advergirl

Recommended resolutions for advertising types

2012 planning may have wrapped up four or five months ago, but 2011 actually still persists ... hanging on, in fact, for four more lazy end-of-year days. What will next year really bring to the friendly confines of agency life? What will you promise yourself to make it even better?

A few friendly suggestions (from the girl with an opinion about everything):

For better work:

• Don't stay too long: Even the best people can't keep doing the same thing forever. We get clouded by what we've done before, what rejections we've heard, and what roadblocks we've hit. Keep changing it up - new account, new role, new hobby, new gig.
• Wander around: Get out of the hotel rooms, conference rooms, observation rooms more. Wander around the mall, the medical center, every city you find yourself in. Make time to check out the world.
• Read more: Refresh your RSS feed, find a new periodical (One Story, HBR, BigThink), follow your customers' blogs, generally consume more fodder and inspiration (mental fiber). Share the best stuff.
• Take a break from all the metaphors: Yeah, I know it's like riding a bike, but people are only nodding at that because (1) you are and (2) they know what riding a bike is (not necessarily how it applies to creating a chemical compound)
• Invite strange people to lunch: Maybe strange is the wrong word. How about: different. Have great conversations about everything and nothing that lead you to think about things in new ways.
• Design a better expense reporting system (ok, that one's just for me, but if you're up for it...)

For better life:

• Cancel fewer plans: Treating every RSVP as a maybe is the epidemic of our generation. Make the plans you want to make, keep them. Turn all others down gracefully. 
• Write: Not just in PPT.
• Meet normal people: Yesterday, a colleague asked me to recommend a mom roughly our age for a panel. The only catch: She had to be outside the industry. I came up with ... ONE, and she's married to an ad guy. (Do you know normal? Hardest Advergirl quiz ever)
• Get inspired: Beat back the cynicism of office life with a little real life inspiration. Go to the theater, see more live music, buy art. (Spending an hour on Pinterest does not count)
• Read your Rob Brezny horoscope: It's 60 seconds/week that are like reading a Hunter S Thompson, being back in college and thinking about your life as a Blitzen Trapper song. Seriously, sign up.

For good intentions that will be left behind by January 6 (at the latest):

• Don't eat the random junk food and cold pizza that people leave in the office kitchen (that's their garbage - not your lunch)
• Do your timesheets daily
• Show up to meetings on time
• Give a little email amnesty (borrow from VW and resist the urge to email before 8 and after 6)
• Don't work at least one day every week: No email on your phone, no PowerPoint over breakfast, no highlighting the RFP in front of the TV. Just don't work.

Anatomy of an advertising emergency

There's a curious phenomenon that happens in advertising agencies ... Despite our annual planning sessions and relatively-long project lead times, every other month or so, we have a genuine Advertising Emergency. An all-hands-on-deck, everyone-cancel-their-plans, someone-place-a-takeout-order humdinger of a crisis. No matter the cause, each emergency plays out nearly the same way:

Remember when I used to write this blog called Advergirl?

Over the past few weeks, I've been working on this big pitch with good people from all over the agency. It's the kind of opportunity that warrants some serious planning sessions and big, dramatic staging. In other words: It's the best kind.

As we were talking about who would be on the team, this old blog came up in conversations a few times ... people read it before I started working here, they'd heard it mentioned from this colleague or that, basically they consider Advergirl to have been just a little internet famous.

That got me thinking about writing again. Or, writing here again. When I joined GSW, I put all my blogging energy into starting up some agency blogs. Three of them, actually: WhatsYourDigitaliQ.com, BrandLiberators.com, and BeShareworthy.com

Ok, so that last one did totally fall off. But the other two are doing pretty well. BrandLiberators has 30 contributors from all over the organization - executives and newbies, nurses and coders. And, WYDiQ was named one of Facebook’s top 50 healthcare blogs (whatever that means).

And, even better news? They don't need me any more. The two surviving blogs each have their own editors, writers and readers ... so, I'm off to the next thing. Or, back to it, I guess.

It turns out I miss writing here - trading emails with readers, cracking bad jokes, sharing my favorite things. I miss that connection.

So, my long-abandonned readers, I hope you're still out there ... I feel like typing with you again.

(Oh, and I think I'm going to do some more advertising resume makeovers - so, if you've got a bum CV, send it my way)

No normal in our fractured culture

We live in a culture of many cultures. We're so broken up by endless media choices, closed social networks and virtually limitless options in music, food, entertainment and assorted stuff that what is uber popular in your group is likely virutally unnoticed by others. It's created a real challenge for advertisers because it demands a wholly new kind of thinking - one that shifts from looking for normal to identifying significant.

There's no middle in a culture of many culture - no bland demographic data that represents our audience. Instead, we need to look for interesting niches, micro audiences as likely to be united around an interest as an age group

To do that, we have to give up the belief that, say, all moms are like you are as a mom or all college students experience what you did in college or - most importantly - that advertisers like us are anything, anywhere, at all close to normal.

What about you? How "normal" are you? What do you have in common with the rest of America?

Grab a pencil and take this short quiz to see how good of a pulse you have on some of the most interesting, influential niches in American culture.

Answers and scoring after the jump.

1. Late last year, this became the fastest selling electronics device ever.
2. This favorite game app has over 88 million active monthly users, making it the most popular ever launched from a social network.
3. A special episode of what show about a teenage girl and her friends was the highest-rated (non-football) cable telecast of 2010?
4. How many pieces of content does the average Facebook user create each month?
5. What percent of Twitter users are African American?
6. One of the biggest gaming subcultures is built around this fantasy game that has been an institution for 23 years and has sold nearly 100 million copies.
7. Over 1300 of these have been built over the last few decades, each featuring huge stages, rock bands, jumbotron screens, and consistent weekly audiences of several thousand.
8. The most popular prime time television show last year had ____% the viewers the Cosby Show did in its heyday. (Bonus point if you can name the show).
9. This New York Times bestseller and nationally syndicated radio host (in 64 markets) is one of America’s favorite sources of relationship advice with titles like Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, which sold 2.5 million copies.
10. This fifth-ranking television network often beats out the CW for fourth place, thanks to its more consistent programming line and enthusiastic audience.

Need resume help? I'm giving free advice this Thursday

Years ago now, I wrote a series of posts about Resume Makeovers. They were inspired by this simple truth: Most people have a really hard time writing their own resumes. They focus on the wrong stuff, get mired in the details, and generally fail to create a personal brand (that simple story that lets people know what to expect from you).

Since then, I've received a steady stream of emails and DMs asking for my help. While I can't help everyone I hear from, I do know there are a lot of you with questions. So, here's one way to get my advice:

This Thursday, I'll be sitting on a panel at the Columbus Young Professionals 2010 Career Development Conference. In that session you'll hear a bunch of different perspectives on personal branding.

Here's the big offer though: If you come to the conference, I'm happy to take a look at your resume and give you specific pointers on how to make it even better. I'll plan to be at the conference for all the afternoon sessions and the early part of the evening networking.

If you need help - sign up for the conference, bring your resume and track me down. I'll be easy to find - I'm even submitting to a name tag ;)

Get a deal while you're at it - use the discount code: Presenters to get 20% off.

I am not a geek. (And other true stories.)

I'm among the oldest members of the tech support generation: those computer-savvy "kids" expected to answer digital questions on demand, fix ailing computers at a moments notice, explain just exactly why someone would bother to use Facebook, and otherwise speak for technology. Bosses, coworkers, parents, neighbors start their questions - oh, you would probably know...and, then, wham - there I am, an interested novice playing an expert.

Sure, they're grateful. Who doesn't love a little tech heroism. But, along with the questions and the thank yous come the label: Geek

They're glad to have someone who "speaks geek," "who is a geek," "who gets geek."

*sigh*

I've decided it's time to fight the moniker.

There are two basic definitions of geek (you know, beyond, the anachronistic circus/chicken reference):

1. A person intensely interested in a particular field or hobby, generally at the expense of broader social interaction (I think we can all agree I have a lot of interests - and social interactions)
2. A person interested in an esoteric subject that is marginal to the social mainstream

That second one is the one they mean. An esoteric subject. That's the one I want to tackle.

I saw this great illustration on the Both Sides of the Table blog. It shows a typical technology adoption cycle - basically what it takes to move a technology from esoteric to the mainstream:

The time is different for every technology, of course, but essentially you move from those early adopters (geeks) to pretty much normal behavior about 15% of the way in. I can live with that - 15% of us have a propensity to be geeks through our bold early adoption of challenging technologies (sounds more courageous that way).

Ok, now let's look at the technologies I'm interested in and plot those on this adoption chart:

Hmmm, suddenly doesn't seem so out of the mainstream, right?

When social media really started - back in the age of Friendster - it's true, it was the province of geeks and early adopters. That was the stage it was in. Now, digital/social/mobile have radically changed. The world's most social people have taken them over and made them their own. No longer is it a marginal activity. Instead, it is both the mainstream and the competitive advantage we all need.

S, maybe I should maybe add the Urban Dictionary definition for geek - The people you pick on in high school and wind up working for as an adult. Bring it on, laggards ;)

YES AND ... how to brainstorm (better)

Looking for the next game-changing idea. It's a noble cause. One whittled away at in meeting after meeting, google search after google search until we reach the breaking point: It's time for a brainstorm.

We gather interesting people from around the company. Arm them with carbs, caffeine and Sharpies and hope for the best. Sometimes they turn out the big ideas and sometimes ... they fizzle into frustration, aggravation, or even general malaise (I always wondered if I could get "general malaise" into an advertising blog post).

We all know the insidious enemies of good brainstorms:

• The knee-jerk why it won't work response: At their best, brainstorms are about gathering as many new ideas as possible. The editing comes later. It's nearly impossible to get idea momentum going when your energies are divided between defend and develop.
• Mired in just how it will get done: There will always be details to be worked out. The pixel dimensions really do not matter right now. Big picture, people.
• The focus group of one: The self-appointed expert who takes the stage claiming he can speak for all people who have ever enjoyed a Cheeto because he himself has been eating Cheetos so long that the little strips of skin under his fingernails are so permanently tattooed orange that he appears to have had a strange form of a french manicure (potentially one with a Halloween theme). Let's keep it open - every product has lots of different customers. 
  
• And, of course, the worst of them all: silence *crickets*

But how can we do it better? What can we do to keep the ideas flowing and the enemies at bay? 

I think a successful brainstorm is the responsibility of both the facilitators and participants.

What facilitators can do:

(You know, beyond bringing squishy balls and candy and such)

1. Give a little homework: Help  people get in the right mindset and feel invested with a quick homework assignment - something that they can share to kick off the day
2. Stimulus: What new information or experience can get us going? An inspiring video, a site visit, a new data point. 
3. Instant feedback: Let people know they'll get a chance to not only share their ideas, but vote on what they think will work. "Before we leave today, I'll ask you to put a hash mark next to the 5 ideas you like most..."

What participants can do:

1. Say yes and...: It's the ultimate brainstorm discipline. Can you build on an idea - add a new angle, make it better, create another application? 
2. Tagging: Give your ideas a headline. Not only easier for whoever is capturing the ideas, but also good way to get to the sellable proposition. 
3. Table the usual suspects: Agree in the beginning that you'll do all the obvious stuff (like get a project manager or create a brochure). Concentrate your in-brainstorm time on more unusual ideas.

 

Your first job matters

Or: Why some of my most successful friends were once baristas.

Remember that CareerBuilder ad - "You'll spend more time with your job than you will with your spouse. Choose wisely." 

It must have been circa 2001*. Before the towers came down. I read it, poster-size, on an (inadequate) shelter up on the el platform waiting for the morning train. Great advice. Why don't more people think that way about work? Choosing your job is choosing your life.

Especially, as it turns out, your first job.

Here's the #1 mistake I see advertising and marketing newbies make:

They take a job in-category, but out of their interest area.

Biggest violator: Would-be strategists and account managers take a first job as an assistant or admin to someone who has the job they want someday.

The truth: The admin only moves into the big office in the movies. It's the Pretty Woman** story of work. 

Second biggest violator: Could-be writers and designers take gigs as account coordinators, just to "get in the door."

The truth: There are few walls in this world higher than those between the right and left brain sides of agencies.

I totally get why any newbie would do it, though. College behind them; real life waiting. Unsatisfactory job market; lots of pressure to land somewhere. An agency with a great brand offers you a chance to join up? It's hard to say no.

But here's what you don't know yet: The work you do typecasts you. And, changing your brand is hard.

When you're looking for job #2, your resume is going to lie about you. It will say what you've done not who you are. And, getting people to listen so you can tell a new story ... not easy.

It's actually easier to pour coffee.

To take a job entirely out of category- one that people will instantly know was just a make-money-while-I-find-my-dream-job kind of gig.

And, do the work that gives your energy and inspiration on the side as a freelancer or volunteer to stay fresh.

Yep, you read that right - Advergirl says go live in your parents guest room and work at Starbucks. It's the best possible move for your ad career.

___________

Notes:

*That's right, the woman who can't remember the name of the restaurant she ate at last night, CAN remember the year and location that she first saw an advertisement almost a decade ago

**A 20-year-old movie reference that will like be lost on the very people I'm writing to because I'm too damn old to speak with the right context and nuance.***

*** Thinking I like this DFW-style footnoting. Troubling new blog feature?

How to be a (good) company blogger

Here’s a question I never even thought to ask: How do you train a blogger?

Isn't blogging just a conversation starter you type instead of talk?  Something that's kind of natural - like writing an email or posting a Facebook status?

Wait, in what world did these things become natural? I've got to shake up my digital comfort zone and think like people who haven't spent their entire careers on one long anthropological online dig.

We’re getting a couple of team-sourced blogs up and running here at GSW. There’s a lot of interest, but also a lot of uncertainty.

The sponsors/editors worry:

• Will people really submit content?


• Will it be on brand?


• Will it be something people want to read?

The contributors worry:

• What’s the right way to do this?


• How will I fit it in my workflow? (i.e. how will I have time for this?)


• What topic should I talk about?

The truth is, they're totally understandable concerns. John Cass wrote an interesting article recently about the four operational models companies use to adopt social media. They largely focus on getting people like me (digital junkies) to use their habit for the good of the brand.

I'm trying to add a whole new model. One that's pretty uncomfortable at first.

I'll call it: Corral the conversation

Find the people in your organization who have great, shareworthy ideas and give them new kinds of tools to share them. Fast track the digital adoption process by making technology work like they work. Basically help your curious, chatty people climb onto a soapbox they wouldn’t have been inclined to build up on their own.

Yeah, that’s harder, right? But, it’s one of the few way to get past the early adopters and tap into that larger, smart conversation going on in your organization. To have your social media investment really be authentic to your organization.

Now the question makes sense. How do you train bloggers? How do you help people feel comfortable in an environment that is totally foreign to them?

First, pick the right people. Or, better, let them nominate themselves (that's right, people, a call to blog. Complete with job number!).

Good bloggers are energized by the conversation. They share three things in common:

1. They’ve got a comfortable, recognizable voice. Both spoken and written.


2. They’re naturally curious. They’re the ones who send you all the links to the new studies, the breakout creative, the industry trends.


3. They’re good synthesizers. They read a couple of disparate things and draw a new conclusion. They tag their ideas with memorable phrases. They make it all accessible with analogy.

Ok, now you’ve got your core group. How do you make them successful?

I'm still thinking about that question: How do you train a blogger? I don't know the answer, but I know some things I recommend to writers to make it easier:

• Scribble an outline: Blogs are definitely a back-of-the-napkin kind of business. Just jot an idea down when it comes to you. It will be much easier to fill in the details later (vs. stopping everything to blog or trying to come up with an idea cold.)


• Call yourself: Blog writing is best when it sounds natural, like something you'd actually say. If you're having trouble writing that way, stop. Call your voicemail, turn on your iPhone's voice recorder - talk it out. Then go back later and type it up (Or try that nifty Dragon Dictation app)


• Take a POV: A lot of bloggers get caught up and trying to report on something. Covering every angle, citing sources, etc. It doesn't have to be that hard. Don't try to tell the whole story; just share a unique insight or POV on part of it. (Link to news story the media paid someone to write)


• Embrace the bullet point: Short is better (that's true even though I'm terrible at it!). Don't worry about big complex thoughts and compound sentences. Just give me the highlights.

The biggest opportunity, though, is probably for the editor. How can she use tools and technology to make blogging work the way people work:

• Make it doable: Set reasonable expectations. Start with two posts a month. And, do the proofreading for them.


• Use email: Wordpress, Drupal and other platforms now enbable post by email. How much better is that for contributors? Type your email with your pictures and bullets and bolding, send it to a custom email address, and (like magic) it's in the blog queue for publishing.


• Create a clear filter: Tell bloggers (and readers) what the blog is about. That crisp statement of purpose that helps them know what to write about (and what to save for the water cooler)


• Provide examples:  Show, don't tell. It's a lot easier for most people to work from a pattern.


• Accept lots of formats: It's not all about words. A great picture, a podcast, a video - take them all!


• Share results: Bloggers want to connect with readers. To be read and be valued. Make sure to pass results back to them - how many people have visited the blog, where the content was shared, what posts were most popular.

We're trying a little of all those things. Keep an eye on our progress.

We've already launched one team blog.

There's another one coming on April 22.

And, one more soon after that.

There is no agency promised land

(Just the place that's right for you right now.)

This weekend was a beautiful one in Columbus. Out and about with dog leash (and poo bags) in hand, I ran into Columbus's cutest couple - KR and PK. They asked me the question I'm hearing from all over: SO, how IS the new job?

When I first announced my move from the downtown branding boutique to the far-flung healthcare empire, some of my friends tried to talk me out of it. They called it corporate and conservative and painfully slow moving. They said I'd be bored and underutilized and fall behind. In short: this choice was not a match for the entreprenuerial Leigh brand.

They said this up until the day before I started. Intimidating stuff.

I'm happy to report that following my gut paid off. I'm two months in and I'm doing some of the most interesting work of my life. I'm part of an alpha test team on this innovative customer insight tool that was cheffed up, built and funded right here. My clients are open to bold new ideas and my bosses are all about making them happen. I've got one group of bloggers up and ideastorming online and two more groups right behind them. I've never seen multidisciplinary work the way it does here - respectful, collaborative teams building on ideas (without any of the usual hangups about creative vs. account or insight vs. media). 

It's not the place I would have guessed I'd end up, but it's an excellent place for me right now. What I thought I knew about this culture was totally wrong. It's creative, not corporate; liberating, not limiting. 

But, that doesn't mean you'd have the same experience here. A girl friend of mine was here a few months before me and wasn't inspired by it at all. Not the right place for her - not then, maybe not ever.

I think about that when I talk to ad people who are new in town or even colleagues looking to jump to places I've been. There's no promised land. No one perfect agency that we're all trying to get to (no, not even you, Resource). 

The shop I call a testosterone-driven train wreck is the same one I've heard other people point to as an awesome place to make a name from yourself working on national consumer brands. Maybe you say mom-and-pop; I say entrepreneurial and flexible. Sweat shop, award winning; old school, stable; design-driven, design leading. Who's to know where you'll fit in.

At least in this town, the employment marketing in this industry is opening back up again. Talent is on the move. When you think about whether to stay or go, here are three signs that tell you you're in the right place:

Do you feel:

1. Energized: Instead of that Sunday night dread about the approaching work week, you actually feel good about heading into work every - ok, most - mornings


2. Asked: You're valued for your ideas and perspective, not just your hours or super-human Flash tricks


3. Involved: You have a personal stake in your work and you believe in the good of both your brands and your clients