Julian Cohen’s Post

Greg Hahn said it best: “I think when you’re the hot shop, people are waiting for you to cool off, so they can say, ‘OK, that’s over’. But we don’t want to be another cautionary tale. We want to be proof that you can be good and grow.” It’s hard to win once. It’s extreme difficulty mode to consistently turn up. Mischief @ No Fixed Address is three and a half years old and will keep turning up. 2021: Ad Age Newcomer of the Year | ADWEEK Breakthrough AoY | Campaign US #3 AoY 2022: Ad Age #1 AoY | Campaign US #1 AoY | Adweek Midsize AoY | Fast Company’s Most Innovative Ad Agencies 2023: Adweek US AoY | Campaign US #1 AoY | Ad Age #3 AoY | Fast Company’s Most Innovative Ad Agencies | Effie’s Most Effective US Independent Agency 2024: Ad Age #1 AoY | Ad Age Creative AoY Dave Lafond Serge Rancourt Katie Newman Kerry McKibbin Kevin Mulroy Bianca Guimaraes Anne Caceres-Gonzalez Anna C. Gomez, CPA Jeff McCrory Will Dempster Nimisha Jain Ed Gunn Linda Colozza Erica Watts Alison Whisenant Tyler Harris #marketing #creativity #adagency

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Remember when Kevin Hart became David Beckam? #GoodAdsMatter The plot of this ad may as well be a movie in the making because we are here for hours of this banter. This spoof campaign, for the clothing brand H&M, features comedian and actor Kevin Hart preparing to play ex-England captain, David Beckham, in a biopic based on the latter’s life. Kevin takes “method acting” far too seriously, as he begins shadowing Beckam, to the point of, occasionally, crossing his personal boundaries. Kevin is everywhere—his house, his gym, on his shoots and even in his bed! His eager beaver attitude doesn’t make it any easier for the soccer star, and naturally, gets on his nerves… but hey, he might as well have started to enjoy it. Just a little bit. All of this transpires while the two sport matching H&M outfits, and deliver one comical moment after another. That’s one way to incorporate the subtlest of product integrations while keeping the audiences engaged for a whole seven minutes! 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮'𝘀 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗱-𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗺 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘀' 𝗥𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄! 𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: https://lnkd.in/dsGAApY6 Country: UK Year: 2015 Brand: H&M Advertising Agency: adam&eveDDB Creative Team: Patrick M. & Feargal Ballance Media Agency: Universal Mccann Production Company: SONNY Director: Fredrik Bond DOP: Ben Seresin Second Unit Assistant Director: David Backus Production Design: Joseph Cooney Producer: Alicia Richards Production Manager: Nicola Dempsey Cast: David Beckam, Kevin Hart & Ursula Wallis Production Service Company: Rival Schools Post Production: Martial Street Editors Editing: Tim Thornton-Allan & Matthew Post Production/VFX: The Mill 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 Good Ads Matter, 𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝘆 Purpose Studios. 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘂𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗱𝗮𝘆! ––––––––––––––––––––– 𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝟲𝟬𝟬𝗸+ 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴/𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗮𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗮𝗱 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗱! 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟭𝟬𝟬% 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲, 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 -  https://lnkd.in/dg3JEGpK #GoodAdsMatterRoundtableSeason1 #Creativity #Marketing #Advertising #Branding #PurposeStudios #PursuePurpose

Subtle Brand integration. Effective Storytelling. 💯

I had a lot of outreach from young creatives on my last post. Which only proves my post is happening in our industry. And I've had a few people reach out who sell programs they've created to help people excel at being the best the version of themselves. I'll be honest, I'm dubious of anyone selling anything that helps people get better and being creative or a creative leader. So when I see someone selling a book or system or a program, I immediately look at their pedigree. This is where things usually fall apart for me. How can you teach me how to do what I do better if you've never done anything that I aspire to do? I want to learn from someone who has experience, not someone who can write what they've heard or read in one of Simon Sinek's books. Look at Jason Bagley. He's done some of the most famous work in modern advertising. Work that people would literally kill for the chance to say they had a part in. So when he left Weidento start The Audacious School of Astonishing Pursuits, (ASAP) yeah, to me? That's a legit program. I would sign up. In fact, me and Brandt Lewis pay for a young female or POC creative to attend to his program every year. Because if more creatives could do that kind of work, our industry would be a happier place to work—again. But when I see someone who's never worked at an agency I would want to work at or never done the kind of advertising that I would want to do—selling advice on how to get better, I say, "Nah. I'm good. But thanks, my guy." Beyond that I think, "What about the younger creatives who desperately need mentorship and don't have thousands of disposable income to invest in a program or portfolio school? Do they just have to struggle to navigate this industry as they save up every extra dollar to pay for one?" For these folks, I decided a while ago to create a FREE series of videos that give you ideas, tips and Ad•Vice on how to get better, do better and be better as a creative or advertising professional. And until you can save up and pay for ASAP, this is a resource to help. Again, IT'S FREE. So don't be too harsh on it. But if it helps, it was worth the investment of time. It's a little all over the place, but it has all of the advice I find myself giving to young creatives all the time. So, I hope it helps! #Stayhungrymyfriends

The John Lewis & Partners Christmas ad never fails to get people talking, and this year, we wanted to know - did the story make sense to you on the first watch? Turns out, opinions were mixed, with 311 of you sharing your thoughts. Whether you got it straight away, needed a rewatch, Googled it, or are still scratching your head, one thing’s for sure - it’s sparked plenty of conversation. And that’s the real charm, isn’t it? By getting people to talk, share, and debate, the ad has kept itself at the centre of attention. Was the story’s slightly ambiguous nature a clever move to drive engagement, or was it just an unintentional quirk? Either way, it’s clearly worked. The more you watch it, the more you notice. In fact, it’s received the highest ad effectiveness score since 2019 - a testament to its ability to grab (and hold) our attention. Fan or not, there’s no denying its immediate engagement. Check out the full poll breakdown in our carousel - did your experience match the majority? Let us know your thoughts. #johnlewis #christmasadvert #advertising

Have to share our recent collaboration with ADWEEK and team Spikes that dove into ads that excite people in the real world -- that is, work people remember when asked to share what ads they've recently seen (and of all time this time around) that excited them. And this isn't just a nice vanity list to be on -- there's a good body of research and insights that show if a brand is able to connect emotionally, and humor definitely fits into this definition, the brand is going to be able to establish a special place in that consumer's life; even more so than if the brand pursued a more rational, logical strategy (aka, 'safe' strategy). Humor, excitement and emotions have real business value for brands and it's great to see efforts like this with Adweek that shine the light in this space. Congrats Progressive Insurance and State Farm for showing us insurance can indeed be really funny. As Paul Hiebert pointed out, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has recognized the unique role and contribution humor plays in brand building and creativity given the new category they've established to unpack what's worked this past year. Cautionary Tale: And a special note of caution too regarding this creative route (take this from a hard lesson learned by the author of this post). Telling jokes is easy, being funny is hard. Humor isn't for everyone, not for every brand, and you need to work at it to find the appropriate approach for you and your company. Don't just do what they did in last year's #SuperBowl #NFL, find your own path of humor to own. I'm tagging a few voices who are active in this space, either on the strategy and insight side of things or helping surface work that's great and worthy of peer and industry recognition. Adam Morgan Orlando Wood Jae Goodman Adam Craw #effies John Osborn Gordon Euchler Catherine Heath Maik Hofmann Ann Green John Shaw Dr Nick Baker #brandcreativity #brandmarketing #creativity #funnyads Rebecca Peel WARC https://lnkd.in/egFGPimB

I absolutely loved looking at this week’s AdMiration ad for The North Face “We play different”.  Any excuse to watch it again.  And again. And again. See link to ad in comments for anyone who has missed it! There was an outstanding consumer response and so much to learn from this one. The ad gets it all right: the idea, the message, the narrative, the perfected execution. Most ads get some of these but not all. This is how an ad gets a perfect 100 on sales and brand impact.  Diving a bit deeper on things to admire: - It’s highly distinctive and disruptive. People cannot look away. It takes them on a journey with moments of love, sadness and surprise. But never feeling nothing! - It cleverly connects people with the emotional and functional elements of the brand. Showing how the brand shows up and performs in extreme places implicitly results in the ad associating North Face with quality.  And the whole idea of “we play differently” is a warm, welcoming tribe that people relate with and want to join. - The craft of the execution is loved. The beauty of the surroundings, the music, the broad representation of the people and the sports, the clever mirroring effects. Congratulations to North Face and Caroline Brown. And to Pith agency. See comments to read in more depth about this great success in our weekly AdMiration newsletter #consumerinsights #marketresearch #advertising #creativeandeffective #AdMiration

I absolutely love the work Nathan Shingleton and I created last year for the Young Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The brief was to create a print ad to entice a young audience with careers in advertising. Our insight came from seeing large percentages of Gen-Z and Millennials aren’t sure what they want as a career, but know they want to make a difference and have a positive impact. By leaving the page almost completely empty we encourage our audience to take a moment and actually imagine a career in advertising. This idea could also translate to other formats, such as Social, TV, or OOH, as the abundance of blank space naturally captures attention and sparks the imagination. #advertising #marketing #creativity #print #Cannes

This Halloween, some brands are bringing back nostalgia: we’re seeing iconic long-term agency-brand partnerships tap into their deep brand knowledge to revive ads that hit home. These brands and agencies have been partners for many years, 30 in the case of GEICO & The Martin Agency (Shared below). Both Mars & BBDO Worldwide, as well as Dietz and Watson & RTO+P, have new stellar nostalgic Halloween ads produced from their years of collaborating. It’s proof that long-term agency relationships aren’t just about longevity—they're about building creative chemistry and understanding a brand inside and out.    It’s a trend we’ve been seeing at ASK US FOR IDEAS too, where clients are opting for longer relationships and positioning themselves as side-by-side partners. When you take the time to choose the right agency, creativity can thrive, and timeless campaigns are born. The magic of those spooky, nostalgic ads? It all starts with the right partnership.