Innovation Meets the Ocean: Innocean USA

Every once in a while you stumble across some information that creates an epiphany, or an "aha" moment if you will - sometimes it sticks with you and you can't let it go, like my own "aha" moment last week.

While traveling to Los Angeles last Thursday I surfed around agency sites located in Southern California to pass the time. A lot of brilliant agencies plant roots in LA including TBWA\Chiat\Day, Wong, Doody, Crandall, Wiener and 180LA, to name a few. I stumbled across a gem located just an hour south, practically on the beautiful Huntington Beach: Innocean USA.

Tell me the office morale isn't high.

Innocean USA is situated in a stunning office equipped with arguably the most beautiful view of any ad agency on the West Coast. Don't believe me? Check out their five-page office spread featured in Interior Design Magazine. Believe it or not it wasn't the sleek office that attracted me as much as it was the work produced.

Since focusing my efforts on advertising I have repeatedly looked to one company that I believe truly represents what the power of branding can achieve. Hyundai is a car company that I didn't give the time of day to in recent years, they were irrelevant to me. Over the past couple years I have watched Hyundai completely transform themselves into a relevant, consumer oriented and innovative automobile company. The cars look great, their customers are more than satisfied and the advertising transcends traditional thinking. Check out my previous post New Thinking New Possibilities: A Tribute to Hyundai for a more in-depth look at their branding efforts.

My epiphany moment came when I discovered that Innocean USA was the driving force behind this branding, which catapulted Hyundai to #1in brand loyalty. They were even behind the Equus Owner's Experience App - a new take on that traditional owner's manual that utilized the iPad found in every Equus's glove compartment. What's the best way to introduce a brand new car into the luxury market for the first time? Be progressive, think differently - Innocean USA: check and check.

After last Thursday I knew I had to make contact with them - thanks to Twitter and the Innocean team's engaging social media presence, I was able to do so. Working with that team on the Hyundai account would be a spectacular experience. Even if it was just sweeping up the creative scraps like an apprentice in a barbershop - I'd be obliged. Regardless of the outcome of my inquiry I am stoked to have found Innocean USA and cannot wait to see what is next for Hyundai.

Virgin America: A Disruptive Force To Be Reckoned With

I have had flight anxiety for nearly the last two years. Not sure where it came from or how it manifested so quickly, but it did. During the take-off and landing stages of flight, my mind races as I envision the landing gear malfunctioning or an engine suddenly failing. However, during a cross-country flight from San Francisco to Boston last week, it all changed. I hadn't been that comfortable and carefree on an airline in years - no I didn't take any mellow pills, I flew Virgin America.

It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Everything - from the mannerisms of the staff to plane itself - stood a head above the rest of any competing airline. The cabin emitted a soothing blue glow complimented by modern orange call buttons and purple crown lighting. Each seat was equipped with a touch-screen, fully interactive monitor that hosted music and movie libraries, DIRECTV television, food and drink orders, and hey why not - shopping catalogs. If I wanted a drink, I didn't have to wait for the cart - I could simply order it via my touchscreen and have it within seconds. If an order called for payment I looked no further than that same screen to swipe my debit or credit card - it was the most simplistic consumer experience I have been involved in.

Not your typical cabin.

Something for everyone on the touchscreen.

Even the introductory safety video that seems standard to every airline was flipped. It was a brilliantly drawn caricature that used a humorous voice to convey the safety messages required by FAA. The seat-belt portion featured an animated matador, confused by the seat-belt process, sitting next to his bull counter-part who was already strapped in. The voice-over joked around about the ".0001% of you who have never put on a seat-belt in your life" while the procedure was demonstrated. The on-flight crew didn't regurgitate a monotone "seat-backs and tray-tables upright and locked" type speech. They spoke to you, not at you. It felt like a conversation engaged in by both parties.

It boils down to the fact that Virgin, as a brand, really understands its consumers. They recognize that in order to stand out and remain relevant they must be progressive. I think the same holds true in any market for any brand. Virgin took what has been regarded as industry standard, and flipped the script. They still were well within compliance of the FAA, but they did it tastefully. In a market flooded by similar practices by Delta, United and other various airlines, Virgin went above and beyond to create an entirely new flight experience - just shy of being able to smoke again on-board. It was fun, comfortable and my guess is - extremely capable of repeat customers. If I never had to fly another airline again I wouldn't.

Any company can (and should) use Virgin as a case study in order to build a better brand experience, no matter how seemingly stagnant the market is.

Mud-Guns and Advertising

It is that time of year again, the political season full of bad ad's with too much copy and boring visuals. This may all be changing though with the new Romney - Santorum rivalry. I am not here to argue politics as I do not believe in doing so - just to highlight some of the new advertisements coming out of the aggressive political campaigns.

Typically when one candidate is knocking another with a television spot, you see unsightly pictures of the opponent parade across a screen to the sound of music only fitting for a daytime courtroom show. A stagnant voiceover points out all the candidates's wrongdoings in the past with the hopes of swaying voters with these overtly awful advertisements. You know, kind of like this one that the Romney supporters released against Santorum.

I had to dig a little deeper and see what Santorum had up his sleeve, and I was pleasantly surprised at what I found. His proponents recently aired a television spot, "Rombo," that had me engaged and laughing with it, not at it; an uncommon feat for most political ads. It features a man, who appears strikingly similar to Romney, hunting down a cardboard cutout of Santorum with an automatic weapon that shoots mud, or should I say slings it. After missing his target several times his mud-gun backfires on him leaving a nice little stain on his freshly pressed white button up. It is reported that even Romney liked the guy portraying him.

Sure there is some copy and a voiceover highlighting some negatives about Romney, but the tone is much different. By no means does any of this sway me one way or the other, but it does make the political season a little more interesting for me.

Just to show I am not biased towards Santorum's ads, check out one done by the Romney party that actually just focuses on Romney himself, done in an aesthetically pleasing manner.

The Wondrous and Brave Work of David&Goliath

I am very disappointed in myself for not being up on this sooner. I pride myself on being able to distinguish which agency handles a certain ad, but with the common practice of using multiple agencies for different parts of the same account, I am often wrong. This was the case for the recent Hardee's/Carl's Jr television spot, "Miss Turkey." You know, the one which shows a beautiful woman in a mini-burger print bathing suit.

There wasn't a question in my mind as to who did it - 72andSunny, boom! Am I dead wrong in assuming it was 72? I don't think so. The spot is outgoing, blunt and in your face - very 72-ish. Had to be them right? Wrong.

Turns out David&Goliath, although geographically close to 72andSunny, actually handled the spot. I dug a little deeper into the work of D&G only to be amazed at what I discovered - but should have already known.


David&Goliath does a whole hell of a lot more than their Effie-winning Kia Soul commercial featuring those hamsters. They are the geniuses behind the Blake Griffin - Kia Optima campaign, Bacardi&Cola spots and my personal favorite - the print ads for Monte Carlo's: The Pub Las Vegas, featuring brilliant copy.

David&Goliath has molded its agency after one simple characteristic: bravery. They are brave enough to push the limit, brave enough to push themselves and brave enough to make damn good work that sticks. This is a creative agency that anyone would be lucky to be a part of.

Three Books to the Wind

I don't know how but I have managed to find the time to read quite a bit in the past few weeks, and I am damn glad that I did. In a combined three days, I digested the pages of two books (well, one was on Kindle of iPad) am currently wrapping up my third.


The first was Brandwashed, written by former marketing guru now turned consumer advocate, Martin Lindstrom. He looks into and exposes all sorts of crazy marketing ploys and techniques - from data mining to prenatal exposure - used on consumers by big companies today, especially retail and grocery chains. I felt as if I were almost betraying the industry by reading this but I think it provided a good lesson on transparency. It also gave great insight to consumer behavior which (for the strategist in me) was just as exciting and wondrous as the tactics themselves.

While looking at my empty Kindle library, I realized that I was not getting the most out of my iPad user experience, so I began to shop. I stumbled upon the eBook version of George Parker's Confessions of a Mad Man. The summary describes Parker as one of the few surviving mad men who "has seen it all and done it all." It goes on to state, "a great deal of what he has seen and done would make the current TV show; “Mad Men,” look like Sesame Street"and boy was that right. He reams the "Big Dumb Agencies" (BDA's) in nearly every chapter while managing to use the phrases "cockney gits" and "douchenozzle" just as frequently, yet there is a lot to learn from his wisdom. If your in advertising, or just a fan of English humor in general, chances are you will dig this book and have a hard time putting it down. Check out his blog AdScam/TheHorror! too, it will rock your little socks off.

While I am still in the process of reading Alison Fendley's Saatchi & Saatchi: An Inside Story, I figured I'd share it anyway. It is a simple read about an extraordinary duo, Charles and Maurice Saatchi, and their contributions to the ad world and absurdly expensive way of living. It chronicles the shareholder revolt to remove the brothers from the company they built from the ground up.

The Delta of Disappointments

As I sit here in the Oakland airport awaiting my connecting flight to Portland, I can't help but to feel relieved. Why am I relieved knowing that I have to get on another cramped plane for the next two hours? Because this time I know I am not flying Delta Airlines. 

I just stepped off a Delta flight from Los Angeles to Oakland and not one ounce of me was satisfied with my experience. Forget the fact that the jet itself was the size of a sardine can, I can deal with that. Forget the fact that we were delayed, it happens. What I couldn't believe was how rude and unapproachable the entire staff was, and it started at the gate. As a brand that has struggled with this before and supposedly made attempts to break this image, I was shocked. This past year the airline company sent 11,000 employees to charm school - everyone from desk agents to supervisors. I figured customer service would be number one, that was not the case a few hours ago.

Mistake #1: Our plane was delayed and it took me getting out of my chair and going to ask someone five minutes before our boarding time to find this out. We were further delayed while sitting on the tarmac and not once did the flight crew ding their bell and alert us as to why.

Mistake #2: My travel companion (and father) needed something from the attendant prior to our takeoff. He politely broached her with his request as she made her way to the back of the plane. Instead of a simple acknowledgment, she grunted and kept stride only to show up ten minutes later with the item. 

Mistake #3: I kept my eye on her as she addressed other patrons and noticed that she didn't make eye contact with one of them, instead just filled their drink and practically tossed it onto the tray table or into their lap. I couldn't help but to feel bothersome asking her for a ginger ale. 

Mistake #4: I thought to myself that maybe it was an off night for the woman. I figured the maltreatment was isolated so while exiting the plane I made eye contact with the pilot (surprise surprise) and thanked him, allowing the brand a chance to save face. Instead of acknowledging my sincere gratitude for landing us on the ground safely and defeating my flight anxiety, he whipped his head around and began a conversation with the employee who too treated us with the same disregard. Unbelievable. 

It was a breath of fresh air when I stepped off the plane to the woman who offloaded my oversized carry-on bag. She looked at me, said thank you and wished me a good night. That brief moment helped cure my mood but I can't help but to think she worked for the airport itself, definitely not Delta. Delta seemed to send every employee to charm school besides those who mattered most; the ones I cannot escape for multiple hours while locked in a tube jetting through the sky. The least they could do is be courteous. 

Missing the Big Picture

I have noticed a big push for billboard advertising around the Portland metro area lately. Many vacant boards are trying to sell businesses on the idea that using this medium is the key to creating a "giant ad." I even saw one last week that simply said "Giant Ad." Let me be the first to say that I am not knocking billboard advertising; when done right I think it is a beautiful art. What I cannot stand behind is the idea that displaying your company name and tagline on a board for an entire freeway to see means you have created a "giant ad."

Downtown Portland 

An advertisement shouldn't be giant because of it's size; it should be giant because of the message it conveys, or the story it tells, no matter what medium is used. Some of the best spots are those that aren't thrown in your face. Remember the Sprint advertisement on the back of the Rolling Stones cover shortly after the death of Steve Jobs? It barely had any copy on top of plenty of white space. How about the Apple "1984" commercial? It only aired one time! Both are giant ads, regardless of the size or frequency. If your business literally wants a large advertisement, a billboard is a great way to go. All I am saying is to not get caught up in the actual size more so than the message that accompanies it.

Sprint Ad after death of Steve Jobs