Forging strategy + analytics
Implementing data analytics into strategy is important to stay relevant and to optimize on every campaign. At AKQA, the agency understands that collaboration between the data analytics team and the strategy team is necessary. This allows strategic insights to be supported by data from day one, driving brands further and continuously measuring KPI’s. Start by learning Google Analytics or Facebook Analytics!
-Meg Winters 05.09.17
Boxed: a startup that is built around so much more than selling things. When I went into this start-up I didn’t know what to expect, however, the knowledge I gained from that experience is priceless. This brand is centered around something much bigger than bulk good, they have created a space where they have drawn a line and promised never to cross it. Everything they do is built off of mutual respect and the willingness to disagree. They are a collective that believes there is no right path. You can’t read a book on how to be successful in this industry, it ultimately comes down to how badly you are willing to fight for it. They are collective that is innovative and inspiring and I can’t wait to see how they grow.
Topacio Beerhalter 05.09.2017
Stand Tall
Many of us want to work for companies that care, that stand up for great ideas and who do things right. I had no idea that when I stepped into Boxed Wholesale today that I would learn exactly how they “stand tall” and speak up about important issues.
Boxed has an initiative to fight pink tax #RethinkPink. Pink tax is unfair price markups on products for women such as deodorant, tampons and pads. Boxed is offering female products at discounted prices on their website with none of the up-charged prices on these so called “luxury” items. In 37 states, tampon tax is still a thing. It is a state by state issue in the U.S. Boxed educates their customers and the public by showing how women are charged extra for certain products and offers a better option. They are standing tall and speaking up.
I had no clue that this existed. And, I am so glad that companies like Boxed, even as a startup, can educate us all on issues such as this. It’s time to rethink and stand tall.
-Meg Winters 05.08.17
My People
A smart team consisting of 8 individuals with 8 unique perspectives and backgrounds. In the past couple weeks I’ve met and gotten to know this group and its been nothing short of wonderful. Rex Nwerem (Junior Strategist @ Translation) has been an inspiring mentor who has helped guide us to be a confident team of varying focuses - account management, copywriting, strategy, production, and art direction. We’ve come together as one to create something great.
We’re ready W+K. Let’s hear the pitch!
Left to right/top then bottom: Spencer Phillipson, Michael Hibbard, Alyssa Blackman, Kerry Merrill, Blair Barnes, David Choe, Estuardo Perez, Myself.
Blair Paley.
New platforms, new opportunities.
I’m still thinking about the great work our group saw at Wieden and Kennedy New York this morning. Teared up at a bit at a W+K Amsterdam spot for Nike Russia, laughed out loud at some great OOH ads for Spotify, and really started thinking about an emerging social media platform– live video.
In their Bud Light x Lady Gaga Dive Bar Tour campaign, WKNY helped Lady Gaga launch her newest album by staging performances in surprise, intimate venues all around the country and broadcasting it all live on Facebook. The campaign was incredibly successful and garnered millions of social and PR impressions.
Brands are just beginning to get creative with live social video and I’m always on the lookout for successful approaches. Here, WKNY leveraged Gaga’s massive “stan” following – a culture that thrives on Twitter – and brought it onto a new platform to promote her album and Bud Light. Definitely taking note of that insight and its success.
Huge, huge thanks to WKNY! What an incredible privilege.
Rachel Benner 05.08.2017.
Monday
Sometimes all it takes is a hot dog and a nice view to finish off a great day. It has been an eventful and exciting first day of the week in the city and I can say its given me the best taste of what is still to come. Having already made 15,000 steps by early afternoon, I’d say its been a success. Now, sitting in Central Park with a $4 hotdog in hand, I can only smile about my experience at our first agency of the week: Wieden + Kennedy. The love and trust in the air between different people and perspectives was both overwhelming and inspiring. The incredible collaboration that was demonstrated was something more than special. I feel I heard insights and advice today that I can use for years upcoming in the start of my career. The foundation of W+K is so simple yet so incredibly important. It was shared is as follows:
“Rules
Don’t act big
No sharp stuff
follow directions
and shut up when someone is talking”
Thanks W+K.
Blair Paley.
As much as I’d like to sound like a “real New Yorker” and hate on Times Square, I have to admit I felt the magic last night.
That’s not to say I’m thrilled by smelly streets, loud noises, and potential pick-pocketers. Even the “oh my god I’m actually here” excitement faded pretty quickly. What remained was a sense of awe and scale that I associate with this entire city.
To get advertising nerdy: think about what goes into each of those bright, colorful screens. Hours of ideas, research, and production become just another flashing symbol above a clamoring crowd. It’s like looking at a skyscraper. You feel small, but you want to know what’s happening inside.
So ready to learn. Can’t wait for tomorrow.
Rachel Benner 05.07.2017.
After delayed flights and long waits for shuttles I finally made it to New York. It is currently 4AM as I sit in my hotel room writing this. You would think after a long day of traveling I would be exhausted and ready to crash, however, the funny thing is I have never felt more alive in my life. As I look out onto people walking the streets of Manhattan I can’t help but feel excited to learn about this amazing city. I can’t help but wonder about the agencies I will visit. What insight will I gain from this trip? What top secrets will be shared with me at agency visits? Who will I meet? Will I find a home here in New York?
My mind is racing in a million different ways right now and I can feel the inspiration oozing out of this city. I’m excited to work hard and find myself a place in this crazy city. As I sit here watching people from my hotel window I wonder if one day I’ll be walking the streets and someone will be looking out onto the city with the same feelings I have now. Who would’ve thought that at 4AM you could feel so alive just from looking at a city through a hotel window?
Topacio Beerhalter 05.06.2017.
The farthest I’ve been
I am a college student who went to school in the same town that they were born and raised in. At times, this has made me feel like a goldfish stuck in a tiny fishbowl. I could swim to the edge but there was always something in my way. Money, time, resources… everything is shaped into a convenient glass that would allow me to admire these infinite possibilities but keep me trapped in the safe finite possibilities in our town.
Don’t get me wrong, I love this state. I will always be thankful for this town for shaping me into who I am today. No matter where I go, the rare Oregon sun reflects in the freckles sprawled across my face, the sound of rain forever stuck in my eardrums, and the pine trees that keep me rooted.
No matter how much I love my safe town, this fishbowl is becoming too small for me. In less than a week, I will be just a tiny goldfish in the grand ocean of New York City. For once, I will be swimming in unventured water.
I am ready to be scared. Inspired. Invigorated.
Let’s go.
Amelia Inouye
04. 30. 2017