Not me, dummy. I’m having a terrible time with that. Apparently, no one needs a snarky bitch like me in their agency. I can be nice, really. Not often, but occasionally. This guy, Errol Schwartz, a senior in the New Media Design program at the Rochester Institute of Technology, will have agencies chomping at the bit to hire him. Check out his portfolio. Very nice everything. Needs a proofreader, but what good creative spells well anyway?
Struck consistently does new, innovative work (who didn’t love the Pants Whisperer back in the day?). And even for a little business card like this for Lush, a landscape company, they went over the top – very memorable. The logo they did is clean and modern, too. Nice job.
It was announced finally! But I’m a little depressed because I don’t have that smug feeling anymore. I’ll have to find something else to be a pompous bitch about. Anyway, it’s very exciting, not at all what anyone expected and I still can’t tell anyone outside the agency.
Just found out this morning that my largest project hasn’t been worked on in over 2 weeks, although the creatives lied through their teeth and said they were hammering away at it. Now I have to go back to the client and make up another lame excuse. My aunt in Moline has died three times already, so can’t use that one.
Everybody wants to do the latest ultra-rich media ads, but a rotating gif can be just as interesting. I was perusing dlisted this morning, getting my daily dose of celebrity crap (it’s truly a wonder we haven’t gone the way of the Roman Empire), and saw a black and white skyscraper banner for a new gossip site called Dotspotter. It rotated text (below) like “Linsday goes commando” and “Britney needs to stop”….and that’s all. Less is more people.
Just found out that one of our agency partners (and by that I mean another agency to which we farm out work) is involved with marketing porn on the web. This is after we told our biggest client how fabulous and well-respected they are. So the client Googles them and finds stripping dwarves and smoking ponies in the results. Of course, I had to Google it when I got back to my office. You have to broaden your horizons.
Don’t know how Sprint is marketing this, but the site itself (below) is pure viral genius. The Connectile Dysfunction Treatment Center is totally video-driven – almost reminds me of the MGM Grand site with the cut-throughs. Site by Publicis and mekanism.
It’s 78 and sunny today so that can only mean one thing – overindulging on a patio somewhere. This is the absolute best time of year – drinking and skin cancer. Love it!!! In the spirit (hehe) of my favorite hobby, here’s two interactive banners working together for Jacob’s Creek wine (created by Dare, courtesy of BannerBlog).
Things are slow at the office today – our traffic manager is keeping herself busy by making M&M characters at Planet M&M. She sends them to me every five minutes, which is getting old fast, but there was a funny one she made to look like Sanjaya Malakar.
I just saw an interactive viral site glue London did for Virgin Money with a incredibly daring dancer who begins as a sedate ballerina and ends with a power tool sparking in a dangerous area of her costume – hot! Very different take on a typical financial ad.
This is the most fun interactive banner ad I’ve seen in a long time – two skyscraper Dyson ads in which you can play Pong done by atWWW in the UK. I have always sucked at this game. But still fun. Courtesy of bannerblog.
Every month, I attend our city’s interactive marketing association event. There’s networking (and free cocktails) before the speakers, which usually draws a big crowd. Half the people leave before the event starts, which is a shame. There have been some fabulous speakers and topics lately. I feel terrible for the client-side members who attend, though. They’re descended upon like vultures by the agencies. One client told me he felt like he was in a den of wolves with a pork chop hanging around his neck.
Here are some links to some interactive agencies around the country. There is a huge difference in the look and feel – some are static html, some have flash, some have video.
No idea when this UK ad was made, but it’s to die for! I shuddered a little when I saw the clown, but other than that, it’s beautiful. Sony’s site says:
“Our latest TV ad – featuring massive paint explosions – took 10 days and 250 people to film. Huge quantities of paint were needed to accomplish this, which had to be delivered in 1 tonne trucks and mixed on-site by 20 people.
The effect was stunning, but afterwards a major clean-up operation was required to clear away all that paint!
The cleaning took 5 days and 60 people. Thankfully, the use of a special water-based paint made it easy to scrape-up once the water had evaporated.
Keeping everyone safe was also an important factor. A special kind of non-toxic paint was used that is safe enough to drink (it contains the same thickeners that are sometimes used in soups). It was also completely harmless to the skin.”
Just had a comp review for a microsite with another client today. We did 3 concepts – one we adore and is ultra-cool and ultra-rich, the second is colorful and fun, but vanilla, and the third is standard, boring, static html. We made the 3rd concept boring on purpose to force the client into choosing from the first two. The client loved the 2nd concept, but after lots of begging and pleading, I think she might agree to do the first concept. If she does, I’ll post the creative after it’s done – if I do say so myself, it’s a work of art considering the content.
Check out this agency’s site (Fuel Industries)- in particular the interactive desktop companion pictured below. Great idea for keeping the agency top of mind. Not sure how many people will download it, but it showcases another creative ability of the shop.
Just got some slightly unfavorable feedback from a client about some rich media banners we are producing. Not terrible, but the client said they “lacked something”. How the hell am I supposed to put that in a work order? Please revise ads so they do not lack anything. We always come up with something in the last hour though that blows the client away, so I’m not too worried. But is every agency like this – waiting until the 11th hour to feverishly work on projects and come out looking like a star? I’m pretty sure it is. Internal review is Friday before the next round goes to the client – I’ll be sure to let you know how that goes.
Below is a site that’s been out for a little while for Nokia, called The Passenger. Love the concept for the game, though the loading times and car handling are a little rough. Nothing helps pass the time like a little advergaming.
Agency Tart 