Everyone dreams of hitting the big game-winning home run. You picture it: Cameras are flashing all throughout the stadium. The crowd is ready to burst with excitement. Every player on both teams is fighting to conceal the mounting pressure they are feeling.
You swing, and send the ball deep, deep, deep over the second basemen’s head. You arrive comfortably at first base with a single. The air goes out of the stadium for a second, but then it builds again as the next player comes up to bat.
This isn’t how the …

Ever seen advertising so bad that you want to beat it up but you can’t because it’s advertising and it can’t fight back because it has no fists, no weapons and it’s not really alive so why bother?
I call that Nickelback advertising because every time I hear a song by that band , I want to beat it up. But I can’t because it only a song and it can’t really fight back for all the reasons I just described.
Here’s where I need help. How do I tell people at …

I envy the cartoon and comic artists.
And I have no doubt that they influenced me as a copywriter. I always admired the talent to simplify the life in 3 frames or less. Sometimes, without saying a word.
Think about Pearls Before Swine, from Stephen Pastis.
The guy has a pig and a rat, poorly drawn in black and white (no perspectives, no scenarios, nothing) and already published 10 books. You gotta be good in telling stories (and he does it in one style – acid humor) to do it.
So, some days ago …

Here’s a simple tip if you want to be more creative. Stop being so damn cool.
You know who you are. Yeah, you. The one who wears those smashingly sexy skinny jeans and that not quite perfectly fitted t-shirt with the obscurely fabulous design? You sir, (or ma’am) are the coolest person on the face of the earth.
You’re also incredibly boring.
Despite what you may have learned in art school or the local speakeasy you love to frequent, being cool does not make you more creative or interesting. It makes you inhibited …

Nothing kills innovation more than someone in a meeting making a “good point.”
Good points are made by people in the meeting who really don’t need to be there. People with vague job titles. Their job is to make these good points whenever someone important is in the room. Someone like a client or a CEO. These good points sound something like this:
“According to our research, humor doesn’t resonate with our target market.”
“Our audience is known for loyalty. This work doesn’t acknowledge that.”
“I’m just playing devil’s advocate here, but the work …

I don’t really like art. I know this is probably blasphemy to many people, particularly all of the wannabe Picassos in the ad industry. But, for me, art is just kind of okay.
Yeah, I appreciate the talent involved. And I can look at a painting or sculpture and enjoy what I see. But when people say they ‘love’ art, I just don’t get it.
The thought of even 1 hour at a gallery or museum and I’m like a 10 year old being dragged to the mall with his Mom while …

Because you treat them like morons. Instead of saying you’ll sell more of their shit, you say you’ll…
-increase household incidence and purchase frequency.
-emotionally connect with our target.
-build brand loyalty.
-activate consumer passion.
-increase consumer engagement.
-enhance the shopper experience.
-build market share through relevant communication.
-build greater presence and greater exposer among shoppers.
-increase brand awareness through aggressive media and guerilla tactics.
-motivate consumers by embracing their trust.
-increase brand loyalty by enhancing the consumer experience.
-build relevance among younger audiences through social networks.
I didn’t make these up. I pulled them off of one presentation that some agency did …

I started to think about this old little friend the other day.
Actually, I received two different jobs with the same recommendation:
“The client wants us to think about a strong call to action in the end”.
So I did it. I thought about it.
And my conclusion was pretty simple.
Shouldn’t every ad be the call to action itself, always?
Ok, this is not a conclusion, this is a question, but let’s move ahead.
If a commercial is good, I immediately will start to think about using the product (unless, of course, it’s a tampon).
I don’t …