If you know Karen, you know she LOVES chocolate. So what a better way to say Happy Birthday than a delicious, flowing, chocolate fountain! Strawberries, bananas and even potato chips–I would tell you more, but I think the picture above does a great job of saying it all.

Karen – you make each of us better. We’re lucky to have you as your Commander in Chief and wish you all the best on this chocolate filled day! Happy Birthday!

A little bit of history was made yesterday at the Washington Auto Show. For the first time ever, a sitting president visited the show and we were there. Bruce, Karen, Trisha and I were there to witness a little bit of history unfold before our eyes. The Washington Auto Show has been held every year since 1921. That’s a lot of years, and a lot of presidents (15 to be exact). 15 presidents since the auto show started in Washington and none of them, until yesterday, ever attended the show. Well that’s changed now.

We stood there and watched the president check out some of the cars in the Advanced Technology Superhighway section of the show. What struck me most is the look of real joy and happiness on his face. Who knew? The president is a “car guy!”

And that is what is so great about this show. It’s all about the cars. No matter if you are the president of the United States or an average Joe, you still get the same exhilaration when you get behind the wheel of a new car. It’s part of who we are as Americans. We can debate over who actually invented the automobile, but there is no denying that America brought the automobile to the world. And after some really lean, tough years, the auto industry is making a comeback. Sales are up and some of the confidence and swagger is back.

At the end of his visit, the president came by to where we were all standing and greeted the crowd. He shook hands, traded jokes, and signed a few autographs for some really lucky kids. I was lucky enough to have shaken his hand, and when I did so I looked him straight in the eye. I could see and feel the joy and happiness he felt as he greeted the crowd who stood among 700 of the greatest cars in the world. Damn, it was great!

At the risk of shameless promotion, I am going to give a plug for the Washington Auto Show. It has nothing to do with the fact that SmithGifford has done all of the advertising for the show. You’ll just have to believe me about that. Go to the show. Even if you’re not a car person, go to the show. When you walk in and see the cars on display, any differences you might have with your fellow Americans will slowly disappear. No matter if you are black, white, Asian, Republican, Democrat, sitting behind the wheel of a new car makes us all the same. We all feel the same excitement. We all feel the same car love.

Suzy and Roger Penske having a good laugh! Roger is on the left by the way.

Last night we all set out to go see the VIP tour of the Washington Auto Show. What a great show by the way. GM and Ford rule the roads for sure. If you want feel American “know-how” and power..it’s a must go to. The new Lexus is INSANE as well. One of the true highlights of last night was a dinner with Roger Penske… And a couple hundred others.. but that did not stop Suzy from going up and having some fun with Roger. Suzy is a huge race fan, and this was a must go to event for our COO.. And he did not disappoint. What an amazing human being. If you have the chance, get your self down to the show.. And buy a car!

Today’s word is hybrid, a vehicle using more than one power source. I attended a public policy event for the Washington Auto Show, hosted by National Journal and one of the panelists threw out a bold, brash comment that to date, auto makers have done a terrible job marketing hybrids.  Her point was that marketing has been mainly to urban audiences who don’t have garages to house these cars, nor the need to travel a long distance, therefore they’ve totally missed the mark (and market).  None of the  panelists disputed her claim. This bugged me all day because I couldn’t disagree more.  I think that if you believe in mindset marketing, as I do, urban audiences in big cities in the US are more likely to want to purchase a hybrid.  In DC, the hybrid buyer is highly educated, socially conscious and wants to reduce her carbon footprint.  She is also practical and wants to save money at the gas pump.  I think the bigger issue is that auto makers have not taken the time to educate the market to make us aware of the many benefits of hybrid cars.  And I also think that we should be emphasizing how much they are like internal combustion engine cars we have been driving, instead of focusing on the differences.  Mass markets don’t adopt things that are strange and unfamiliar, yet as Apple has proven, if new products are simple and intuitive, people will flock to them.

The next few years will be critical for auto marketers to crack the code on what matters to “light green” consumers and talk to them in a way that connects rational benefits with the emotional desire that has always been essential to drive car sales.  Toyota advertising for Prius has been creative and fanciful, but let’s see what Chevy, Ford, Toyota and Honda will do next to make hybrids truly mainstream.

First, let me say how nice it is that you visited us today. From all our data tracking, you appear to be a smart person. Well educated and have a deep interest in marketing. I might also add, that you have wonderful taste, and very good at what you do. If you are like our clients and staff, and I am sure you are. You also know how to choose a humble marketing company to do your amazing ads. I want to personally thank you from the bottom of my heart for visiting us today.. I hope you enjoy the rest of the site. After all we did it just for you.. Happy Compliment day!

Martin Luther King Jr.
Mr. King was a Great man, he worked for peace. He worked through things peacefully. He and Rosa Parks never gave up. Mr King is most famous for his I have a dream speech. Let us honor him today and remember that you should never give up.
Grace Riordan

This week’s word is REMEMBRANCE, which is the act of remembering.

A lot of times it is used to refer to events and holidays, like Memorial Day or the anniversary of 9-11.

I chose the word because the advertising community lost two amazing men in 2011, both of whom I had the pleasure to work with and learn from.

The first person on my mind today is my former colleague and friend Greg Sedgwick who would have celebrated a birthday today.  Cancer took this talented art director too early from his wife and their beautiful children.

Greg and I worked together for many years in Boston and the tall Australian with the hearty laugh is deeply missed.  What I learned from Greg is to how to look at creative challenges or “problems” as opportunities to do something fresh.  It was never a problem for Greg – just a new puzzle to be solved.  He was such an optimistic, sunny person and his ability to laugh and stay calm was a wonderful tonic on hectic, stress-filled days.  When I think of Greg, I think of his big, deep laugh and his wonderful Aussie accent and realize how much joy he brought to his work every day.  In his honor, I’m going to personally try to keep that attitude and approach alive in 2012!

The second great advertising person we lost to cancer in 2011 was my great friend, mentor and life coach, Jim Meloni.

Jim was my first boss in the business; in fact Jim interviewed me as a senior in college and spent an hour trying to talk me out of a career in advertising!
When he saw that my mind was made up, he did so much to teach me the ropes and help me learn the business.  Jim was very senior then – an EVP, Account Director at my first agency, but he never treated the junior account people (or anyone) like anyone less than an equal.  Jim had a long and distinguished career spanning more than 40 years in advertising and he never lost his love of the craft or his enthusiasm for training, teaching, and coaching “newbies” in the business.

Resolution #1 – laugh a lot and bring a sense of joy to the work.
Resolution #2 – keep giving back, helping to bring along as many people who want to make advertising their life’s work.  I hope to show the patience and the genuine interest in each person, as Jim did.

So, as we dig into 2012 with all its crazy stress and tight deadlines, I will be remembering Greg and Jim and hoping to follow some of the lessons they taught along the way.

What are your new year’s resolutions and who can you look to as a great influence in your career?

The food at these creative restaurants comes as lots of small, creative plates that make up a wonderful meal. We market it the same way. Instead of heavy, mainstream media buys, we create lots of smaller, tactical marketing bits that together make up a surprisingly powerful presence in the city. Chef José Andrés continues to gain popularity as does his restaurants.

Return to Work

Vornado Poster | Print

Vornado Campaign | Print

Tomatina Check Presenter | Print

Tomatina Festival Window Splats | Environmental

Tomatina Festival Farmers Market Materials | Environmental

Tomatina Festival Tomato Sticker | Non-Traditional

Paella Festival Host Stand and Poster | Print

Movie Theater Poster | Print

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