John January came up in the agency business as a copywriter. Today, John is the Co-CEO of Signal Theory, one of the biggest and best advertising agencies in Kansas City. In this new episode of Ad Chatter—the podcast from the makers of Adpulp.com—Dan Goldgeier and I ask John about his journey. Listen in to hear how he went from "one great teacher," to study journalism at Wichita State, to work as a copywriter, then …
Stop Wasting Words
Do you ever notice that curious thing that happens when you really think about a word? You may sit there thinking what a strange collection of sounds and noises to mean something so specific, so nuanced. There's so much meaning from seemingly so little. Isn't language fascinating? How do we make complex associations from what are effectively refined grunts? Maybe our brains are magical. Then poof. The meaning …
Interview with Rob Schwartz, CEO of TBWA\Chiat\Day NY
Rob Schwartz of TBWA\Chiat\Day NY is one of my favorite people in the ad business today. To qualify for this kind of praise, you have to be smart and kind. Rob is both, and like all of my favorite people, he doesn't bullshit. He's down to earth and he makes time for people—qualities not always found in the CEO of a New York City ad agency. Rob is also a long time reader of Adpulp.com and one of our most generous …
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Stop the Semantic Obfuscations: This Is Why People Don’t Like Strategists and Planners
There’s been an interesting debate on the strategy internet as of late about what the difference is between a planner and a strategist. Given the indecision in the industry today, I thought I’d go ahead and find an answer that works for all of us. That answer is simple: It literally does not matter what you're called. They’re just words. Go do your job. By the way, this is also why account handlers and creatives …
How to Make Better Strategic Decisions: Stop Thinking So Much
Data-driven. We see this phrase absolutely everywhere in the marketing world today. On agency websites, on job descriptions, in people’s bios, on LinkedIn, and on resumes. I’ve got a problem with that. There's a concerted push to making sure everything is data-driven. But it’s not fully understood how narrow that statement really is. Making sure something is ‘data-driven’, is actually the best way to ensure you’re …
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The Year in ‘Pulp: Twenty Twenty
Disruption is an opening. It's also a closure. This was true for many people and many creative companies this year, as success stories ran parallel to the stories of business failure and industry-wide pessimism. Here on Adpulp.com, we put in much time and effort and saw positive results. We introduced the Emerging Voices series to help find, pay, and elevate new writers on the Marcom beat. We published four …
Crispin Porter Bogusky To Depart Boulder Warehouse for Posh LoDo Digs
Crispin Porter Bogusky shocked the advertising agency world 14 years ago when it moved a large percentage of its operations and people from Miami, FL to Boulder, CO. At the time, the agency wanted to give its team members—including Alex Bogusky—the option to live in Colorado. Now, the agency is on the move again. In July 2021, CPB will move into a new 20,000 square-foot office space currently under construction in …
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How Are You Adjusting to The Future of Work?
Substack—the new email newsletter platform—is on fire. You have one, I have one, and he, she, and they all have one too. Yet, not all newsletters are created equally. Some are true acts of labor, where others are more for show. Rishad Tobaccowala's Sunday edition is the former. Each Sunday, Tobaccowala's refined thinking comes to my electronic mailbox, and unlike 99 out of 100 newsletters that come my way, when I …
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Productivity Is Highly Over-Rated, Particularly In Creative Circles
People are being asked to do more with less. In the ad agency industry, this has been going on since the first days of Digital Disruption. Today, with COVID-19 raging across the land and the globe, so-called "thought workers" who can work from home are doing so, but at what cost to themselves and the economy at large? While it is true that some people excel in a home office and everyone saves on commute …
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Accountability, Please Phone Home
The work, the work, the work. This is what ad people fret over and obsess about. The work has to be much better, or else. Or else no raises, no promotions, no trophies, and no second home, no country club memberships, and no private schools for the kids. What ad people do not obsess over is how to make better work. We do not obsess over how to make "the work" better because the prevailing assumption is one must …
