People Watching: Father’s Day Edition

Hey bloggers, it’s been awhile but I am back for a special Father’s Day edition!

Ever take a second at a bar or a park or wherever you are to observe the people around you? Heck, even make up stories about them and their imaginary life you know nothing about? Here, let’s go through a couple of scenarios in case you have been living in a cave or are too proud to admit you do.

At baseball games there are a variety of fans that fill the crowd. Up the first base line seven rows back there’s an older man decked out in full Reds’ apparel (sorry hometown favorite for me), he’s on the edge of his seat. Next to him is a little kid who’s too short to see over the bald man in front of him.

Backstory… this dad is a thrill-seeker. So much so that he stuffs tissues into his kid’s shoes to make them tall enough to ride the rollercoasters with him because his wife just had a second kid and is going to wait at the end of the ride. In few years he’s going to give his kid their first beer. They’re always corn-hole partners so naturally they would be good beer-pong partners.

Down a few rows from this duo is tween with her feet propped up on the seat in front of her and her face buried in her phone, using all the family data.

Backstory… She’s reading an email with the inspiration of the day that her dad sends her every morning. She’s also frantically checking her email for responses back from recruiters about a job.

Ok before I ramble on more, get the picture? We tell the stories through our own experiences or other observations. With Fathers day coming up I couldn’t help but think of things that describe tidbits in a person’s life that make them, them.

It’s the thrill-seeker that stuffs tissues into your shoes to make you tall enough for the rides. It’s the bartender that gave you your first beer. And the friend you’d ask to be your beer-pong or corn-hole partner first.

It’s the boss that knows everyone’s name… making it impossible to go somewhere without being known. It’s the mentor that sends you daily inspiration emails every morning for a year. It’s the HR recruiter who woke you up and asked if you practiced your fa-la-la’s before your phone interview. It’s the fan that cheers the loudest at school events and passes along articles about you to his colleagues.

It’s the man that fakes an iguana behind you and makes you scream at the top of your lungs. It’s the gentleman that gets the parked car in the cold and pulls it up to the door. It’s the athlete that takes you to the batting cages before practice. It’s the mechanic that figures out your steering wheel isn’t defective, but has makeup all over it. It’s the early-riser that you wake-up to watch CBS Sunday morning with instead of sleeping-in. It’s the protector that deals with your OCD tendencies at 4 in the morning. It’s the son that shows you how to love a parent. It’s the husband you hope yours one day will be.

It’s the person you couldn’t imagine life without. It’s my dad.

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there but most importantly mine.

Dad I love you more than this long and rambling blog post will ever convey.

Everything’s Bigger in Texas

Taking the stage in ripped jeans and a messy bun, Iliza Shlesinger, originally from Dallas, fit right in. Winner of Last Comedic Standing opened with a bit overplaying the contradicting stereotypes of Texan cities. Shlesinger joked, “Austin and Dallas are like two sisters. One married well and is living in Highland Park in a mansion. The other dropped out of college and is a barefoot hippie.”

Similarly, advertising and marketing are like two sisters. Ironically, the internships I’ve held correspond with this analogy. While attending school in Dallas I interned at D Magazine in the marketing department. This summer in Austin, I am interning at GSD&M.

Marketing portrays the Dallas elite. While interning in marketing my role included working sponsored events. Imagine socialites, free cocktails and endless amounts of cheese. While there is much, much more to marketing than party planning, the party planning aspect helps play-out with my analogy, so stick with me. In my opinion, I’ve noticed actual downtown Dallas houses more corporations and businesses than actual apartments or dive bars. Yet again, this observation caters to Dallas’ stereotype “bright lights, big city.” Similarly, marketing rolls out the red carpet awaiting brands with big hair to mix and mingle.

Advertising embodies the Austin vibe, and not just because one of the best agencies is headquartered here (wink wink). Just look inside an ad agency. Typically you’ll find artifacts hanging from the ceiling or bean bags instead of chairs. Occasionally you will find a few dogs putzing around. Creativity is the essence of advertising. Take a look at the walls around Austin, they are plastered with graffiti. Austin promotes expression. Advertising is expressive of a brand. No one person or ad is alike.

In the animated article “Since When Did ‘Advertising’ Become A Dirty Word?” by Sean Cummins, CEO of cummins & partners, the agency founder expresses distaste in the idea of advertising being clumped together under other vocational terms. For example he asks, “One day I woke up and “advertising” was replaced with new words. And I didn’t even notice it until I found myself trying to understand what branded content actually is. Hang on, isn’t branded content …. advertising? Of course it is advertising. But unfortunately, that makes branded content seem not as shiny and sexy and new. And of course that’s where there is an interesting tension in the ummm, well, whatever industry I work in right now. So don’t tell anyone.”

At one of my first status meetings here at GSD&M my team asked me where I went to school. I replied, SMU in Dallas. I have noticed most people responses included something along the lines of, “I’ve been to Dallas before” or “Ohhhhh”. Clearly the agency holds no bias towards Austin or anything… However in this meeting one of my team members told the story of how when he moved from California a Texan explained the complementary/differing/opposing cities like California cities. Dallas was told to be like L.A. and Austin was more like San Francisco. Again, Dallas gets the glamourous depiction and Austin the free-spirited portrayal. Dallas is shiny, sexy and new. Marketing degrees, at least from my own personal experience at school, are the shiny, sexy and new desired degree. But, here I am an Advertising major, creative, spunky and free to decide whatever after graduation.

Last but not least, Keep Austin Weird. A good ad is weird. It disrupts the branded routine that Cummins’ article fears. Cummins continues to copyrant stating, “This is why I can’t understand why the word “advertising” has gone away. Because none of the stuff I really see out there is exceptional or ground-breaking advertising. It is its own different thing. But it is not advertising. Good advertising makes you do something — not passively sit and consume without any compulsion to do much other than “view” or “like.” Or (furball cough) ‘share.’”

This is another reason why Austin is the epitome of advertising. Austin is an active city. No matter if its 75 or 102 outside people are paddle boarding on the river or biking alongside a car in the fast lane. Effective advertising gets people moving. It gets them to go buy something or change their perspective about a brand. It gets them to do something. Strap on your Chaco’s, this stereotyped analogy isn’t finished.

So, advertising and marketing are like two sisters. One married well and is attending cocktail hours as the brand’s plus one. The other likes running around with several brands and is still a barefoot hippie. But like they say “everything’s bigger in Texas,” even the occupational stereotypes.

Regardless of your field, “Don’t Mess With Texas” and certainly don’t mess with clumping two great things.

To read the article mentioned in the blog post, please visit: http://adage.com/article/agency-viewpoint/advertising-a-dirty-word/299107/

Yes, I know the guacamole is extra…

While interning at GSD&M this past summer, I had the opportunity to contribute to content on the agency’s blog. Below is my first article that was published to the website.

Yes, I know the guacamole is extra…

“Subway introduced it, Chipotle perfected it and pizza restaurants like Blaze are really evolving it,” says David Tristano, evp of Technomic, about the cook-to-order evolution.

New restaurant concepts have instigated an evolution from fixed foods to fix your foods, a phenomenon that personalizes our taste buds. Customization plays an essential role in build-your-own-meal establishments. While reading the article “The Power To Shape Your Experience,” I had an epiphany: everything I experienced that day was customized—the animatic record I sat in on, my Chipotle bowl for dinner and this article I found on my feedly.com filtered homepage.

Drafting a storyboard for a commercial, known as an animatic record, is like a Chipotle-catered lunch at GSD&M. Last week I had the privilege of sitting in on an animatic record at Pony Sound with a GSD&M account team. Sitting across from a daunting computer screen with a surplus of buttons, I never would have compared it to the mouthwatering buffet of ingredients at Chipotle, but the process of picking and choosing what sounds to include in a spot echoes the process of customizing a meal to my taste buds.

During the record, I learned that the writer and producer choose the sound based on the intended spot’s tang. For instance, certain commercials may consistently convey a sweet-loving flavor throughout them. On the other hand, the account managers build the spot to correspond with the client’s palate. For instance, a writer might think take C had better inflection on a word than in the previous takes. And sometimes editors might use the first sentence from take A and the second sentence from take C. This splice can easily mirror a half-chicken/half-steak order at Chipotle. It is all very personalized.

Once everything is recorded, the sound editor mashes the ingredients into a final spot. Each line piles onto the voice preceding it. While each voice is recorded separately, in the same way each topping is cooked individually, it is the combination that is ultimately served.

After the voices are placed in the order of the script, music must be chosen. Similarly, while I am not a green chile salsa fan, I always ask for a side of the Chipotle vinaigrette because it complements the rest of my concoction. However, when I am in the mood for something milder—in this case background noise—sour cream will suffice. The sound editor is the master of the finishing touches.

In the article, Carl Chang, founder of Pieology Pizzeria, concluded, “Many people like me are Food Network fans, and they love being exposed to how our food is prepared and our technique.” True. As a kid, my grandpa would take me to Krispy Kreme, and I would stand with my greasy hands plastered to the glass watching the doughnuts graze across the conveyer belt. I devoured the doughnut with a sense of pride and insisted on showing off my icing expertise at show and tell the next day. Watching how something is made empowers a person. It makes the mundane and tedious work behind the scenes a little sweeter. Fifteen years later as an intern, I plastered my hands to the recording glass while watching the evolution of an animatic record. I was mesmerized by the process as a whole.

Similarly, the article suggests “food preparation as a form of performance—in which case the sneeze guard is another screen for content.” At an animatic record, GSD&M uses employees to record the lines. Thus, animatic preparation is a form of performance—in which case the recording glass is a screen for voices. More so, intern preparation is a form of performance—in which case exposing us is a screen for potential employment.

To take this one step further, which may be exhausting my analogy too much—my apologies—as interns at GSD&M, we have “the power to shape OUR experience here.” Fill in the blanks. “Our universities introduced us, GSD&M perfected it, and we are evolving it.” I am looking forward to a great summer.

– See more at: http://blog.gsdm.com

Copy Samples for Magazine Spreads

During my internship with D Magazine, I had the opportunity to contribute to the copy published each month that recapped the marketing events I helped plan and attend. Here are two samples of my most recent work.

BEST DOCTORS D MAGAZINE EVENT
After being in personal contact with doctors to confirm the RSVP list of over 800 nominations as well as attending the event at Hotel Zaza, I was honored to write the copy to accompany the pictures in the November issue. After identifying which pictures would be included and fact checking the corresponding bylines, I recapped the event in less than 150 words. In the copy I included names of sponsors and painted a picture of how the evening went and then sent it for editing prior to publication.

BLUE CEIL SPONSORED EVENT
The copy for this party publication differed from previous recaps I wrote for the magazine because it was a sponsored page. Blue Ceil asked D Magazine to partner with them to throw a happy hour promoting the construction of their new luxury apartments. Rather than creating the copy from scratch the Blue Ceil representative provided us with over 400 words she wanted incorporated. I took her suggestions and rephrased them to fit the style of the magazine. My condensed and paraphrased version then went through double the editing both with D Magazine as well as Blue Ceil.

Blog Exposure

The following screenshot is one of my blog entries that was shared on Roy Spence’s, author and founder of agency GSD&M, website.

CoverGirl Uncovers The Cover

CoverGirl Uncovers The Cover

For my Digital Communications class we experimented with Storify, to build a story about one of our role models by puling in other blogs and social media. Check my story out at this link on Ellen Degeneres! 

Communication At One’s Fingertips…. But Actually

Siri, who is the most influential American? The fact that today people look to their phones as their fist response for answers, illustrates the impact of a visionary. Steve Jobs not only created and saved Apple Inc. as a business, but he envisioned how communication operated going forward. Through his inventions: the Macintosh, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and all the technical accessories in-between, he established the notion that people could and should have access to information at their fingertips, literally and figuratively.

Jobs’ extensive track record plays like a movie, which actually was released in 2013. He created Apple Computers Inc. in his garage with his best friend from college, in itself inspirational to all aspiring entrepreneurs. At 25 his net worth amounted to $100 million after debuting Apple’s Macintosh computer in 1984. Although his stubborn managing techniques led to his exit from the company in 1986, he continued his creativity by running Pixar during which time the award-winning film Toy Story premiered. Meanwhile, Apple Inc. experienced its own creative block. Returning in 1997, Jobs restored Apple’s vision and paved the way for future digital visionaries. Even after his death, as of 2012 Apple became the world’s most valuable company.

For an extensive list of all Job’s accomplishments visit:

http://allaboutstevejobs.com/bio/timeline.php

While the number of awards hanging in his office recognizes a successful person, a memorable individual makes an influential legend. Steve Jobs left a legacy of devices that will eventually be replaced, but he will be remembered for his philosophies. In fact he said,

“I think death is the most wonderful invention of life. It purges the system of these old models that are obsolete. I think that’s one of Apple’s challenges, really. When two young people walk in with the next thing, are we going to embrace it and say this is fantastic? Are we going to be willing to drop our models, or are we going to explain it away? I think we’ll do better, because we’re completely aware of it and we make it a priority.”

Jobs believed in improvement. He constantly sought ways to further technology and communications. Jobs lived by Stewart Brand’s saying: 

Will people still use iPhones 20 years down the road? Probably not. But, society evolved beyond traditional communication and anxiously awaits new visionaries with ideas floating in the vast cyberspace due to one man’s innovative influence. 

Check out other publications exemplifying Steve Jobs’ influence at:

http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/25/the-20-most-influential-americans-of-all-time/slide/steve-jobs/

http://www.ted.com/talks/steve_jobs_how_to_live_before_you_die.html 

 

 

 

 

To All Beyoncé’s Single Ladies..

Remember in elementary school when Valentine’s Day meant a group effort? We gave out valentines like trading cards. We competed for the fullest envelope on the back of our desk. Valentine’s Day was like Halloween without the costumes and a warmer color scheme.

Now Valentine’s Day consists of romantic outings between two people. Instead of lollipops and temporary tattoos, people exchange roses and jewelry to celebrate their love. But what about us, girls that are single on Valentine’s Day? Single does not mean we must spend the day in solitude. So this Valentine’s Day, single ladies unite, if not in the name of Beyoncé.

So what should we, single ladies, do on Valentine’s Day? Pamper ourselves. Go to a movie, get our nails done, or host a party for all of our fellow romantic independents. No need to feel sorry for us; because, we believe Valentine’s Day is better alone. Think about it; one less person to spend money on. CNN estimates an average person celebrating Valentine’s Day spends $130.97. By skipping out on buying flowers, candy, and cards, we save. Within those lovers’ budgets, CNN also found that people buy over 145 million cards. At an average $3.49 for a Hallmark card, failed-Shakespeares will spend about $506 million on pieces of paper that eventually end up in the trash. But at $3.69 for a grande latte from Starbucks, we treat ourselves to exchangeable energy.

We may be alone, but we are not alone. In fact, according to the census, 53 percent of the 102 million unmarried people in the United States are women 18 or older. We are not alone. We are the majority. Although while some infatuated girls might tinker with the scale and date rather then commit to a marriage, let us single ladies rule this Valentine’s Day! And if worse comes to worse, we get national half-price candy day the next day.

 

Sources:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/13/living/valentines-day-statistics-btn/

http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb12-ff18.html

Dream A Little Bigger Darling

I had a dream. Most little girls want to become a princess. I too fell under naïve aspirations. When I was younger I walked around saying I wanted to be a waitress. Waitresses were people I encountered daily, always smiling, holding food and talking for a living. My worried mother tried to gently squash that dream. Like in the movie Inception, she said, “you mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling”. In elementary and middle school I took a plethora of art classes. I fell in love with art. However, I might as well have been a waitress if I was going to become a starving artist. So I dreamed-up an occupational compromise: an architect. Then I took geometry in high school. Simultaneously I took government classes and dreamed of becoming Elle Woods.

I have a dream. I enrolled in SMU as undecided but commonly told people I planned to go to law school, hopefully at Georgetown. My advisor suggested I try one of the introduction classes my first semester. What I learned in Survey of Advertising consumed my dreams. I studied integrated-marketing theories and analyzed ads, but even when I closed my textbook I couldn’t turn off the creativity. I found myself actively reading every billboard or chuckling at posters and commercials. I realized I want to be a copywriter; a job that will allow me to realistically daydream.

And, I will dream. Who knows what I will dream. But C.S. Lewis said, “you are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream”. I dreamed of several dream jobs over the years and one thing I learned, as we mature and change over time so do our dreams. My mom was right, there is no harm in dreaming bigger. My dream for the future is to find new dreams and perhaps make a few come true.

Assignment: A Loose Self-Portrait

 What is a better self-portrait than a person’s reflection on her birthday?

Exactly twenty years ago, I was born in Baylor Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Today, after nine moves in-between, I returned to Dallas for college. The stars aligned and I was “Dallas destined”.  

(Please note the Dallas Cowboys ’90s outfits) 

I always revel in fairytales; however, in reflecting in a self-portrait of myself fortune consistently pieces the different parts of my life together. I was fortunate to get to move a lot and adjust to new cultures. I am lucky to have a family that supports my fairytales. It is serendipitous that I ended up attending SMU. And it will be fate whatever happens after graduation.

I make decisions stressfully. I procrastinate in choosing between options. Every move before college was decided for me. But choosing a college was my own debacle. I believe it was a fortunate accident receiving both acceptance and rejection admission letters. Fate guided me to the option where I was destined to be: Sothern Methodist University.

Today, January 21^st, is my 20^th birthday. Every year my mom cuts out my horoscope. Yet again, another sign how fortunate my life is. Today’s read:

Within the horoscope it insinuates I will use words to better my relationships. I can’t help but apply this to me beginning my advertising classes at SMU and work towards becoming a copywriter. Beginning here, my posts to this blog will stem from my Introduction to Creativity class as I search for words that express my creativity.

My parents wouldn’t have predicted 20 years ago me moving back to Dallas. I do not know what exactly the next 20 years has in store for me, but, like the horoscope says, I will be present in each serendipitous moment ahead.