I made lots of new friends yesterday. A couple of them were actually people.

In what I can only assume was an initiative to make faces hurt with happiness, GSD&M hosted the best day in the history of days: bring your dog to work day. For someone like me who doesn’t have a dog but really^∞ wants one, it was an opportunity to live vicariously through other people’s pets.

I was so happy when I went home, I forgot that I can’t draw and attempted to express my over-elated happiness through paper and sharpie.

If that picture doesn’t make you immediately want to do a happy dance on top of your desk….I totally get it. An artist I am not. (I’m actually pretty sure I may retroactively fail Art Direction 101 because of this.)

But what I think the giant cartoon face lacks in realism, likeness-to-a-human, or gender defining characteristics, it makes up for in size and depiction of joy.

I hope we have more days like this in the future. (If only because my drawing skills have no where to go but up.)

Check out all of the pictures from Dog Day here: http://gsdm.biz/L7fYxj

May 15th. PC and Mac (suffer XBox fools).

I

CANT

WAIT!!!

Because everyone needs some Beastie Boys for their Friday afternoon…

Video courtesy of Wonderful Creative.

I’ve been on the animated GIF bandwagon ever since I saw this during the GIF resurgence of 2007.  I find any excuse to embed them in emails, blog posts or daily conversation. They provide 4 seconds of awkward animation relaying a moment in time that relates (or doesn’t relate) to whatever emotion I’m trying to convey. The recent popularity of What Should We Call Me and When In (insert various cities/colleges/cult gatherings) are bringing GIFs mainstream again and I’m not even mad about it.

Here at GSD&M, the GIFs have been a core part to our website. For last year’s redesign, we asked our employees to take a series of photos to be featured on GSDM.com – Buster Bluth style. Employees racked their brains and took their turns working it for the camera.

I work very closely with the content on GSDM.com, so I have grown very close with lots of the photos. Here’s a look at a few of my favorite employees shots. NOTE: These are not my favorite employees. Ok – well maybe some of them are…

Check out the video below to learn about the history of the GIF from PBS. Spoiler alert: They tell you how to pronounce GIF and it’s pronounced like the peanut butter Jiff. And you can take it one step further by making your own GIFs with apps like Cinemagram and GIF Shop.

via YouTube by PBSoffbook

Which are your favorite employee GIFs on our site? Comment below.

I have to admit that my interactions with Steve Jobs were limited to two email exchanges. But his life and values loomed large over marketing for two reasons. The first is that he put to rest the Fitzgerald proposition that “There are no second acts in American lives”. And second, because he believed design and quality mattered to the mass market enough to charge for it.

Yet, in practice, it’s amazing how few marketers have the courage and vision to take Steve’s path.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that brand doesn’t matter and that price is the ultimate driver in the _____ market (insert any category you like). But I believe Jobs (and Apple) made it clear that quality is something for which the mass market is willing to pay.  In fact, he (and they) created entirely new categories that continue to thrive on that very principle.

So what does all of this have to do with content? Well, for starters, the Apple ecosystem is really built around content creation and consumption.  But, also importantly, Steve believed that software is itself a form of content.   Software allows the user to not have to think about creating but just presents an intuitive canvas for her to create or consume at will.  Just consider the one button or the one-wheel iPod, for example.  But, perhaps more than anything, Jobs realized that Apple is an ecosystem; the hardware, software and content all need each other to exist.

Again, the quality of the total experience was much more immediate for Steve than the exponential growth of the company.  As we all now know, that growth would ultimately come in a way that only cancer cells experience. But if you stop to consider how much attention Steve paid to making sure that his ecosystem had incredible content — and think about the marketing opportunities that content provided for Apple — you get a sense of the importance it could have for many brands.

When it comes to content, quantity doesn’t equal quality in and of itself.  So buying content that is syndicated and published by your competitors — or could be — is at best parity because it can detract from the perceived quality of your offering. Just look how many exclusive deals Jobs did for exactly that reason.  In effect, Apple’s original content FORCED consumers to come to Jobs’ ecosystem because only there could they access its unique value.

Does Apple, now the world’s most valuable company by market cap, have a lesson for your enterprise? Maybe it’s that, when you’re searching for the road to exponential growth, revisiting and, if necessary, reinventing the unique value you provide to customers is an ideal place to start your journey.

Other than hearing about Fusebox in brief passing on KUT, I had no clue what it was. The purpose of the festival is to offer the public a week+ exploration of the arts spanning across music, dance, theater, cuisine, and performance art realms. Each day is something different with more than 50 events taking place in 15 different venues. The featured shows, music, studio art and lectures come from a diverse mix of local, national and worldwide backgrounds. According to Fusebox Artistic Director Ron Berry, “Fusebox champions adventurous works of art across a variety of different mediums.  We think there’s something inherently exciting and powerful about this collision of different ideas and perspectives.  This notion of hybridity is central to our understanding of creativity.  The festival is also a great opportunity to engage with new, emerging artists as well as renowned masters. We hope you can join us.”

A friend who is very active in the San Antonio music scene was participating in this particular Fusebox event which he described as a “rad interactive chamber music thing”. I was instructed to go to the Terrazas Branch Public Library on East Cesar Chavez where I would check in and get instructions on where the event was happening. Once I arrived, I found the Fusebox set-up in a small room in the library. I traded in my ID for a map and a small FM radio with headphones, which I was told would be my source of stimulating artistic wonder for the next hour. From there, the event was set up like this: Within the radius of about a mile, houses surrounding the library were hosting 10 or so musicians who were all given the same composition to play on their respective instruments. By tuning in to the pre-set radio station, you could listen to the hour-long performance while walking from house to house and watch each musician play the piece. The musicians aren’t given a radio and cannot hear what the others are playing – they have to rely solely on time and their own mental capacities in these dead-silent rooms. The composition was very mellow and drone-y, reminiscent of something I would expect to hear a performance art exhibit (appropriate in the given context here). My friend did things on his violin I had never seen before, including some interesting circular bowing intervals. Watching each performer play the same thing within their own context and interpretation was like hearing a different song with each step into the next room. I give Fusebox some great kudos for making this crazy form of art a real deal.

Although this was the only Fusebox event I managed to catch this weekend, I would strongly suggest checking out some of the other things they have to offer. It’s things like this that really work to push and challenge us to go forward and re-invent what we deem “traditional” and “conventional” forms of art. Fusebox runs until May 6 and can be picked apart in full detail here.

Photo courtesy of The Horn

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjb9tb7EU3s

http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/12322

What if we took all the paper out of all the printers?  What would happen?

Mutiny?  Riots?  Chaos?  Probably.  But what about adaptation?  If necessity is the mother of all invention, and we forced ourselves to work within the limits of restricted resources (e.g. no paper), could we invent a new way to run our business as an advertising agency?

I think so.

Undoubtedly, there would be growing pains, but what else might happen?  We would probably be more cost efficient, but more importantly we would be forced to come up with innovations.  We would find more effective digital solutions for internal reviews and brainstorms.  We would find new partners who would influence our thinking in all sorts of exciting new ways.  We would generate buzz as the first agency in this paper-intensive industry to have the guts to at least try to go paperless.  And if we were successful for that one day, we could try it for a week.  And then a month.  And then a year.  And then we could become a consultant for other agencies interested in going paperless, the same way that Nike and Interface have become consultants for other businesses in the sustainability arena.

Of course, there are a lot of people in this industry who would say that trying to go paperless would be too disruptive.  But that’s what this business is all about.  Creative disruptions that lead to breakthrough innovations.

So what do you think we would need to do to in order to go paperless at GSD&M?  It all begins with your ideas below.

1. When did you first read Hey Whipple, Squeeze This?

I was given the book during my first advertising internship. I was an English Literature/Professional Writing major in college and simply happened into advertising, so Hey Whipple was quite literally a crash course in advertising for me. The other book I was given was The Tipping Point, by Malcolm Gladwell. In retrospect, I realize that kick-starting my knowledge of the business with such amazing texts on storytelling and culture and behaviors has greatly shaped my areas of interest, and my career overall.

2. Tell us about when Luke approached you for the 4^th edition.

Actually, I approached him. It started like this- he was asking me a million digitally focused questions- and after asking why, and answering several, I realized what a perfect opportunity this was for both of us. He had an experience and a skillset I wanted to sharpen — writing and storytelling — and I had something he needed for this version of the book — a strong understanding of digital and how it has changed our business. So I simply said “Hey Luke, if you’d like me to help you edit your next version, or even share some ideas or themes with you, I’d be glad to. I, you know, majored in writing in college, and fancy myself a writer…” He then asked me to share some topics I thought worth covering- and the plan was to do a specific chapter on all things digital. The more we met, the more I felt compelled to suggest that he actually re-think/re-edit the book from start to finish. As we all know- the most obvious mistake made these days is tacking digital on at the end, like an afterthought. I suggested this and to my surprise he said “I’ll send you my manuscripts. Take a stab at it. Start to finish.” So what started as an editing project became a really amazing partnership for this edition of the book.

3. Who are you hoping will read the latest edition? Students? CMO’s? Everyone and their mom?

Everyone, of course. I’ve already got the mom piece covered – she got the first copy. In seriousness, this book is meaningful to so many audiences. I know tenured agency folk that are pulling the book out and re-reading it or buying the latest edition, simply because it’s so timeless. And that might sounds funny to say, given that I am promoting the latest version, but honestly, that’s the amazing thing about this book and the reason I’m so thrilled to be a part of it. So much of Hey Whipple is focused on the art of creativity and storytelling – and while technology has changed the consumer and the marketplace (which is hugely covered in the book, read it and see) – the pillars of good advertising remain the same. So really students, CMOs, art directors, strategists…anyone that reads it will benefit from both revisiting the fundamentals, layered with the amazing opportunities that technology and an evolved consumer have brought us. It’s incredibly relevant…probably more now than ever.

4. Luke Sullivan, eh? What was he like to work with?

He’s everything you would hope for. Seriously. One part brilliant ad man, one part crazy creative, and the best of all, one part down to earth mentor. The guy is sort of a legend, and yet, has no ego. He sent me his edits and his manuscripts like I had asked him to pass me the morning paper. One thing I remember is that as I was spinning all these great ideas to him- he would say “Ooh, I like that, let me write that down…” and then would scribble what I felt was a very vague note, on a piece of notebook paper, haphazardly tear it out of his notebook and toss it on his messy desk or cluttered floor, to serve as a reminder. Funny and terrifying all at the same time.

5. Co-authoring seems like a challenge in matching writing styles – especially Luke’s. How did you handle?

It’s definitely difficult, and I let that keep me up at night until I talked to Luke about it. He said to write. Just write. And together, we would work that out. So I did, and of course, in some places I see my content, only Luke-ified, but in places where I see direct lifts, of course I feel victorious!

6. What were the biggest challenges you faced in integrating digital into the book?

Like I said- trying to tack digital on didn’t work- so literally going back through chapter by chapter, line by line, to figure out where it fit without feeling forced was a challenge. It’s also incredibly difficult to decide which products or examples to feature. The whole point of digital is that it moves so quickly, what is true today has changed tomorrow, so I put a lot of pressure on myself to try to find examples that were strong enough to last (at least until print), without being the 2-3 cliché ones that everybody and their dog knows.

7. Now that you have one book under your belt, what’s next for you as Author Sam Bennett?

It was a great experience and much like in my advertising career, Hey Whipple is definitely the start to my writing career. I learned a lot and it really whet my appetite, so I have a few things that I am focusing and working on, and hopefully in the next couple years, I’ll have more than one book with “Sam Bennett” on the cover on my bookshelf.

Be sure to order or download the 4th edition of Hey Whipple, Squeeze This. Whether you’ve read it twenty times or never read a book on advertising, there’s a great deal to learn. Order it on Amazon here: http://amzn.com/1118101332

If you’re one of those sickos who likes to laugh, tickets and more info can be found at moontowercomedyfestival.com (That’s a link. Just click on it and it’ll take you to a specific web address where you can click on more links and see other Internet-y type stuff!)

And be sure to pick up one of these limited edition, glow-in-the-dark posters (designed by Mike Ferrer and yours truly) at the Moontower merchandise store at the Paramount.

Click to enlarge. In the light: Tacos / In the dark: Bats

I’ll leave you with a quote from Steven Wright:

“On the other hand, you have different fingers.”

Well played, comedy. Well played.