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I was at the 10th annual Ad Age Small Agency Conference last week with hundreds of other agencies from around the country. I had the pleasure of attending the first ever conference 10 years ago, and it was interesting to see how many things have changed (most notably being social media) and what has stayed the same (large agency vs small agency challenges).

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• How to Choose the Right Branding Agency For You
• “Stranger Things” Uses Out of Home Advertising to Build Their Brand
• Coach Robichaux Built the Brand of Baseball
• Do Advertising Awards Build Your Brand?
• Brand Theft: One of these is a lot like the other.

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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I was in Los Angeles last week and was reminded of how much I love the advertising on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. It’s LA’s version of Times Square, and when done well, it is awesome.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• “Stranger Things” Uses Out of Home Advertising to Build Their Brand
• Coach Robichaux Built the Brand of Baseball
• Do Advertising Awards Build Your Brand?
• Brand Theft: One of these is a lot like the other.

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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Tony Robichaux, the beloved head coach of the University of Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns baseball team, passed away suddenly at the age of 57. Although he had been head coach for the past 25 years (winningest coach in the university’s history), he always said, “Being a baseball coach is what I do, it’s not who I am.” That’s just one of the many, “Robeisms” that he is known for using to teach life lessons that go beyond just the game.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• Coach Robichaux Built the Brand of Baseball
• Do Advertising Awards Build Your Brand?
• Brand Theft: One of these is a lot like the other.
• Branding of Political Candidates, their Identities and their Tribes

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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The truth behind awards, their true value, and what they mean to a client’s brand.

brandRUSSO was born in February 2001, and like most agencies, we entered our work in all of the award shows, winning more than our fair share of local, regional and national advertising awards. We earned a great haul of glass and metal acknowledging the impressive work we created for our clients.  The Telly awards are a favorite being produced by the same company that makes the Oscar. They have some real heft to them.  But, year after year, winning dozens and dozens of awards began to feel empty and meaningless (and expensive to enter).  Just because some out-of-market creative director “judged” the work to be worthy of recognition – what did that really mean?  

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• Do Advertising Awards Build Your Brand?
• Brand Theft: One of these is a lot like the other.
• Branding of Political Candidates, their Identities and their Tribes

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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I spent this past Friday on the road, driving from Lafayette to Jackson, Mississippi to watch my son play baseball at Millsaps College. Along the way, I began to notice a multitude of what can only be described as an outdoor buffet of legal advertising. Now, it’s not like I haven’t noticed them before, as they seem to be everywhere these days, but several lawyers seemed to own pretty much every outdoor board along my four-hour drive.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• WHY HAVING THE BIGGEST BUDGET DOESN’T ALWAYS TRANSLATE TO HAVING THE BEST BRAND
• THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF DIGITAL AND ONLINE MARKETING
• IT’S SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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And how good old-fashioned messaging can save us all

As we continue to move further and further into the world of digital and online marketing, we are presented with many opportunities as well as challenges. Perhaps one of the greatest opportunities is the ability to track engagement like never before. For a marketer, it can only be described as game-changing. But for those struggling to keep up with an ever-evolving world of new technology, it can be daunting.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF DIGITAL AND ONLINE MARKETING
• IT’S SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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How to manage the end of a relationship between an agency and its client

In business, as in life, there are relationships. There are beginnings, middles and unfortunately, there are endings. In advertising and branding, it can be the ending of a relationship with a vendor, a team member, or a client – each one takes its toll on the emotional fabric of the creative process. For me, this has been the hardest part of advertising – the end.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• IT’S SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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The love/hate relationship many fans have with the NFL

To say that the NFL has taken a few bad hits these past few years would be an understatement. The most recent episode revolves around a blown call at the NFC Championship game between the New Orleans Saints and the Los Angeles Rams. The call in question occurred at the end of the game, and pretty much kept the Saints from returning to the Super Bowl. It would be easy to say that blown calls are part of the game, but if you happened to see this play, which I am pretty sure everyone has by now, it would be hard to argue how ridiculously bad this call was. It was so bad in fact, that few flinched when words like conspiracy were thrown into play.

For information on these strategies, check out these Razor Branding Blogs:

• BLOWN CALLS, SUPER BOWLS AND BRANDING
• HOW GILLETTE CHANGED THE CONVERSATION

And for everyday branding tips follow Jaci Russo on Twitter: @jacirusso

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Asking its audience if they are “the best a man can be?”

A few months back, we wrote a blog that talked about Nike’s use of Colin Kaepernick in their most recent “Just Do It” ad campaign. Instead of focusing on the controversy of whether Kaepernick was right or wrong in his actions, we instead chose to discuss Nike’s attempt to cash in on such a politically charged national conversation, and whether they even had the moral high ground to do so.

Enter Gillette and their “We Believe: The Best a Man Can Be” campaign.