Henry and I welcome Jason Swenk who started an agency "by accident" in his words, and turned his love for the hustle, effective systems and problem solving into a wildly successful consulting business that takes ad agency owners to a new level of leadership and vision. His podcast, Smart Agency Master Class, is a must-watch. We're operating in thinner air than usual because Jason's insights for ad agency CEOs have relevance for freelancers and smaller creative shops. Pay attention. You will lear...
Apr 05, 2023•44 min
TJ Bennett is a creative veteran with agency experience on both coasts who now makes his home in Phoenix. He runs a virtual creative shop called The Pudding Factory and, like Henry and me, is nerdy about creative briefs. This was a fun conversation. TJ definitely joins the small but growing ranks of Brief Bros. brothers. I'm certain he'll be back even if we have to make a lame excuse to invite him.
Mar 29, 2023•59 min
How often do you "look in the mirror" after a big presentation? A critical self-assessment may be painful but it's also liberating. In today's episode, Henry Gomez dusts off a "no holds barred" post-mortem of a presentation delivered many years ago that failed to win the project. It's like one of those candid emails you write but then never hit "send." We, on the other hand, are beneficiaries of Henry's never-shared candor. We offer it up to you today as an example of valuable lessons learned, a...
Mar 22, 2023•19 min
Continuing with our ongoing interest in brands and rebranding, Henry Gomez and I share a Wall St. Journal video exploration of Campbell Soup's recent packaging for its iconic soup cans. And we have an in-depth discussion about the results of those efforts. Connecting dots between Byron Sharp's "distinctive brand assets" and a not-so-successful rebranding effort by Tropicana more than a decade ago, we have lot of relevant input for insights. What do you think?
Mar 15, 2023•19 min
Henry Gomez and I are delighted to welcome Marc Williams, currently a creative director/consultant, who for the last dozen years has held senior-level creative leadership positions within corporate America. Marc represents a voice we have not heard from on The Brief Bros., and he brings keen insight into the opportunities and challenges faced by creatives on the client side. Marc's career began in the agency world where he worked at Wunderman and Digitas before jumping the fence and taking on cr...
Mar 08, 2023•1 hr
One good turn deserves another: after joining April and Anne on their podcast recently, I invited them to join Henry Gomez and me on our podcast. Anne and April are also partners in a marketing agency called Forthright People. These are two smart and experienced brand professionals, hosts of Marketing Smarts, know their way around a creative brief. April spent years in the agency world while Anne "grew up at P&G," to use her own words. We had a fun, engaging and insightful conversation.
Mar 01, 2023•51 min
Do you jump right from college or your portfolio program into an ad agency or client-side job? Maybe that makes good sense, but don't think you have to. Today, Henry and I talk about the advantages of waiting and doing something else before you start your career. The dividends could pay handsomely.
Feb 22, 2023•12 min
You've never seen his handsome mug before, but today's the day. Paul Taylor, aka The Adweak Editor, makes his video debut with Henry Gomez and me. It's an honor and a privilege. He's skewered us all, no matter which role we play in AdLand, because he's one of us. And now he's our guest. We had a lively and entertaining conversation. Don't miss this one!
Feb 15, 2023•47 min
I put this question to my partner and co-host, Henry Gomez, resident strategist at Zubi Advertising in Miami and he came up with some great answers. The brief is hard to write so don't think you need one for every project. Save your time and energy and be judicious about when it's time for a brief. Watch this episode and give yourself a break.
Feb 08, 2023•13 min
Henry Gomez and I exchange our views on a new OOH campaign for McDonald’s by DDB New Zealand. We haven’t disagreed about much lately, but today we take opposing views. DDB New Zealand’s work brings a searing spotlight to the issue of advertising’s powerful role as an influencer. Henry and I bat this one back and forth. Tune in to find out where we land.
Feb 01, 2023•14 min
Bob Harrison is an old friend and colleague from my Minneapolis days. He worked for me as a copywriter when I ran the British Airways NA loyalty programs advertising business. Today, he’s a respected and award-winning creative director/writer at Luckie & Company in Birmingham, AL. And I could not be more proud. Henry Gomez and I invited Bob to join us this week and we had a great chat about his work—Bob and Henry swapped notes about the thrill of winning at Cannes—and the challenges around g...
Feb 01, 2023•54 min
On our way from episode 100, we plunge ahead into our next 100 episodes! Today we bring you a fascinating conversation with Mara Rada, chief strategist at Feral Corporation. In a short phrase, Mara and her team launch brands from scratch. Most of us in Adland work on existing brands. Mara loves the challenge of working with entrepreneurs to bring to the market the next Apple or Nike or Tesla. It’s a rarified world, and Henry Gomez and I engage her in a wide-ranging conversation. Join us!
Feb 01, 2023•59 min
We can hardly believe it, but Henry and I have reached 100 episodes of The Brief Bros. Almost two years of weekly jawing about creative briefs and chatting up guests. Plus the occasional creative review. Today, Henry and I share our thoughts about what we’ve accomplished in the past couple years and bring you clips from our favorite episodes. This is a fond and fun bit of nostalgia and pride in our idea and our partnership. Enjoy the show!
Feb 01, 2023•39 min
What should newbie and veteran brief writers alike consider before they put fingers to keyboard or pen to paper? I put this question to Henry and he gave us some valuable thought-starters. A creative brief is a thinking document, not a mindless form to fill out. Join us on this episode of The Brief Bros. as we offer brief writers sound advice on what to think about before you start writing your next brief.
Feb 01, 2023•15 min
Henry and I review two new spots for our final Creative Review of 2022. The first spot is for the latest Covid booster by Pfizer Biontech by Fierce Pharma Marketing. Spot number two is by Luck Generals, whose work we’ve reviewed before. This one is a new Christmas spot for Amazon. We like one more than the other. Watch this episode to find out which one wins our approval. Maybe you agree. Maybe you don’t. See you again in 2023!
Feb 01, 2023•12 min
Matt Ryan’s official title is Sr. Director of Communication Plans, which is a fancy way of describing his role as the top strategist for Universal Resort Orlando’s in-house ad agency, Popcorn. Henry and I had a chance to talk in depth with Matt about the laudable process Popcorn developed to foster a collaborative environment to write creative briefs. It’s a system worth copying because it works so well. Join us today as Matt tells about what Popcorn does to support great brief writing.
Feb 01, 2023•42 min
He’s back! Our friend Cameron Day, author of The Advertising Survival Guide—Stage One: Launch and Ascent: Chew With Your Mind Open, and our guest about 10 months ago, returns for another wide-ranging and fun conversation. This time, Henry Gomez and I welcome Cam back to talk about his new book, The Advertising Survival Guide—Stage Two: Managing the Messy Middle Years: Spittin’ Chiclets. Cam weighs in on briefs, writing taglines, why brands matter and don’t, and other juicy topics creatives love ...
Feb 01, 2023•59 min
Henry Gomez and I welcome Leticia Rita, co-founder of an online creative brief platform called HolaBrief.com. Her site offers free customizable briefing templates designed for freelancers, small to medium-sized agencies, design firms and start-ups. Leticia, a former creative, comes to us from Spain. She felt a similar pang of frustration as I did before I wrote my book, during a creative briefing that prompted her to start HolaBrief with a colleague. Today, her team is ten strong. She tells us a...
Feb 01, 2023•50 min
Henry Gomezhttp://henrylouisgomez.com and I bring you another Creative Review this week. As we try to do with these Reviews, we focus on real products. Northern Tool + Equipment fits the bill perfectly. NT+E is one of the nation’s leading retailers of high-quality tools and equipment for professionals and DIYers. Today we discuss and dissect three spots: one :30 and two :15s. Agency of Record: Colle McVoy, Minneapolis.
Feb 01, 2023•15 min
Henry Gomez and I welcome one of our more devoted viewers and fans, Paul MacFarlane. He’s also a fellow traveler committed to writing and advocating for great creative briefs. His work as a creative director and brand strategist for his own company, The 1101 Experiment, demonstrates how he puts walks the walk. Paul came to our attention months ago when he started liking and commenting on our LinkedIn posts and the episodes of The Brief Bros. he most enjoyed. You’ll love today’s conversation beca...
Feb 01, 2023•53 min
Henry Gomez and I welcome our friend Bob Hoffman, whose new book Adscam: How Online Advertising Gave Birth to One of History’s Greatest Frauds, and Became a Threat to Democracy is the theme of today’s episode. Bob is the first guest to make a return visit to The Brief Bros. The title of his new book says it all, but Bob gives us even more. In a scathing indictment of Adtech and the tracking it spawned, Bob tells us the scale of the problem and his prognosis for our future. This is a must-watch e...
Jan 19, 2023•46 min
Henry Gomez and I welcome Patricia Yanez, Associate Director, Brand & Original Content Marketing at ESPN. Patricia came to my attention through our friend Professor Richard L. Gant at NYU, a past guest on #thebriefbros. Patricia gave a talk to Professor Gant’s Event Marketing & Strategies class. Turns out, Patricia is a former student of Professor Gant’s. And she’s a fan of my book on the creative brief. What better reasons to bring her on to discuss her work at ESPN? And the fact that w...
Jan 19, 2023•38 min
What comes before the creative brief? Strategy. And what, exactly, is strategy? Good question. The answer is debatable. Henry Gomez and I usually talk about the elements of a creative brief. It’s a document that comes after the strategy has been articulated. All too often, the brief is written without a clear strategy, or any strategy at all. That’s what we talk about in today’s episode. I doubt we’ve cracked this nut for all time, but we’ve added our thoughts in the hope of bringing some clarit...
Jan 19, 2023•29 min
Henry Gomez and I tackle another “nuts and bolts” creative brief topic: brand tone of voice. I have often said in my workshops that if any part of a brief can be cut and pasted from another brief, the “tone of voice” may be a candidate. The brand tone should be the same from one campaign to the next. But after this discussion with Henry, I’ve changed my mind. Why? It’s too important, and the act of cutting and pasting creates the possibility of taking the brand tone for granted. Henry and I expl...
Jan 19, 2023•36 min
Henry Gomez and I take you back in time once again to review three classic television spots. First up is called “Stunt City” by Lowe London for Sure anti-perspirant. Next, a Fallon TV spot for John Lewis called “Monty the Penguin.” Finally, a spot called “The Epic Split” for Volvo Trucks by Forsman & Bodenfors. Henry and I agree that revisiting classic advertising is both fun and instructive. We’re reminded of the humor of the time in which these spots emerged and the degree of risk these br...
Jan 19, 2023•30 min
Henry Gomez and I try something new—again—in this week’s episode of #thebrierbros. We share with you two creative briefs written by a student for class project. This brief writer is now a working professional strategist and (full disclosure) I have used both of these briefs in my creative brief workshops. Henry and I dissect the two briefs, one for Zippo Lighters, the others for pet adoption from the Humane Society, and offer up our thoughts. We love both briefs but bring a slightly different se...
Jan 19, 2023•29 min
This week, Henry Gomez and I take great pride in welcoming Steve Harrison, author of Can’t Sell Won’t Sell, a sober and compelling argument against the ad industry’s sad slide into prizing social justice over selling. Steve has earned his bona fides as a creative thinker and leader, having won a pile of awards as European Creative Director at OgilvyOne and Global Creative Director for Wunderman. He’s taken home more Cannes Lions (18) in his discipline than any creative director in the world. Hen...
Jan 19, 2023•1 hr 5 min
This week, Henry Gomez and I are joined by another great creative from the Twin Cities, Tim Brunelle. Tim is a writer, creative director, strategist, leader and a fellow advocate for creative briefs. Tim came to our attention from our friend Mark Jenson, lecturer at the University of Minnesota’s Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communications and a past guest on The Brief Bros. Henry and I have one of those “yes, and” conversations about our first, second and third passions: the creative br...
Jan 18, 2023•1 hr 4 min
This week, Henry Gomez and I are joined by a luminary in the field of marketing: Professor Mark Ritson. Professor Ritson has earned a well-deserved reputation for pulling no punches in his commentary on and assessment of marketers and their brand management. Henry is an alum of the two wildly popular and well-attended mini-MBA programs Professor Ritson teaches online. Professor Ritson has the distinction of being both an insightful academic (or ex-academic as he prefers it) who has real-world ex...
Jan 18, 2023•1 hr 10 min
This week, Henry Gomez and I try something new and different: we share with you a real creative brief by a real ad agency. So we review both the brief itself and one TV spot that came from the brief. The agency is Crispin Porter Bogusky, a powerhouse creative shop whose work for Burger King, among other brands, shook up the industry in the mid-2000s when this brief was written. The brief is for BBQ Tender Chicken Sandwich and it dates to the mid-2000s. You can read the brief and we show you the ...
Jan 18, 2023•31 min
