I couldn't believe my eyes earlier this week. McDonald's ran a commercial featuring Olympic Athletes who've been waiting and training for the Games all their lives. It was a spot that roped me in for a few seconds, and then they did what? They put a fried chicken sandwich in the Athletes' hands.

Oh my, they have really sunk to a new low. It was such a disconnect for me. Here are these unbelievable people who've so much discipline in their training, and what they consume, in order to attain the most efficient body for their particular passion. Does anybody actually think these folks believe a McDonald's fried chicken sandwich is like gold?

I was instantly disgusted with the spot and thought the agency should be fired. It's not that the idea is bad or even poorly executed — it's paired with the wrong product!

If these athletes were standing up there and the product revealed was a vitamin-enhanced water, I might believe they actually use it. But a fried chicken sandwich???

… and back to work for many of our clients. The summer affords us some "down time" so that we, too, can take time off and enjoy a vacation. And, as we've seen year after year, September picks right back up where May left off in terms of projects and business.

It's as if the school calendar becomes a way of life — as does summer vacation — in that everything slows down to accommodate for the season. It's important that everyone gets a break from the office, even if it's a "staycation." I sometimes like vacations at home because we get so much done that we just can't seem to get to over the weekends. Bigger projects that we put off, paperwork that piles up, even just lying around the house and doing nothing feels great. During the school year each weekend is packed with family visits, laundry, house cleaning, haircuts and often a date night. By the time you squeeze all that in, it's time to go back to work!

I look forward to September, when everyone gets back into the groove and back in the game. The team is all working together again. There's a sense that we're refreshed and ready to finish the year feeling strong. Football starts up, so we have something to cheer and "talk smack" about. The weather gets cooler and the promise of Fall is in the air. The thought of getting out the "cold-weather clothing" excites me because I feel like I get a whole new wardrobe!

If you have a teen, like me, "Back to School" time ensures no more sleeping until early afternoon. I welcome it, and the change in season, each year. I've lived in a climate where there's very little change and, frankly, it's boring. It never feels quite like Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas if you've grown up with very distinct seasons.

Outside of the traffic and getting out the door a bit earlier, back to school brings us all back to family and work "routines" and that's a welcome change!

They say that 80% of Advertising-related RFP’s (Request For Proposal) are fixed. In other words, the folks at the organization already know which agency they are going with. And often they are staying with their current agency and are just conducting the RFP to satisfy some corporate rule.

This pisses me off because folks on the agency side work very hard to create and pitch the new ideas to this potential client and it’s often all for not. Or worse, the client collects all the new ideas and decides to use a few of them over time—without paying for them.

We’ve had this experience, and have even gone back to the table—with the same client—only to be lead around the block and told “thanks, but we’re going to keep this initiative in house.”  I won’t name names. This town is too small. I’ve started a list.

There are some agencies that refuse to work on spec creative and RFP’s. They just flat out refuse. We take each one on a case-by-case basis and try to find out why they are looking and what our chances are. The work is fun because it is something new and our whole company gets into the initiative. There’s an excitement level that comes with competing and we always enjoy the rush! Plus, it’s new creative. We get to play on a new field. And of course we want to win so we do crazy things to get their attention. It’s not the additional work that bugs me. It’s the stealing that goes on. And when I speak with my friends in our business, I often hear horror stories about certain companies that go into the RFP just to steal. Shame on them. All we have to sell is our time and talent. And we prefer to work with honest and upstanding companies that have a mutual respect for us, as a business, and our need to make money too.

Got an RFP? Let me check my list. Here’s an idea: Maybe we should start a community list on the Louisville Ad Club’s website. Wouldn’t it be a hoot if some of these swindlers were black balled from local agencies and nobody responded to their RFP.

I sat through an online presentation in our conference room yesterday about paid posting and I found myself bored to tears within about 10 minutes. The guy did not do his homework and asked, “do you guys blog?” He said he was on a 13-week tour of the country to peddle this new product—that he did not have a business card for—and actually had us write the url of the company on his “other” business card. He pointed out some very base information about blogging which was a big DUH for us and that’s when I noticed the tabs open on his laptop. The first one was “Growing through Divorce.” Now this poor schlep is starting to make sense to me, I thought. He was clearly an unhappy man. I couldn’t tell if he was just tired and irritable or always like this. When I read the tab, I actually began to feel sorry for him. The next tab was for a mortgage company so he was also potentially dealing with a home sale or looking for a new place to live. Then there was the tab that was a spreadsheet of some sort titled “2008 Guarantee.” He was probably forecasting income potential for peddling this new product. And yet another tab for Free Stuff. Funny what you can learn about a person just from reading the tabs. 

We held our first public audition for television talent as part of a new campaign for Tumbleweed Restaurants and it was very enlightening! We spent two days in the restaurants personally inviting select patrons and then sent out press releases to several media outlets. We had no idea how many would come. And for two days I prayed that God would send us just the right mix--and amount--of Tumbleweed fans for our 4-8pm “cattle call.” And since we were going to be outside in a tent, I also spent a fair amount of time praying for good weather. Well, my prayers were answered. We had about 115 people come through and we never saw a drop of rain--when just north of us--storms were wreaking havoc in the form of flooding and tornadoes. Oh, the power of prayer!

I worked the “processing” portion of the operation with another employee, Danielle Carter. She and I tag-teamed on gathering the “talent’s” contact information and signed releases, processed them through a short visit with make-up and then sent them into the tent where each person gave us 2-3 minutes of why they love Tumbleweed in front of a green screen. This is where it got interesting. Some folks were just “naturals’ in front of the camera. They oozed with passion about Tumbleweed’s Monday Margaritas for 99¢, their mesquite-grilled steaks, chile con queso and “world-famous” burritos. The kids were funny because they were either “hams” and talked up our cheese pizza and chicken strips or they froze and wouldn’t utter a word. You could tell some kids were there because they had “stage” moms.. We even had some bonafide actors trying out and they brought headshots and resumes, showing up “camera-ready.”

Everything went swimmingly and we ended the night with a few pitchers of ice cold margaritas, after hearing so many people talk about them! Tumbleweed CEO, Matt Higgins and COO, Mike Higgins personally greeted and thanked many of the “fans” who came to “try out” and later commented on what a “WOW” it was to hear these loyal users talk about what they liked most at Tumbleweed.

It took about 3 business days to render all the footage and post it on Tumbleweed’s YouTube channel so that everyone who auditioned could see themselves in “action.” We’ve spent the week cutting together some :30 TV spots that will air on June 20^th.

And meanwhile the viral part of our strategy seems to be working. We’ve had a few thousand views already and the footage has only been posted for three days.

I can’t wait to go to the next city and stir up some more excitement for our Tumbleweed client with our “Right on the Tip of Your Tongue” TV Tour.

Over the past few months we have become very adept at harnessing new media and emerging technology to tap into market segments that traditional mediums often don't reach. Texting, Facebook pages, viral videos, podcasts and blogging are now normal elements in many of our marketing plans. We have an interactive team whose sole purpose is to share new information on everything from the latest widget and cool tool to ways we can create viral relationships with our client's customers. For many of us older folks here, it's very stimulating because there are many new ways to communicate, and new rules of engagement. An outdoor billboard has a seven word limit rule and an internet billboard has an entirely different criteria to meet to be effective.

These are easy enough to understand. But when we talk about creating a viral idea that can be so sticky that it gets passed around and posted by 1,000's of people in a very short period of time, well some of our clients just don't get it. They can't imagine a world where communication is mostly in the written word and not a two-way vocalized exchange. How can it be that these folks log onto their Facebook pages and communicate when it's convenient for them? The sharing isn't even in real time? What about posting music and videos to their pages in order to share with friends and further shape their online personality? Or spending hours and hours in forums, never seeing/meeting the people they chat with? Or narcissistically blogging their thoughts, activities and opinions for all the world to review?

And when clients ask what the ROI will be for these viral marketing tactics we give it our best guess, and nobody really ever knows. As one member of our interactive team put it, "isn't Nielson guessing when they share their ratings?" Sure we can measure how many read a blog or respond to a text message. And nothing replaces measuring the bottom line - increased sales. Now that's a unit of measure a client understands. And they'll just have to trust us on the what, how and why's of interactive and social media.

Wow, what a blast! Blast of wind that is. 120 mph and one of the most fun sports I have ever tried. Of course we weren't jumping out of an actual plane. We were floating in a very controlled environment called a vertical wind tunnel and we had our "flight instructor" right there with us, adjusting our form and helping us maneuver right to left and up and down.

The folks we were with are "jump master" level skydivers and they say it mimics the sensation pretty well. The tunnel allows folks like me to try it out in a fairly safe environment. I would want to practice quite a bit more before I ever jumped for real.

And I am not sure I would ever get up the nerve. There are so many variables and things to remember. I might try a tandem jump sometime. And I definitely want to go back and indoor skydive again. Check it out!

Every year for the past 4 summers we have instituted Partner Days.
It made sense to me to control those desires that come about when one wakes up and decides today is too beautiful to go to work.
What if we planned for hooky?
What if every other week half the staff had Fridays off?
How would the work get done?

We went with each person having a partner in case something came in and had to be done. It took a lot of persuasion with my own partners. They were skeptical. And rightly so. Our assets are our people. If they are not here, how do create great solutions and meet all the deadlines?

Well, it has been an amazing program. We don't miss a beat. And the folks working at the office on partner Fridays say they get so much done! Our billings remain steady all summer and we have some very happy people. They can plan for short getaways and enjoy this wonderful time of year with family and friends. Or sleep in and get the list of errands run. When I have Fridays off I really feel like I had a weekend. That I turned things off and rested. Because it takes one day to wind down, one to relax and one to wind back up.

If it were up to me we would work a 4 day work week. And with gas prices at $4.00 per gallon, some companies are going to 4 10-hour days, cutting back the 5th day commute.
The challenge becomes having the right people here, on the right day, because we never know when a client will call and want to get together. And we're responsive. And known for our ability to makes things happen quickly. Our service is superior.

Working from home one day per week is another option. Creating a floating day for each person to choose to work from home if they can. Most of our creative staff have systems at home with the same software. Media and Account Service have laptops and internet access to the systems they use daily. Teleconferencing is so easy and GreenYour.com reports from The Business Travel Coalition that, "73 percent of companies have increased the use of video conferencing and other teleconferencing methods." It takes a small amount of money to set this up and most say it is as if the person is actually there in the room. And with GoToMeeting, everyone can see the same presentation and you can even record the meeting to save and review later or share with interested parties. We use this tool with clients out of town or traveling.

I used to think we all had to be on-premise between the hours of 8:30 and 5:00 to be productive. And through the years I have discovered I get more done when I work from home and during the hours that I choose. My most creative moments are very early in the morning when I am up and all is quiet. I am sure it is different for everyone. The "night owls" would probably start work at 7pm. Who cares when? If our creative product remains on target, meets the criteria and gets results. Something to consider as we digitally evolve.

I decided a long time ago that if I were ever in charge of a group of people, I would not treat them the way that many of my bosses treated me. The early days of my career as a graphic artist were spent chained to an art table cranking out production work-as fast as my fingers could cut and paste it together. My bosses were notorious for over promising delivery dates so they could get the project. "Sure, we can have that four-color brochure for you by week's end" and it was Monday and it had to be designed, written, type spec'd and pasted together. Then proofed and corrections made before it could go to a printer. It made for some very long days and even longer nights. I would go home at 11pm and be back at 7am, pizza for lunch and dinner and no exercise or life outside of my job. I was lucky to have a 2-day weekend. And I was rarely thanked or told that I was doing a good job. The 2am press approvals didn't buy me any "trade" time either. I was expected to suck it up and come in no matter how long I had worked the day and night before. It resembled what it must have felt like to work in a sweat factory, without the heat.

Today, I get to care for the creative team here at Current and I know the time I make to say "thank you" and "great work" goes a long way. You see in the ad business, people tend to move from shop to shop. They often live in a combative environment and get fed up and move on. There's an enormous cost associated with turnover and as a business owner it is much easier to retain a great employee than train a new one. And each creative is assigned a book of business so they gather and retain quite a bit of knowledge for the clients and industries they work on. It takes a long time to get a newbie up to speed and producing work that's on target and consistent with the brand strategy.

And it's more than just expressing our appreciation. We have company lunches a few times per month, we play volleyball together, we have fun employee meetings where we play games and openly share our operating numbers so that everyone in our company knows how we are doing. We send people to seminars and classes, we pay for them to be members of clubs and networks. We participate in several Kentucky Derby Festival events like the Run for the Rosé and The Bed Races. We have "partner days" every summer where everyone is given every other Friday off so they can enjoy some 3-day weekends with their friends and families. We have fabulous prizes at our kickass Christmas party each year. We play hard-- when time allows -- because we work hard.

And how do we manage all of this and have fun too? We have a full-time traffic person and the best ad agency software system, CurrentTrack, that allows us to plan our work so people can go home at a decent hour every night and have a life balance that keeps them and their families very happy.

And when you have happy, healthy employees, the work they produce is better.

I hate this phrase. And now that I have pointed it out, you'll probably begin to notice how many folks use it. What bothers me about "no problem" is that it insinuates that whatever we were discussing WAS A PROBLEM. Let's say I am at a restaurant and the server refills my water glass -- I politely say "thank you." The response from the server is more often than not, "no problem." So does that mean it WAS A PROBLEM but they have taken care of it, so now it is not? If you're a server, it is part of your job to keep my water glass filled, so it better not be a problem. The proper response in that scenario is, "MY PLEASURE!" or "YOU'RE WELCOME." Saying "NO PROBLEM" sounds like the person is some sort of miracle worker and they made the nagging situation disappear. Makes me want to ask, "Who made you God and the master of making problems vaporize?" It contains a hint of superiority that I resent. And every time I hear it, I want to ask, "if there actually was a problem, because for some reason you just told me you solved it."

There are so many ways to answer a person when they show appreciation. Phrases like, "my pleasure, happy to help, you're welcome, you bet or anytime” (although that word gets a little vague for me) can easily replace "NO PROBLEM."

The guy shares my sentiment completely…about half way into his sermon.
http://www.chapel.duke.edu/worship/sunday/viewsermon.aspx?id=29

To make matters worse, there is a TTY Abbreviation for "NO PROBLEM" (NP). Luckily, THX (Thanks) and TY (Thank You) are also on the list so I don't have to settle for NP. I don't see one for "My Pleasure" but maybe that would be conveyed with symbols or XXX's?

The unadorned "Thanks" is another pet peeve of mine. Do you end all of your emails with this? I think people do it without thinking. When I see it I wonder what they are thanking me for. It has become a routine ending for many emails I receive. And yes, I did it myself, for a while, until I realized it had become a habit.

And while I'm on a roll, have you ever known someone who says they are "sorry" all the time? They immediately take the blame or accept responsibility when in fact it may not be necessary. It almost feels like a deflection so the "rant" won't continue. Or maybe their self-esteem is in bad shape and they're into self-punishment? Women tend to say "sorry" more than men. I think sometimes we feel intimidated into taking the blame and it's easier than standing up. "I'm sorry" should be used to show compassion or followed with asking forgiveness for something you really feel bad about.

Bottom line, think about what comes out of your mouth. And if Luke calls me "dude" one more time I am going to cover his workspace with post it notes when he's not around.