The good, the bad and Sam Elliott’s mustache.

Robin Donovan, President

When it comes to TV commercials there is no more widespread, public venue than the Super Bowl. Advertisers in the Super Bowl must be prepared to wow the audience, the whole audience, even the part that does not fall within their target demographics. In order to generate a level of excitement worthy of the Super Bowl, most advertisers choose to make their commercial hilariously funny, sappy and sentimental, or jarringly shocking. But is that always in the best interest of their brand? 

Using social media in a linear way is a thing of the past. Brands, small and large, are using social not only to engage with and speak directly to their target consumers, but also to learn about their audiences’preferences, integrate campaigns, inform creative strategies, and test-and-learn with new products and features.

You’ve all seen it by now. The Peloton ad with the lady who looks trapped in an exercise bike nightmare. She gets a Peloton bike for Christmas and is quickly held hostage by early morning spin rides. Throughout the commercial she speaks into the camera, documenting every workout in what seems like a not-so-secret plea for help. The commercial ends as she and her husband sit on the couch admiring her video diary of workouts.

From the very beginning of my copywriting career, I have followed one simple rule of thumb …

Creativity comes second to effective communication.

Because of this, my preferred approach to writing is simple, clean and conversational. Basically, I like to write how people talk. It’s a faster read and much more relatable. Read More

Social media platforms are making efforts to become more socially responsible, but at what cost? For now, the answer is uncertain.

The social media realm has been buzzing this week following the announcement that Instagram will begin hiding Like counts in the U.S., a continuation of a test that started rolling out to other countries last May. This test was then broadened to a global scale yesterday, through a post on Instagram’s Twitter account.

Insurance has typically been an avoidance category. We never want to think of bad things that could potentially happen to us and we don’t want to hear or read boring clause after clause of legal mumbo jumbo. So, we shut it out.

I’m not rich, but I have disposable income. I drive a 300-horsepower sport sedan with an 80-gig touch-screen control system. I have a smartphone, smart TV, 35mm SLR digital camera and three computers, and I know how to use them. I wear Oakley glasses, own two high-end bicycles, volunteer in my community and vote independently.

In a sea of back-to-school promotions, with kids dancing and over the moon to get new clothes and school supplies, there’s one spot that didn’t particularly stand out.

Until about 15 seconds in.

Meet the Pros is a 57-year-old advertising conference for college students and is presented by the American Advertising Federation Omaha (AAF Omaha). This year, our summer intern team, including yours truly (I’m the one in pink ^), was tasked with creating a theme, look, social media plan and website for the 2020 conference. Read More

It’s a Saturday afternoon and you decide to spend your hard-earned money the best possible way you can – shopping, of course.

As you’re picking out your favorite items, security stops you. You aren’t doing anything wrong. Why are you the only one security stopped? Turns out, a Sephora employee called security. But why you? Read More