Advice
The million dollar question nowadays is “what’s your plan after graduation?” and my response to that is “what’s your advice for me to do after graduation?” I have gathered some inspiring advice over the past week since I have began asking this question.
1) Don’t stop applying.
2) Take your time, don’t jump at your first opportunity. You’re valuable!
3) Travel and meet new people.
4) Craft your story.
5) Experiment with different jobs.
6) Set goals and chase bigger dreams.
7) Find a mentor.
8) Take time to reflect.
Emily Sarale 5.12.17
The Triangle of Pain, and the SoundLounge Way
During our time with Mike Gullo, executive producer at SoundLounge,
we talked a lot about the highs (and lows) of client centered work.
SoundLounge is an audio mixing studio that is “one of three tier one
sound operations” in New York (according to Gullo that is). “You don’t
want to get stuck somewhere where the revenue is above the work, but
many times it is. We are an audio house, so we need these relationships
to stay open.”
The struggle of keeping the work good and pleasing the client is an uphill one. Gullo calls it “the triangle of pain.”
“The sides are Great work, Fast work, and Cheap work. The client can only choose two.” Because of this, Gullo often finds himself negotiating with clients who don’t understand the process. “People will ask for things in absurd amounts of time, or for absurdly difficult mixing for cheap” he says. “The trick is to tell them ‘Yes, but…’“
So does Gullo enjoy the work?
“Yes of course!” he says, no buts about it.
Caden Bohn
#uonyccreativeweek2017
Thank you, Thank you
Also, I wanted to say a quick thank you to those who put this together. This trip is to learn and grow and see this industry in a new light. This experience is something else and definitely not anything you will receive in a class room setting. To the people who contacted agencies and got visits: thank you for that. Without you, this trip would have not happened (IMO). To the people who made lists/organized us: thank you. You are far more impressive than me and my organizational skills. To the people who took care of us: thank you. I don’t know if I would have survived.
I am so incredibly humbled to have the opportunity to do this trip two times. Insane. I have learned so much, again. I hope I can give back in some ways to the future trips of the program.
Thank you to everyone who came and represented us. Amazing. Much love to you all. I am grateful and my heart is full.
James McAndrew.
Media 101
In the latter half of the week, I was fortunate enough to tour a few media specific agencies. This places are HUGE and process work on multifaceted platforms. I would like to note the sometimes ignored part of advertising is the numbers and the stories behind them. In strategy, they talk about the brand and the culture and the industry. This drives/fuels creative, but in my opinion, there is something to be noted about media being another fueling agent of creative. A media planners role is to deep dive into audiences and their platforms of choice to better creative to be curated to audiences (GroupM). This essentially, in my own opinion, meant that media can drive creative concepts by telling stories through numbers and platforms. The ability for a creative to come up with an idea is great, but without a platform that will meet KPI’s and bring ROI to a company, it’s just creative. Remember to keep into consideration with your ideas why they work on specific platforms and how the brand can position itself there. There is something to be said about creative working closely with the planning departments… Food for thought.
James Mcandrew.
Success
How does an agency continue to thrive in advertising for over a hundred years? Smart and fearless leaders. After speaking to Matt Eastwood this morning, I will never forget his tips for success and I will implement these tips in my life every single day.
1. Passion trumps talent
2. Everyone has setbacks
3. Being the most talented is a trap
4. NEVER give up
5. Failure is part of the process
6. Find a mentor
7.Talent is nothing without determination
8. Good is the enemy of great
9. Be different
10. Work hard and be nice to people
11. Don’t be irrelevant
12. Don’t confuse determination with ignorance
-Tim Farah
Connect Four
At the digital marketing agency 360i we learned how to connect four key components to derive a strategic insight and identify the tension. The 4-box method transforms the research beyond and pushes strategies further. The categories include culture, consumer, category and company. After brainstorming and identifying specifics in each category, it is important to find the provocative, surprising truths and beliefs in each one. From there, the insight and strategy can come to life what the mindset shift is (to/from) and figuring out what role the brand can play to move forward, creating momentum. During our visit at 360i we received a brief and had the chance to practice this strategic way of thinking. I have appreciated the learning by doing moments - where connections are made.
-Meg Winters 05.12.17
Space - Double-edged Sword
Manhattan is packed. Over 1.6 million people call New York’s most populous borough their home. Buildings squeeze together like sardines craning their necks to get a whiff of fresh air, a commodity that runs scarce when New Yorkers run to and from work twice a day. Signs - ads, art, information - protrude from every facade.
On one hand, the stimuli erases the possibility of boredom. If you’re not swept by the flood of human diversity that washes the streets, lured by bakeries and hole-in-the-wall burger joints, or pulled like a puppet on strings by car horns and rare voices that cut through the buzz, you’re either a seasoned New Yorker or taking sensory deprivation drugs. The endless stream of stuff warps time perception on hour-long walks, making them feel like five-minute excursions.
But when a finite space is as full and as busy as this little island, it can be hard to clear the space inside your own head. Overwhelmed, antsy, frustrated, cramped - all feelings that descend on me as I dip and dodge through sidewalk traffic in midtown, yearning for the relative countryside within Central Park.
My recipe for next-level thinking calls for equal parts peace and pandemonium. I can’t crack into the safe of thoughts worth saving without space. Lucky for me, SS+K lives down south by the water, where the wind blows and I can see straight to Williamsburg.
- Cameron Kokes
Network, network, network
After this week I am convinced the advertising world is as small as the area we had at Johnny Utah’s.
Usually when it comes to the task of networking I cringe at the idea of having to talk to people and come up with questions. It is a situation that I tend to shy away from and avoid. But, after visiting seven different agencies over the course of four days, it is less of chore and more of a breeze. I now enjoy getting to know those in the industry, especially in media planning, because there has not been a single person that I have met at an agency that was unwilling to help or standoffish.
New York has given me the confidence to be able to walk up to a complete stranger and start a conversation with them, the knowledge to ask meaningful questions, and the grace to cover my usual awkward self. At the end of the day the worst anyone can do is say no and if that happens I can move to the next connection I have gained. It is all about timing, a little bit of luck, and a lot of networking.
Katey Harris
Work Hard + Work Harder
Every agency’s culture is made out of different threads intricately intertwined together to make different tapestries of who they are and what they stand for. Within those agencies, every inspirational person that I’ve talked to this week has a different spark in their eye and a different rhythm to their soul. Although each individual is truly individual, I’ve heard one message again so much almost as much as I heard the cars in Manhattan honk at each other: work hard and work harder. From Boxed to R/GA to Chiat, I hear this message. Everyone there has talent, charm, and potential but what will make you stand out among all of these gems? Long nights, early mornings, and great work. Stand up, stand out, and you got this.
Amelia Inouye // 5/11/17
Soundtrack to my life.
You know how in movies there is always that moment where the song playing is the reason that moment in the movie is so profound? I had that moment today. Today I decided to go out and explore on my own. This made me super uncomfortable because I get lost when I am even using my GPS so I didn’t have much hope of getting to where I wanted to actually go. So as I’m walking down 56th street there is a pause in my music and for some reason I got this weird feeling all over my body that I couldn’t explain. Then Imagine Dragons “Its Time” came on and for 3 minutes and 57 seconds I had this profound moment where I knew I was exactly where I needed to be. This feeling was probably the most surreal feeling ever. I suddenly felt calm and at peace knowing that this moment was absolutely perfect. I knew that no matter where my future took me I would have this one moment walking down 56th street that I could look back on. It was a moment that I doubt many people get, however, for some reason something bigger than myself happened in that moment. I may never understand why that moment happened but I think that is the beauty in those moments. They are rare and unique and when they happen you just have to be present in that moment and ride the wave.
Topacio Beerhalter 05.11.2017