreshmenAds. It’s a site where people post the first ad they ever got produced. And hey, it’s great to know that even those über-talented jerks among us started somewhere. Even Luke Sullivan.
Don’t know who Luke Sullivan is? Buy Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This. Now. Or get out of advertising. Seriously. Get out.
P.S. This doesn’t mean to party, do a half-ass job and blame it on the fact that you’re young and inexperienced. Bust your ass and work hard. It’ll pay off.
In tough economic times like these, clients are looking to cut corners wherever they can. Even on their Super Bowl commercials. Some are even turning to user-generated content to avoid agency fees. I’d like to offer up an easier solution though.
Don’t run a damn Super Bowl commercial.
This I’m not saying that no one should make commercials for the Super Bowl. After all, the 2010 Super Bowl was the most watched program in TV history, and people go out of their way to watch the commercials. I’m just saying that if you’re so worried about the cost, don’t blow millions of dollars on one :30 commercial.
What got my panties in a bunch was something that Seth Stevenson, a contributor for Slate Magazine (slate.com), wrote in his Ad Report Card.
“In the battle of pure humor spots, I’d say Doritos bested Bud Light. Which is remarkable when you consider that all the Doritos ads were submitted as part of a contest, while the Bud Light ads were made by an expensive advertising agency. Chalk one up for the slightly superior mediocrity of crowds.”
Regardless of what you think of the spots themselves, are clients actually saving that much money by relying on the “mediocrity of crowds?” Maybe it’s because I’m in the industry and would like to stay in it, but I don’t think you can build a brand doing that. It’s one thing to keep consumers involved in a brand, but a UGC (user-generated content) contest seems like a very shallow way of doing that. I’d love to hear other people’s opinions on it though.
Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to find some contests to enter. I’m broke.
