Every time I go to the US and people ask my name, I always see a sarcastic smile coming out, slowly followed by a: ‘Hmmm, Faaaaabio (silent giggle)’.
It didn’t take much time until I discovered the origin of the irony.

Fabio is not a common name in the States, and a supposed Italian, ridiculous model of a ‘not butter’ product made the terrible service to associate his (and my, and all the other Fabio’s) name with his ridiculous persona.
Thanks to this old phony (I believe it was phony to be funny, …

Do you do more than just write? If so, does your computer at work reflect this?
Probably not.

Most writers get stuck with the crappiest of the crap when it comes to agency computers. Once all of the ADs, producers, account people, planners, project managers and the guy who cleans the bathroom have had their pick of the litter, you are typically left with a machine that can barely handle email let alone Word, InDesiign, Acrobat and all of the other shit we deal with on a daily basis.
Why is this?
Is this …

So what were you doing last week? Dancing topless on a 200-foot yacht off the South of France? Rubbing elbows with some ECDs from South America? Bumping uglies with a random AD from Amsterdam?
Sounds awesome. Hope you took pictures.
Me? I was in the office, cranking out work like a mofo. Selling shit. Saving projects. You know, a typical week in advertising.
Now, I’ve come down on award shows before, and this post isn’t really about that. I actually think Cannes, out of all the shows, seems to honor some of our …

Head on, apply directly to the forehead! Flo, the Progressive chick. Those nutty Metro PCS guys. Those crazy iO Digital Cable ads (watch a lot of channels, whenever you’re able). Pretty much every ad Swiffer has ever put on air.
You’ve seen these spots. You’ve probably hated most of them.
But there’s a good chance you like at least one. Someone’s liking ‘em, or else they wouldn’t still be running.
So fess up. What’s your favorite?
Me? I have to say I’m kind of a “Flo” fan. I know she’s a total dork and …

After a long time absorbed by many different projects, I had the time to take a look at the ad specialized websites again.
And I found a surprising new big wave of campaigns and actions based on just one thing: the buzz.
Lots of creatives and agencies are justifying these ads saying that people twitted a lot about them. That people added something about them at their facebook profiles or their blogs.
Cool. It is fantastic to we live in an age when the audience can express their opinion about anything on the …

The power of a great story is the one thing that has endured all time, and it’s the one thing that we can be sure will always endure. Surely, the last breath, of the last person, will be in struggle to utter, “told you I was sick.”
Like people, brands have a story. When brands get in trouble, it’s almost always because it has been challenged, and in that challenge it has lost its personality, its center, the way it has always defined itself. Remember Goldman Sachs’ tagline, “Our Client’s Interests …

Sure, a new idea is essential in any good campaign. That’s basic.
But a campaign is not just an idea. It is also what is behind the idea (psychoanalysis stuff here: values, codes, behaviour etc) and what is in front of the consumer or let’s simplify, calling it “the production”.
Sometimes we like campaigns because they make us laugh, because its message is very simple or because it contains a strong truth shown in a way we never saw before.
Sometimes we like big, well directed spots, with a good casting, location, music, …

I’m sure many of you are familiar with the latest State Farm campaign.
No, not the one with the beady eyed douchebag spokesperson.
I’m talking about the one that seems to present State Farm as some sort of purveyor of the black arts.
You’ve seen this one. Group of girls’ car breaks down. They sing the little State Farm ditty and suddenly their agent appears. But it doesn’t stop there. Apparently, getting speedy roadside help isn’t enough. These ladies have strong libidos and they need their agent to be hot. And sensitive.
Or how …

Please offend me. Or at least try. I’ve lived my whole life without ever being offended. Being offended takes time and energy that I’d rather focus somewhere else.

Which brings me to those Groupon ads. I wasn’t offended by them. They didn’t really say anything bad about Tibet or whales or rain forests. Actually, they might have. I didn’t really get them. Here’s a representation of my brain activity while watching them during the Super Bowl:
-”God, I hate watching football. It’s 4 hours of people standing around and dropping stuff and …

Remember the good ol’ days, when the Super Bowl game used to be terrible and the commercials were the only saving grace? Back in the day when San Francisco beat up on San Diego or Dallas was slaughtering Buffalo, you could take solace in the fact that the clever people on Madison Ave were going to put on a show.
Now? The games are exciting (the last 4 games have all been decided late in the 4th quarter). But can we finally admit that the days of TV dominated advertising are …