Leaping Over the Digital Divide

Somebody recently asked me how I successfully made the leap from being a copywriter for mostly traditional media to handling Social Media and Digital projects as well.

My first response was that I’m merely a survivor, not yet a success story. Everything is still moving and changing way too quickly to announce to the world that you know everything there is to know.

I have no doubt that most creatives with a solid background in print, broadcast, promotions etc can make the transition. But in my experience, the hardest part of the transition is convincing somebody else you can do it. But here are a few helpful hints for traditional creatives (especially copywriters) to help build a foundation and hopefully make a smooth transition into the future.

• Grow your digital footprint: If this piece of advice never occurred to you, you might be too far behind the curve already. But hey, it’s never too late. Get your profile up (and more importantly, up to date) on the major sites.

• Treat Twitter as a professional tool: Don’t just use it as another venue to tell your friends what you ate for lunch. Follow leaders in advertising, marketing, social media, PR and any other industry that interests you. And if you’re having trouble finding “leaders,” the next best thing is to follow me ;) here.

• Track the digital presence of potential bosses/clients: If you sniff a job opening at Agency Y where you’d be working on Client X, of course you know to go to these company websites. But make sure to find out what else they’re saying online and where they’re saying it.

• Teach yourself how to put together a Facebook Business Page: Do you have any spec print work in your book? Well, now you can do SM spec work without calling in the digital cavalry to help put it together.

• Know the basics of all the latest in digital, social, and mobile: You don’t really “get” foursquare? That’s ok. But you better be able to check-in, and more importantly, understand why so many people enjoy doing so.

• Keep generating ideas: Nobody really knows what will be the next big thing, and we’ve barely scratched the surface on how to engage consumers with the options already out there. But if you keep thinking and jotting down thoughts, agencies will believe you could be just the person to help them successfully make the leap too.

I’m sure I left out a few hints. And I’m even more certain that in six months time there will be even newer info to consider. But for now, this advice should help keep your goals in perspective for what seems like a very daunting task.

Hey Creatives, I'm on my high horse

Have you seen the big plunge Old Spice has taken into the world of Social Media? Here’s a behind the scenes look at what it’s all about.

And here’s an interesting quote from Iain Tait, the Global Interactive Director at Wieden & Kennedy: “If the message that comes out of this is that you can make TV commercials in 30 minutes, then we're all out of a job.”

Of course, that was said a little tongue-in-cheek (but just a little). But I actually think the success of this campaign is some of the best news in a while for traditional creatives and those trying to find their place in a constantly evolving web 2.0 (or is it up to 3.0 now?).

Here’s why:
• This was a collaboration of SM-savvy talent with traditional creative. They both needed each other and leaned heavily on each other’s skills.

• Whether it was designed and put together in a day, a week, or had been in the works for months, this was professionally produced, TV-quality work. Strategically, its not much different than the “Subservient Chicken.” But executionally, it has nothing in common with a webcam.

• This campaign started as a traditional creative campaign. The viral way it exploded owes to the internet, but it had the head start of a high profile TV debut.

• Most importantly for copywriters such as myself, from the original TV spot all the way through the 87th video, the success depended on a specific type of copywriter. One that’s funny, full of ideas, works quickly, and has such a complete understanding of the brand voice that they can speak for the brand through a unique character.

So creatives can only hope that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. I’m not looking for Starbucks to say “I’m on a horse.” But I’m looking for agencies that work with great brands, and those that aspire to be great to start seeing the value of the full spectrum of skills required by their brand messengers.

Will Soccer Ever Be the "It" Sport?

“Soccer is the 'now' sport for a variety of timely reasons.”

When do you think a U.S. sports executive uttered these words? Last week? During the 2002 World Cup when the Univision “Goooooooallll” announcer burst on the scene? Try 1977.

With the World Cup starting this weekend, expect to hear a lot more quotes like this one and others that have been said over the past 30 years. But for some reason soccer continues to be the sport of tomorrow here in the States, while never being the sport of today.

Oh sure, it has grown. But rather than in a burst, its making a Bataan-like march towards popularity.

And every time soccer’s popularity gains here, you can’t help but notice how far behind we still lag from the rest of the footie-fanatics all over the world:

• During the past few weeks, ESPN has been promoting this year’s La Copa Mundial by showing us the incredible passion other countries have for this sport? These spots make me feel guilty for presumably thinking about sex at some point over the next five weeks.

• Saturday’s U.S. game is arguably the most anticipated US game ever. But that didn’t stop MLB and the NBA from scheduling games this weekend, or movie studios from releasing ”The A-Team” and “Karate Kid.”

Soccer is now the 5th most popular sport in the U.S., based on attendance, TV contracts, and cultural zeitgeist. I expect it to overtake hockey very soon. Beyond that, the smartest thing U.S. Soccer leaders could do is to continue moving slowly, smartly, and strategically. Tomorrow will eventually arrive for soccer, but regardless of how the U.S. team performs in South Africa, it won’t be today.

Mascot Naming is an Olympian Task

Wenlock and Mandeville. The names don’t exactly roll off the tongue like Mickey Mouse, Papa Smurf or Spongebob Squarepants. But those are the just unveiled names of the mascots for the 2012 London Olympics and Paralympics.

Any you know what, even though it doesn’t seem to have the staying power of a Bart Simpson, I like these names.

Just think about the brainstorming and approval process they must’ve gone through. You can’t offend anybody (in about 75 different languages), it should be playful and original, child-friendly, loveable, and it should relate to or have some sort of meaning for the “Olympic Spirit.”

Wenlock is named after Much Wenlock, a town about four miles outside of London that helped inspire the modern Olympics with its own local games. Mandeville is named after Stoke Mandeville, a town about 45 miles from London where the Paralympic movement started. A little bit forced? Sure. But when you consider all the parameters, test-marketing, and other creative paths they could’ve taken, these mascot names earn a Bronze Medal. Maybe even a Silver.

Now we just need to add a little fuzzy fur. And maybe an ear, nose or mouth. And perhaps a second eye. On second thought, why not just make Poochie the Dog the Olympic mascot.

The Hot & Cold Life of a Soup Cafe

I need to start with a major disclaimer: This blog entry is mostly based on my reasonable assumptions, perception, and sometime foggy memory, with very little knowledge of the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk about the plight of The Bucktown Soup Café.

After a few excited, but preliminary write-ups in RedEye and TimeOut, the Bucktown Soup Café opened up about a year ago. The initial buzz on the place was about how the owner used to be involved in the fast-paced finance/hedge fund world, and now he was taking his mother’s/grandmother’s/aunt’s soup recipes, adding a few of his own, and opening up The Bucktown Soup Café. I applaud him for pursuing his dream.

Always a fan of small, family business, I went there within the first few months. This was a time when the owner still had aspirations of drawing a mix of hippies and yuppies to a casual, upscale environment where they could enjoy delicious, gourmet soup. About a dozen different varieties were cycled in regularly. The few that I’ve either sampled or ordered were delicious, and assume it’s easy to come by positive reviews for all varieties.

But it was very over-priced for what amounted to a soup-based lunch or a starter bowl to take home to round out your own home-cooked meal. This was a place that truly believed its marquee soups and a little world-of-mouth would be all it needed to get people to treat it like a destination restaurant. At least I assume so, because as great of a location that is Bucktown, this café’s specific location seems slightly less than ideal to survive solely on neighborhood and shopping foot traffic.

But these prices for very good but not “to-die-for” quality, I’ve felt very little urgency to go back. And imagine most foodies feel the same way.

Over the course of the past year-plus, I’ve walked by the place pretty regularly in 0 degrees, 90 degrees, night, day, you name it (aah, the joy of city-dog ownership). And I’ve seen The Bucktown Soup Cafe crowded. What I’ve seen is a place that is slowly evolving into the type of hodgepodge place that doesn’t really stand for anything. First they added some Good Humor ice cream to draw crowds in the summer, and followed it up with a big sidewalk sign promoting it. Then they started tacking up signs on the window announcing that they’ve added sandwiches. Anybody looking at the name of this place would have to assume the sandwiches are pedestrian and unmemorable. Now I see hand-written signs out front that say things like “$2 Tuesdays.”

These seem like signs of slow desperation. Opening up a restaurant, especially in this economy, is tough. But the whole vibe of the place to those of us passing by seems all over the board. As if its trying to be a little bit of everything for everybody. But in reality, its unsure of what exactly it should be. It seems like the owner doesn’t have the restaurant/small business/casual dining experience, so he’s trying to throw anything that’ll stick and help keep his business afloat.

I guess its not enough to do one thing really, really well (in this case, making soup). You need the right mix of marketing savvy, restaurant savvy and confidence to stick with your vision. But what do I know, I’m not the guy that poured my savings into the place.

The King and The Colonel Seeing Eye to Eye...Sort Of

A quick tip of the cap to The Colonel and The King. KFC and Burger King have both taken different paths of innovation, but I believe each will end up with their own success stories.

By now everybody knows that KFC went back to its roots to create the Double Down, which is chock full ‘o so many unapologetically fried calories they had no choice but to exclusively use burly men in their TV commercials. It may not be the best thing for society, but KFC believes its responsibility isn’t to society, but rather it’s to people who like to use meat as their bread. I even love that the name implies that you’re gambling with your health by eating one. They’re throwing caution to the wind, and I salute KFC for staying true to its brand.

On the other hand, you’ve got Burger King. They just announced they’re going outside their wheelhouse in order to start serving brunch. Traditional brunch is best summed up by an old quote from The Simpsons. Its not quite breakfast, and its not quite lunch, but it comes with a slice of cantaloupe at the end. And now, BK is putting its own twist on brunch. Only time will tell if it works, but we’ll no doubt soon be seeing The King extolling the virtues of their tweener meal offerings. And I have to applaud BK for finding fresh ways to peddle their grub during off-hours. But will it come with a slice of cantaloupe?

So there you have it. The Colonel and The King are taking two different approaches for building growth and buzz. One is doubling down on its reputation, and one is going after an untapped weekend institution. Will any of their hearty faithful live to see the day these approaches are deemed success or failure?

First Day Jitters

Did I pack everything I need? Who will sit with me at lunch? What if I can’t find the bathroom?

The first day of a new job is very similar to the first day of school. For a freelancer like myself, the first day of school comes a few times every year (hopefully). But it doesn’t make it any less nerve-wracking, perspiring and exhilarating. We don’t truly know what to expect in terms of team dynamics, project expectations and dozens of other less important pieces of minutiae that can stress out all but the most savvy, veteran advertising creative.

I figure this is a good thing. It means I still care. It means I know there are still things I need to learn. And there are still goals I want to achieve. Guess that’s why I do what I do.