I have been lucky enough to judge D&AD three times and win two Black Pencils. A couple of years ago they asked me to write a story about the value of a pencil. This is what I wrote. “Price is what you pay, value is what you get.” Warren Buffet I apologise inContinue reading “The Value of a Pencil”
Author Archives: dbs81270
The great comfort of bad Super Bowl ads.
Originally posted on Damon's Brain:
“I’ve searched all the parks in all the cities and found no statues of committees.” Gilbert K. Chesterton Quick, name your top 10 Super Bowl ads from this year. I know, it’s a struggle. I am asking you to remember 10 out of a 100 or so ads whose…
Advertising. Are rules more important than ideas?
“It may well be that creativity is the last unfair advantage we’re legally allowed to take over our competitors.” Bill Bernbach This isn’t scientific. Just a hunch. A feeling. Remember those? It is a new year, so I decided to do a new little experiment. In a single day, I would observe what all theContinue reading “Advertising. Are rules more important than ideas?”
The beautiful stone in your shoe.
“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” Heraclitus I am lying in the middle of the Noosa River an hour outside of Brisbane. After a pretty crazy year where we were working right up to Xmas I was suddenly on vacation.Continue reading “The beautiful stone in your shoe.”
Advertising. The truth will set you free.
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.” Marcus Aurelius Nothing reminds you of your love for advertising more than lying next to a man discussing the insertion of his catheter with his best friend. It has been an interesting two weeks. I had beenContinue reading “Advertising. The truth will set you free.”
Advertising. How to do impossible things.
“In order to attain the impossible, one must attempt the absurd.” Miguel de Cervantes It has been an interesting week. The world may run out of Guinness. As I write this Ireland have just beaten the All Blacks 40 – 29 in Chicago. It is the first time they have done this in 111 years.Continue reading “Advertising. How to do impossible things.”
Advertising. Fawlty Towers and the art of prediction.
“Most successful pundits are selected for being opinionated, because it’s interesting, and the penalties for incorrect predictions are negligible. You can make predictions, and a year later people won’t remember them.” Daniel Kahneman The legendary comedian John Cleese is being interviewed on the radio. He is explaining how arguably the most successful television series, FawltyContinue reading “Advertising. Fawlty Towers and the art of prediction.”
In defence of the often maligned creative.
“It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.” W.C. Fields When I got into this business 20 years ago creatives and creative departments where always called the cra… Source: In defence of the often maligned creative.
In defence of the often maligned creative.
“It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.” W.C. Fields When I got into this business 20 years ago creatives and creative departments were always called the crazy ones. We were portrayed as necessary yet unpredictable. We were those long haired, leather jacket types. Apparently, we all had raucous parties, did lotsContinue reading “In defence of the often maligned creative.”
Advertising. A Singapore Sling lifts the haze.
“You could certainly save money by inviting people to your wedding in an email, but not many people would show up.” Rory Sutherland I was not designed for the clinical beauty of Singapore. It has the humidity of a Bikram Yoga Studio inside a Turkish Bath House. I have hair that is the opposite of short.Continue reading “Advertising. A Singapore Sling lifts the haze.”