http://www.babrain.com/blog advertising and branding thoughts Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:33:33 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Sometime back in May 2008, Tim came to Jack and me and said he had lunch earlier that day with a guy named Brian Pitzer he used to do some freelance work for. Brian was starting a new company and needed a web site, which was why he approached Tim ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=279 The second in the series, Turning points: growing a great agency brand. You know the drill: media commissions, people wearing all black and funky glasses, “creatives” vs “account people,” all the typical stereotypes that you think of when you think about advertising agencies doesn’t have to exist. Hell, an ad agency ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=278 Today I got an email - yes yesterday's technology - but in any case it invited me connect to McKinsey. McKinsey, the buttoned up consulting company that publishes in depth, data rich reports about everything related to business. The same company that routinely works with the Fortune 500 of the world. Consultants ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=277 Someone ask me the other day what my favorite ads of the last five years have been. I was kind of embarrassed of much I stumbled to find an answer. Giving it more thought, I really admire what Cadillac has put out there. This love of Cadillac ads started here: I ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=276 While not a regular visitor to the corporate boardroom these days, it still happens. This is where the leadership is supposed to be. And a key definition of leadership in virtually all the serious publications i've seen concur that leadership starts and focuses outside the building. Managers, run the "show" ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=275 A few conversations lately have turned to the same question: how did those independent agencies that we all admire go from being small/start-ups to being the big-time leaders we know now? These also happen to be the agencies that have taken cities that aren’t traditionally known for advertising and put ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=274 Just revisiting David Ogilvy's original book and tucked carefully at the end is a typically bold chapter, "I predict 13 changes." Predicting is always interesting and I'm just curious about how we might view these predictions today, so here's a quick recap of all 13. Did they come true? Might they still? Which will ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=273 My brain is a roller coaster. On a Monday I’ll wake up ready to change the world one campaign at a time. And then on Tuesday I have a tough time getting focused. On these days I stare at my inbox all day, bite my fingernails and think ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=272 The other day, I was thinking about how a few books I've read have really helped to shape my thinking on advertising and branding. Then, I was curious about what books relevant to our industry my friends at b&a would recommend. Here's what I came up with: Ogilvy on Advertising – ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=271 Recently I've accepted that fact that I suck at taking notes. I get that taking notes is required at certain times and I'm competent enough to get by when this is the case. But, when it comes to actually taking information and developing really strong ideas, bullet pointed notes just ... http://www.babrain.com/blog/?p=270