ING "Your Retirement Number" - a campaign with utility.

One of the most effective and awarded campaigns in the financial services category. Recognized with a Silver EFFIE for increasing brand favorability and intent to do business by consumer and business-to-business audiences.The campaign was a hit in the midst of a highly un-favorable 'too big to fail' financial climate as 'Opinion of ING' increasing 47% over the previous period.

The campaign's digital platform provided a tool for determining retirement planning stages and progress and won multiple MIXX awards by the Internet Advertising Bureau. Broadcast and print elements connected with consumers and led conversations about how to determine and reach "Your Retirement Number." In addition to New York Festivals medals in the financial category the work was named as the "Advertising Campaign of the Year" by the Atlanta Marketing Association.

A note about awards and, specifically, the EFFIE Awards. Advertising is full of shiny objects and it's always good to earn a few. I've been happy to win best of show in local and regional venues. But I deeply believe in the idea of advertising or marketing as being a team sport and that's why I think campaigns that earn an EFFIE are a cut above the joy of 'winning' any other award because It requires such an enterprise level of commitment and contribution and it's the one recognition that includes the consumer.

ING Your Retirement Number "Nurture"

ING Protecting "Your Retirement Number"

"Retirement Numbers" at the ING Georgia Marathon

ING NYC Marathon - run for something better

This commercial came from identifying an opportunity and optimizing resources. When you are the biggest race in New York City hotel elevator and in-room screens (as well as on the broadcast coverage of the event) reach a lot of people. Constraints can offer strong foundations for ideas - in this case a limited budget and a compressed calendar - and that happened here.

ING created corporate sponsorship of premiere major marathons in the US, including presenting sponsorship of the New York City Marathon, with an aim at helping raise money and other support for public school physical education programs. Our utilization of the iconic orange laces allowed the aim of the organization to come to life in ways that hadn't been tapped before. The result was a jump in all the critical measures of awareness and contributions It's a happy spot that not only worked and won some notice - one of the participants in the NYC Marathon adopted into his teaching materials at a leading New York City arts institute as a demonstration of line art animation.

On a personal note, I enjoy running (although I'm much more of a 5k runner than a marathoner) and it's always fun to work on things you like to do.

ING Run For Something Better NYC Marathon

ING MRT P7 1072 8.25x10.875 Mile High-page-0.jpg

More Than Media, Social Is a Behavior.

Sometimes technology can be dazzling and amazing and everything seems either complicated or complex. Things are certainly different today than they were yesterday or 10 years ago. (Just ask Myspace, right?)

Ultimately, though, the object of the game is providing people with either a reason to try or, better yet, a reward for doing something.

That's why my approach to all things digital or technological is to put a person and a human need at the center of it. That's why I think of 'social' as something more than a media.

Social promotion

Naming YOLO was a hit ahead of a hit.

I worked with a Denver marketing entrepreneur in naming a social shopping platform "YOLO." The idea was to create a name that would identify with an audience interested in supporting not just local businesses but local causes. Because Denver is a extremely active community - many of the offerings involve adventures, interests and passions. YOLO has continued, as they say, to do well by doing good.

A year later, in 2011, there was a song "The Motto" that mentioned YOLO...but that's a little bit different story.

INTEL - tweetfitter

This was a special project launched by a colleague. We had been watching brands enter the twitter-sphere and noticing how little nuance or appeal was part of the equation.

We landed this project for INTEL as part of their trial of different digital media in support of holiday season platforms. Our work met the deadline - the others didn't- so we had the benefit of running as the only promotion.

Our approach introduced a few new wrinkles to the conventional twitter approaches and the results were substantial spikes across all the measures including not just click-throughs but time on pages.

Engineering an idea.

The short story is engineers tend to think about things. I think about people. By sitting with engineers and listening to them - we ended up creating something of a discovery.

global campaigns

I've been able to work on campaigns with a global scope as well as to actually work internationally.

Having a key role in winning the national tourism account for The Islands of the Bahamas was a great experience on many fronts but especially in discovering first-hand what it means to have the identity and perception of a nation entrusted to you.

The opportunity to work in the Leo Burnett office in Warsaw, Poland was truly one-of-a-kind. Working there I wrote commercials that required a 'language-less' (or timeless) appeal. What's more, I had the great privilege of leading a workshop program to help the creative department there develop campaigns.

A world-class condom campaign. In one ad.

The brief on this one was simple. Create a global campaign to coincide with the Olympic Games. It could include athletes (but might not.)

The line "3000 years in the making. Millions of participants. And still not an official event." won the day.

It was recognized with a 'Golden Spine Award' by a marketing organization for representing the bravest brand work of the year.

More importantly, seemingly every demographic enjoyed it. From dorms to gyms it appeared on walls and doors -- in the Olympic Village. And beyond.

To make it more than a fish story, make it matter.

We won the pitch for The Islands of The Bahamas at The Joey Reiman Agency without having a place on the short list. Instead, we earned a chance to use about 96 hours to show we had a campaign. I think we were on the way to Nassau before the conference call was over. Upon arrival I asked our cab driver to take us, first, to his neighborhood. To show us around where he went and how he lived. With a real sense for the people of the Bahamas instead of pitching a campaign we took on the cause of creating stories with real connection to The Islands of the Bahamas.

In most places, it’s a trophy.

In Bimini, it’s bait.

Ever been to a fishing spot where the fish actually live up to the fish stories? Bimini is such a place.

Here, grouper, sailfish, swordfish, marlin, wahoo and tuna make their home. Earning Bimini the distinction as the gamefish capital of the world. In fact, one of the locals was so impressed by Bimini fishing, that his fish stories were told around the globe.

Perhaps you’ve heard one of the tales yourself. It’s called Islands In The Stream. And the storyteller was Ernest Hemingway. But Bimini’s waters lure more than fishermen.

This is where the Gulf Stream meets the Bahama Banks, making the area a haven for yachtsmen, too. And divers will delight in a controversial dive site, reported to be a lost city. The name of the site? Atlantis, of course.

For more information or reservations on Bimini call your travel agent or 1-800-4-BAHAMAS. And if you plan on fishing here, don’t worry about the size of our fish.Worry about the size of your boat.

BIMINI - Home of lures and lores.

Bimini - One Of The Islands Of The Bahamas.

Fiat - Poland "Sunday Morning"

Created for the Leo Burnett office in Warsaw, Poland. This is the story of how even when things are going rough - people find hope when they have something they can rely on. So a guy is awakened to a bad day. He thinks he's overslept, the hot water is 50/50, he finally makes to his Fiat -- which lets him know it's not a workday.

Selling technology- retail with a heartbeat

It's very likely there are no rational purchase decisions. People work on emotion. Yet, product messages, by definition, are product-driven. "Purely Dell" is a campaign that attempted to give people a personally appealing reason to consider (or re-consider positively) Dell for their computer.

The challenge of creating retail broadcast for Dell was to get beyond a low price message. Make the value of Dell computers meaningful to customers by the fact they afforded the ability to have a computer built according to the customer's interests and specifications.

One of the central constraints here was how to turn product focused advertising into something a person could connect with.

So, instead of thinking outside the box, I accepted the box and put the thinking on it via: "Your Fingerprints Are All Over It Before You Ever Touch It."

For a student message, we de-coded the formula for identity with two paths to being cool.

"Blend in. Or Stand Out."

For AT&T (Cingular brand) Wireless they introduced a unique charger product that also forwarded calls. This time, although the product and its features were the key theme of the brief, the story tickled the familiar feeling that comes when your phone isn't where you reach (and how things can come apart.)

dell fingerprints

Dell Notebook Skins

AT&T (Cingular) Neat Freak

When pixels met ink. (Or vice-versa.)

Formats change. Themes evolve. Stories remain the key. These are a few longer samples that demonstrate more of my writing ability. I think when the story (or the idea) is strong the message can travel into or across any form of media.

The old saying is true, 'People don't read ads. They read what interests them and sometimes, it's an ad."

Making context matter. (Since always.)

Chances are this is the most 'ripped out' ad I've written. This is the cover of the gatefold revealing the brackets for the field of 64. (It's also proof interactive and native advertising have been around longer than some might suggest.)

Technology is always about people more than technology. No matter what the technology.

SUBHEAD:

At Danka, before we make any recommendations, we first put ourselves in your shoes.

SUBHEAD:

How we’re doing the impossible: Giving office equipment sales reps a good name.

COPY:

Danka competes with Xerox®, the people synonymous with the copying business. So how can we possibly compete? By not copying them.

Our approach to sales isn’t bassed on teams, technology or tactics. It’s based on empathy—putting ourselves in our clients’ shoes and understanding their operations. We listen closely to our clients, analyze their businesses, then recommend the best equipment, systems and support to maximize productivity, efficiency and cost effectiveness.

We call it being customer advocates. You’ll call it having someone you can trust to find the you the best ways to get things done. And done well.

SUBHEAD:

One size does not fit all.

With Xerox, you only get Xerox equipment. Which is fine if you think they have all the answers.

Danka doesn’t believe anyone has a monopoly on good ideas, so we choose the best analog and digital copiers, printers and fax machines from Kodak, Hewlett-Packard, Toshiba, Canon, Minolta, OmniFax and more.

Rather than rely on just one source, we select the best equipment from around the world.

Danka can provide you the very latest technology along with a relationship built on empathy. We do business this way because we believe it’s always in our best interest to look out for yours.

May we try on your shoes?

Call 1-800-OK-DANKA

DANKA®

Our business is improving yours.TM

www.danka.com

A technology story should be a story.

You haven’t had this good a view of your farm since that time on the water tower.

And of course, at that time, site-specific variable rate and blend fertilizer application was the furthest thing from your mind. Fact is, back then no one even knew what that was, or how it could enhance yields, save fertilizer and even reduce runoff.

Maybe today, you don’t realize that your Gold Kist store is gearing up to help you understand Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) technology and how it can make the most of managing your crops.

As a start, Gold Kist is the first company to hire a Precision Farming Manager. Someone who’ll work with you on everything from soil typing, suitable variety, adaptability and seed rate, to insect, weed and fungus control, as well as moisture and fertility.

What can this all mean for you? Higher yields, improved profits and ability to be a better steward of your valuable land. It also means you’ll get precise information for your farming records, since everything you’ll need is conveniently stored on computer disk.

At Gold Kist, we think that’s all pretty exciting. Almost as exciting as painting the water tower.

GOLD KIST

What you need.

When you need it.

Human-sized stories win.

We’re one of the biggest agricultural companies in the world, but to people around Colquitt, we’re about 5’10”.

COPY:

Chances are you know Gold Kist pretty well by now. After all, we’re owned by farmers like you and your neighbors across the Southeast. And have been since 1933.

But around Colquitt, we’re just as likely to be known as Ricky Bracewell as we are Gold Kist. Because it’s store managers like Ricky who deliver on our promises to bring you what you need, when you need it.

Your store manager can draw on our partnership with other well-known names in agribusiness to bring new technologies and services into your operation and onto your fields. Plus, he’s got the full resources of Gold Kist behind him, to help find and create markets for most of the crops you raise.

As a member of the largest farm cooperative in the region, you not only have access to a large variety of products at competitive prices, but you have the opportunity to share in patronage refunds at the end of each year.

In short, you Gold Kist store manager has everything you need to reach new heights.Even if he is only 5’10”.

GOLD KIST

What you need.

When you need it.

The key to differentiation isn't the product. It's the product story.

The only real difference between our DAP and theirs is that ours is on your fields while theirs is on a train in Florida.

No question about it. Most fertilizer ingredients are pretty much the same. So the guy down the road might be able to sell you the same DAP that we can at Gold Kist. Assuming he has it- and enough trucks on hand to deliver it.

Which is where the real difference between fertilizer providers comes in. You see, your Gold Kist store has unmatched global resources and the backing of the region’s largest farm cooperative to assure the fertilizer you need is on your fields when you need it.

That means we not only have the fertilizer on hand, we also have the spreader trucks ready and waiting. Every one of them carefully calibrated and driven by a certified spreader truck driver, who’ll put down your fertilizer accurately and evenly, every time.

What’s more, our Gold Kist store managers average 25 years of agribusiness experience. They’re ready to put their experience and knowledge to work for you, helping with soil sampling, custom blending and application recommendations.

So you can count on getting the right fertilizer, right where it belongs - on your field not on some northbound freight to nowhere.

Media Week Magazine Media Idea of the Year

Interactive or experiential ideas can take many forms. The critical feature is it offers the audience something useful, meaningful or valuable. Sometimes it's an app. Sometimes it's something else.

In this case, the Consumer Electronics Show (perhaps you've heard of CES in Las Vegas) was going to be the forum where Energizer introduced its new re-chargeable batteries. I was presented with the trade show guide - an enormous book- and asked if we could put a bookmark in it to highlight the booth?

It's the first time anyone asked that question. The result was an awesome show, introduction and the birth of a new media vehicle.

Things that make a home or build a house.

I've enjoyed taking on the challenge of helping commonly commodity products and materials break out of the conventions of their category. Turning briefs that are typically heavy on specifications giving them a voice and meaningful personality. The result is work that's recognizable and brands that become preferred.

Ductless HVAC needed a hero. Here it is.

This image put ductless HVAC on the map in this country. Now it's a growing dot. The challenge was to convince dealers there was a story to tell and, yes, money to be made. We introduced this character in real life at trade events and not only did this guy become something of a hero. So did Mitsubishi.

We’re out to change the way you think about hvac.

Introducing the most affordable ductless a/c and heat pump system ever from Mitsubishi Electric. Our new professional series is the most efficient yet —up-to 12 SEER— from design to installation to your bottomline. And now every Mitsubishi system, from 9,000 to 42,000 BTUs, costs up to 25% less than before, making this the perfect time to add ductless product installation capabilities to your business. Compared to window or PTAC units, our new ductless line is quieter, more powerful and more profitable than ever. Ductless is ideal for renovations, unique space situations, or otherwise difficult areas to heat and cool. Mitsubishi Electric even offers a comprehensive factory-training installation course so you can install up to 3 tons of cooling in just 4 hours. (Try managing that with a ducted system.) Learn more about our new systems, prices and how ductless technology can work for you. Visit

www.mitsubishielectric.com

or call Mitsubishi Electric toll free 1-800-4322 (#3).

Make the logo smarter.

One of the leading names in carpets had fallen. (Hard and far.)

What was once a brand had become something much less. As creative director I met with the client brand team and asked if, nothing else, could we address the logo. It's a carpet, so could we start from the ground up?

I crafted a line "Soft Made Strong" and turned to an excellent design team.

I think the result is a logo that, in a quick look, sells a story.

HP Small Business Home Office Printers

I think almost any cool or worthy outdoor (out-of-home) idea becomes inherently experiential. This idea puts both HP Printers and selected small or home office business on stage in a vivid demonstration that has show quality.

Every morning the billboard - located in major media market or significant pedestrian point - would begin as a white canvas with the HP logo. Then it comes to life as a series of HP home office printers begin to produce office work sized copies that are gathered and posted to the board by hand by a part cirque, part Peter Parker wall-walker.

What becomes assembled is a billboard message or logo for a small business or home office operator. It stays up for an hour and then is replaced with the build of an HP themed message. Which after a time is replaced by another small business.

Of course, the process is captured in real-time (and edited) video and incorporated into HP on-line properties.

For the small businesses featured there's the added bonus of hometown news coverage for being featured in a major market media partnership with the biggest initials in printers.

Sheet by Sheet.

Just as not all small businesses are alike not all small business or home office printers are alike. To demonstrate just how big the difference can be the idea here is to print, sheet-by-sheet, an old-school outdoor board with cirque style and content for every screen.

Make the logo smarter.

I believe as a creative director I have an above average marketing imagination, too. This did not begin as a client call for a new logo. It only became a logo exercise after I was able to identify the greatest challenge the brand faced, with consumers, was in the constraints of its channel strategy.

I created a line "Soft made Strong" that gave the product a story.

We were able to refresh and revitalize the brand for the sales path intermediaries in a way that made it more meaningful to the consumer.

A logo guided by a line.

One of the leading names in carpets had come un-done..

What was once a brand had become something much less. As creative director I met with the client brand team. I suggested instead of one last promotion we could re-discover what was meaningful about the brand.

I crafted a line "Soft Made Strong" and turned to an excellent design team and created a logo that, in a quick look, sells a story.

ING - other challenges

ING addressed not just consumer audiences but, even more importantly, a large financial advisor community. These are niche specific trade ads. The objective was to deliver key information but also remain true to the ING brand foundation of approachable and intelligent irreverence.

ING EPB P8 1019_LeadersEdge_R1-page-0.jpg

Agents are people, too. Making business-to-business more person-to-person.

Re-introduction of the "The CARE package"

Atlanta is home to the legendary CARE organization. This great institution made a strategic shift in focus on providing solutions to poverty and injustice by identifying ways to protect and nurture the human rights of women and girls.

My role in helping their mission was to add modern meaning and re-connect people with the idea of a CARE package.

The organization faced a hard business situation. The proliferation of giving opportunities was bringing more money and more attention to global poverty but not all entities have the depth, experience and stature as a NGO (non-governmental organization) as CARE.

By identifying and addressing the key obstacle of 'charity fatigue' and without diminishing the works of others, we were able to make a spectacular re-introduction of their most famous brand asset and their new focus as part of CARE's annual International Women's Day event and claiming dominating Times Square video screen presence.

The work made a measurable boost and presented a more specific way to help our world via women and girls by fostering education and community protection. There was now a new symbolic CARE package to provide the support of the vital services and networks that will shape better futures.

Real life things

You know the expression, "You had to be there?" Well, sometimes a brand has to go to the consumer. That's why I call this section 'Real life things.'

In these cases, the product is specific, often over-looked and the budget is small

Piedmont Park Conservancy

Atlanta has a great park in the center of midtown. Sometimes people can't get to it but that doesn't mean everyone won't benefit from it continuing to grow and improve. That's where the mobile park comes in.