Archive for July, 2008

Hi, everyone!

I’d like to take a minute to let you know about this month’s Workshop. Melani Gordon of gWaveConsulting, Inc. presented on the topic: How to provide marketing campaign ROI/transparency in times of slowing economy & decreasing marketing budgets.

Melani is a strong presenter — she was simultaneously organized, informative, friendly, and approachable — and the group helped to make the morning one of dialogue. The attendees, including a hotel owner, Gaslamp events planner, two healthcare representatives, and a financial advisor, were active, vocal, and engaged. The group’s diverse perspectives greatly enhanced the learning environment, and Melani tailored her presentation to the group’s needs by referencing attendees’ individual websites and providing relevant industry-specific advice. Continue Reading

Here’s an equation for you:
Great Venue+Great Speaker+Great Format=Amazing Event!

Do you ever walk out of an event thinking “WOW I just got more than my money’s worth!” ? It doesn’t happen too much in today’s society where you often walk away from an event feeling uninspired.

The San Diego Ad Club played host to an event last night entitled An Evening with Alex Bogusky of Crispin Porter+Bogusky critical acclaim.  The event was well worth it as many of the people I talked to on the way out were blown away by the experience to sit in a room and asks questions of the man who has the hottest ad agency in the country.

Alex Bogusky’s famed work including VW, Burger King, Coke Zero, Dominoes, and Truth (anti-tobacco) do more than just get a little buzz, they increase sales, by a lot. In an industry where the client’s bottom line is really all that matters Alex knows that to stay in business your work has to tell a story and that story has to sell your stuff, in an honest, funny and in some cases shocking way.

What made it great was a combination of things really. Of course the venue was great - held at the esteemed USD Center for Peace and Justice. The room held only 300 people, so to say it was an intimate event was to speak truthfully. The format was more of an open discussion (James Lipton style) than the typical stand up and lecture blah blah blah you get from most speaking events. And the speaker himself was awesome. Alex Bogusky made us laugh (a lot), made us think, ask questions and really get inspired about marketing.

He talked about his modest upbringing with no plans of going to college because his parents didn’t expect much of him. He explained the benefit to starting his shop in Miami and how similar the it is to the small market environment it is in San Diego. It gives you the ability “to stew in your own creative juices” without being distracted by Madison Avenue.  He told us his strategy from moving up from local to regional to national clients and what were the challenges along the way. And he had lots of examples with lots of stories - the case studies were used to prove the point that a great story, taking a chance on the creative and embracing the power of the masses (viral marketing) will help boost your brand’s awareness and sales and lead to your own success.

There is really so much to talk about from this event but I though I would sum it up with 10 takeaways:

1. The only thing you should fear is mediocrity - anything else should be discussed
2. Don’t market by lying, find the strengths in any product and  broadcast those
3. Your campaigns should always start with a powerful story. Don’t start with the media, start with a press release that tells that story and then go from there
4. Be bored of the past work, striving to be different with every project
5. You can hate ads but still be an amazing advertising professional
6. You should build up your brand equity and pull it out as needed. Don’t kill anything that was created a year ago
7. Do away with time sheets. Why? Your best work may come out of a project you are actually loosing money on, but you are investing back in the company
8. Embrace small market independence and delusional positivity
9. Live to work - work because there is nothing else you would rather do
10. If you are looking for a job - come prepared, bring your portfolio and raise your hand first. Alex hired a new intern on the spot - now that’s spontaneity!

I think everyone is looking forward to what comes out of the agency for Microsoft’s first big ad push at a time they are looking most vulnerable.

The video tape of the event should be made available soon through the San Diego Ad Club - check back for me to post the link:)

Top Photo Credit: BusinessWeek.com
Bottom Photo: Alex Funk

When asked to write a blog post about event planning websites, I initially took a deep breath. I can count on two fingers my life milestones which might require an event planner before I hit 30: graduation and marriage. I’m not anticipating hiring a planner for anything. This is based more on my personality than on economics. Simply put: I like small events. I respect people who throw large events, I love attending big parties, and I may eventually make my income planning these fetes. But, in my own life, I’ll choose a dinner party of 10 rather than buying out the Hyatt ballroom every time.

So, when asked to evaluate event planner websites, I wasn’t quite sure what to do. I have neither the drive nor the finances to hire a planner. I’m not super up-to-date on industry developments. How could I free-write on a subject I know virtually nothing about? And then it hit me: I look at websites for event planning services all the time. And so do you.

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I did a lot of photoshop(& illustrator) tutorials back in the day(a year or 2 ago) but once I had mastered the “glassy ball” and “grunge-look” I kinda stopped doing them. I recently started doing tutorials again and I have become a big advocate for them. Here are some reasons why you should be doing multiple tutorials a week: Continue Reading

Hey, all. It’s Events Planning Intern Lauren again. I wanted to let you know about the next event coming up on the dt calendar. On July 29, we’ll be hosting our monthly workshop, and Melani Gordon of gWaveConsulting will be presenting on the topic: How to provide marketing campaign ROI/transparency in times of slowing economy & decreasing marketing budgets.

Continue Reading