American Copywriter

May 12, 2008

AC #58 Now Available

The long awaited Luke Sullivan podcast part dos

The second part of our conversation with the great Luke Sullivan. Among other things we talk direct response TV like the kind you see embedded here. We talk about approaching this genre of advertising with some dignity. Like Fenske did.

Check it.

June 28, 2007

American Copywriter Podcast = Winner

To the great many of you out there that voted in Fly-Over Marketing's MVP (Most Valuable Podcast), those of us here at AC salute you. Just 20 hours ago we were crowned the winner of the contest, and even though John and Tug may not know, they're super pumped.

I'll make a pledge for them that they'll do their best to continue kicking ass with each and every podcast they make. I'd say that they'll even try to stick to a schedule, but that might be asking a bit much. I will say that if they continue their ways, there might be some renegade episodes coming your way. Because let's be honest here, who does all the legwork to get those things online?

Again, we all thank you for your vote. Keep listening.

June 16, 2007

10 minutes on the streets of New York

A quick podcast (recorded on the streets of NYC) with Prescott Perez-Fox centering on the twentysomething malady known as the "quarter life crisis."

Shout out to Ben Thoma and Scott for making geek drinks NYC a great time.

September 27, 2006

Russell Davies in the house.

Russell Davies is making his way to Kansas City and we plan to meet up with him for brews of both cold and hot kinds. Hey, you gotta love a guy with a title like Darth Strategist. In the middle of the brew-sharing, we'll record American Copywriter #46. You all have been most patient with our schedule, but hopefully, #46 will be will worth the wait. I am certain one of the topics we'll explore is the relationship between planner and creative. However, if you have other questions/topics you'd like me to try and fit into the session, leave them here.

September 12, 2006

AC #45 now available.

The Football & Philosphy Edition:

John and Tug meet on a Saturday afternoon in a noisy joint to watch football and talk ads. A new spot for DirecTV sparks a discussion regarding the relationship between Tolkien and Lewis (2:36) and, inevitably, Joseph Campbell and the Cosmogonic Cycle (9:13). After the break, the guys jump into a discussion of the NFL as a mega super brand (11:02). John finishes up the podcast at home by directing listeners to this intriguing post by Ernie Schenck, and encouraging listeners to send in audio comments about their own experiences (16:49). Not link-loved out, JJ rounds out the show by passing on this great bit of advice from Mack Simpson (20:30).

Sound mildly interesting? Listen to it now and find out.

August 24, 2006

Be a part of the show.

Over in the right hand sidebar is a little Java app that theoretically allows you, dear participant, to leave us an audio comment. Try it out. Let us know if you have any functionality issues. Your comments may be published here on the site. They may be incorporated into the podcast. Or we might just listen and laugh. In any case, enjoy. We're looking forward to hearing from you.

Thanks to the guys over at For Immediate Release for the tip.

Update: I should note that we consider this experimental. If it doesn't seem to work well, or is too time-consuming to manage on our end, we'll explore other options for you to participate further with the podcast.

May 31, 2006

Mashing it up with Joseph Jaffe

047171837801_bo2204203200_pisitbdp500arr Tug and I are proud to announce that American Copywriter and "the new marketing podcast" Across the Sound will be doing a mash-up episode. This means we'll be riding the long-tail and making memes with the one and only Joseph Jaffe, the author of one of our very favorite Adweek books, Life After the 30-Second Spot. Jaffe is one of the leading proponents of full consumer connectivity. The conversation is bound to be interesting. Stay tuned.

March 21, 2006

Holy Podcast!

Ten minute prayer sessions. Now for your ipod. Ah, the temptation of the Apple: Telegraph | News | 'God on the move' with prayer downloads.

February 22, 2006

And So It Begins...

Gervais For the past six weeks now, I've been a gigantic fan of the The Ricky Gervais Show podcast (note: link opens iTunes). The show is wonderfully hilarious and features a guy named Karl Pilkington, who could be one of the funniest guys I've heard in a long time.

But that's not what this post is about... entirely. The first run of their show was a 12-episdoe arc, which they just finished up on February 19. During the last few episodes, they kept mentioning/counting down to the end of the first season (if you will) and barely talked about coming back. It sounded like they really wanted to come back, but with busy schedules and what-not, I'm sure it wasn't an easy thing to do every week. When you claim to be the world's number one podcast, I hoped that SOMETHING will get them back in the studio.

That "something" has happened. Starting Tuesday, February 28, The Ricky Gervais Show will be back. Hip hip, hooray! Exciting news, right? I think so... but there's a catch. Now, to enjoy mad ramblings of Karl Pilkington (and his extremely round head), you're going to have to pay for it. Now it won't have ads in it, it'll just be the guys and whatever it is that they talk about, but it's not free anymore.

Yup. Podcasts, and the costs of producing/providing them, have become a legitamite business and the world's number one podcast is setting out to prove it can create a business model around them. This only makes sense as podcasters are providing some type of content or entertainment to their listeners... but I wonder how well this will work out, we don't have to pay for AM/FM radio (nor do we listen to it that much anymore).

How would you feel if American Copywriter went to a pay model?*

* This is just me, SethyG, rambling here. No one has ever mentioned making AC non-free, so don't freak out. Seriously, calm down.

November 03, 2005

If you haven't already...

Please check out Radio Talent Zoo. American Copywriter will be joining Radio Talent Zoo's line-up soon. But in the meantime, check out Sally Hogshead podcast, The Naked Career. Her first episode is killer.

October 25, 2005

AC #24 - Guaranteed to kick all other podcasts' asses!

Here it is, by popular demand, Part Two of our excellent discussion with the lovely and talented Sally Hogshead. We laugh, we cry, we hold each other until the break of dawn. And Sally's here, too. Enjoy it, won't you?

September 01, 2005

An update on evil Plan Z

Remember those days in junior high when you used the scientific method to prove that your hypothesis on why baking soda makes things blow up was actually true? Well, we are going to use that scientific method to give an update on our evil Plan Z, get Adam Curry on American Copywriter.

Observations: The Internet is a great way to send information to someone without really sending anything directly.

Hypothesis: If American Copywriter posts a message about wanting Adam Curry to appear on the show, then Adam Curry he will not only see the message but he will respond and agree to do the interview.

Experiments: Earlier this month, American Copywriter blogged about Adam Curry and suggested that we wanted him on the show.

Conclusions: Two trackbacks, a few comments on our site, even a comment on Curry's site about our post. Alas, no word from Adam Curry. Despite our best efforts, we can't seem to produce him for the show.

Final result: Sheer, utter failure. The Internet sucks.

August 31, 2005

DVD commentaries, podcasted

You may remember we wrote about the idea here a couple of months ago -- now it's out there. In the website Spoilers Podcast, film fans Rick Yaeger and Bill Douthett have been podcasting their own movie commentaries to dvds that don't feature their own commentary track.

After a short intro, Rick and Bill count to three so you can press "play" together with them and start listening to back stories, trivia, and anything else you'd expect to hear in a regular dvd commentary track. So far they have commentary podcasts for "Office Space," "Mallrats," and "Sin City." Each mp3 file turns out to be two hours long -- but even if you don't have time to sit and watch, they have posted a summary of each podcast in their website as well. Pretty cool.

I'm still waiting for the High Fidelity commentary, though.

August 24, 2005

You're older than you think we think you are

Thanks to our friend Irene for pointing toward this interesting little bit of podcasting research. Perhaps Tug and I can feel less ancient now.

August 11, 2005

Being Robert D. Moore

Robert D. Moore is the most executive of the producers on Sci-Fi's enormously successful re-imagining of Battlestar Galactica. Mr. Moore has a highly popular podcast about the show (which you really, really, really, really, really should be watching especially if you think you're not a "Sci-Fi" person). I listen to the 'cast religiously. I had hoped to listen to a podcast about the "Fragged" episode on a plane to Florida, but it never materialized. So, it turns out Mr. Moore was on vacation the week before I was an didn't quite get a chance to record his podcast. Well, I have the same issue this week. Tug and I won't be able to record until late this evening at the earliest which means we likely won't post a show until Monday or Tuesday of next week. Apologize for the delay. But we'll make sure to make AC #19 worth it. While we're at it, let me thank you for all the feedback we got on AC #18 both through the blog and through e-mail.

Oh, and should anyone from BSG happen to land on this post: I frackin' love the show. And, in fact, we talked about it on AC #7.

August 10, 2005

Just an experiment

Sorry to interrupt your American Copywriter experience but I’m trying this post out as a kind of message in a bottle type experiment. What if we blogged about Adam Curry, a.k.a. the Podfather, because we were interested in having him on our show for about a 10 minute interview to talk about podcasting and its impact on the advertising world? Would he read this post? And if he did, do you think he might actually send an email to neil.getzlow@shscom.com, saying, yes, I have time in the near future to spend less than an hour on the phone with those too cute AC boys, John January and Tug McTighe? What are the odds of this happening? Feel free to venture a guess at your own odds. I’m saying 100-1 today.

July 21, 2005

Goodbye, Scotty

American Copywriter salutes James Doohan a.k.a Scotty from Star Trek the Original Series. Mr. Doohan passed away July 20th. You know, every creative in the world can identify with the character of Montgomery Scott. As chief engineer of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 Scotty dealt constantly with serious deadline and budget pressures. What should have taken weeks he got done in days. What should have taken days he got done in hours. Usually without the proper support. In short, he solved problems. With his wits.

Thanks for the memories, Mr. Doohan.

July 18, 2005

That was so three weeks ago...

Just so we all know, AC scooped Ad Age on this topic in AC #14: IS TOM CRUISE A CELEBRITY BRAND IN TROUBLE? Note: registration required by Ad Age.

July 12, 2005

AC #16 Now Available

Discussions on creativity. Or Tug's not here, we have to find someone else with which to yak about this week's topic.

This show has a pretty different flavor. I have some discussions with my family about the roots of our creativity. This part is very introspective and scratches my, "I want to do one of an HBO documentary about my family" itch.

Then I hop on the phone with my friend Wade who makes his living through the art he produces. This part is much more akin to a typical show. I think you'll think Wade is amusing.

No real revelations here. But it's a fun topic to think about anyway. Enjoy. Tug's back in town and we'll fire up an old-fashioned John/Tug rant for next week.

July 01, 2005

AC #15 Now Available

AC #15 is now available for your listening pleasure. Our moles at Cannes 2005, Sean Ganann and Miles Joyce from Net X Austrailia, spend a few minutes dishing the dirt on what went down at the big show. Plus Tug becomes obsessed with using the word "delicious."

June 28, 2005

iTunes 4.9 = Podcast Suppport

iTunes 4.9 came out today and the biggest news about this release is the new Podcast category, with TONS of Podcasts in their directory. You can even subscribe via iTunes, how nifty... but what does that mean for programs/sites like iPodderx? Time will tell.

In the meantime, go get the new version and check out American Copywriter!!!

June 13, 2005

AC #14 now available

Recorded live in Tug's living room, we talk about brands (both personal and corporate) and how the new trend toward viral expressions may be not be so great for the people responsible for managing brands in the long haul. We raise more questions that we answer, I think. But we had a good time making it. I swear the rabbit story is true.

June 07, 2005

AC #13 Part 2 Now Available... and a question.

Only a day late, but definitely not a dollar short, we present Part 2 of the Mark Fenske hour. We hope you enjoy this one as well as the first (sans the audio issues).

Now, a question for our listeners. Since we started American Copywriter back in February, we've been releasing each podcast at 64kbs and 22.05kHz -- it's a lower quality setting that allows us to give you smaller file sizes (it doesn't affect audio levels, mind you). Lately, there has been some discussion as to us making the quality of sound better, but in doing so, the file sizes would also increase.

What's the general feeling on larger file sizes? Do you want better audio quality? If so, do you mind downloading a bigger mp3? Do you not care either way? Please, let us know and we'll do whatever we can to make American Copywriter even better.

June 06, 2005

American Copywriter Noted in Business Week

The June 6th edition of Business Week (yes, THAT Business Week) contains a great article entitled "The Lowdown on Podcasting." It's well written, informative and it mentions a certain little podcast called American Copywriter. Sadly, they didn't put the sidebar online, but here is what BW had to say about AC:

Kids, that is damn cool. Tug and I particularly enjoyed the extremely excitable description. Extremely true as all our regular listeners know. Oh, and I learned a new word: Cognoscenti! Cool.

We're not entirely sure how they came across us, but we bet one of you guys managed to turn them on to us. If you are the culprit let us know, we owe you a shirt. And we do wish to thank Business Week (and Stephen Baker) for including us. Stephen, if you'd like some cool Sheepwear, just let us know.

Beyond the recognition for our show, it was a great article for podcasting overall and several other worthwhile shows got love, too. Who knew a kooky idea that Jerome and Neil and Seth had one day last January would land us in Business Week? Tug and I (and Jerome and Neil and Seth) are very grateful for all of the support that all of you in AC family send our way each and every day.

American Copywriter encourages you to buy the June 6th edition of Business Week, available at your favorite newstand now.

June 03, 2005

AC#13 Now Available

Delay after ironic delay has kept AC#13 down...until now.

If you're not a subscriber, point your browser here and click on the very latest American Copywriter podcast. In this one, John and Tug talk less, and listen more, during a conversation with the one and only Mark Fenske. The first of two podcasts. Part two will be up next Monday.

June 02, 2005

Podcasting coolness, squared.

One way we hear the concept of "podcasting" being explained to people who are out of the loop is by calling podcasts "downloadable radio shows". And really, as you listen around, you'll see that most podcasting done nowadays is still very reminiscent of a talk radio or music show, with the difference that you can listen to it whenever you want.

And that's all very cool. But what I personally think is extremely, extremely cool is when you get to marry podcasts with other media -- or senses. Look at "sound seeing." Or at the unofficial audio guides to the MOMA produced by a Marymount professor and his students. I'm thinking that's where we can stop relying on the radio metaphor to understand what a cool thing a podcast could be. Imagine putting your walking shoes on and then loading an mp3 into your iPod for a guided tour of a museum, recorded by that one professor that made art history unboring. Or a guided tour of a city or town, recorded by that one friend who has a good story about every single brick downtown. Or taking your own college campus tour, recorded by unofficial ambassadors that tell you the important stuff about the university -- less about the year the anthropology museum was founded, more where the bars are.

Or think of unofficial audio commentary to your favorite film, just like the ones on today's dvds. But better. And funnier. Just download it and press play as soon as you hear the lion roar for the third time -- "Dark Side of the Moon / Wizard of Oz" mash-up style. And even for an official commentary track, why wait until a new dvd edition comes out? Just release it by itself. Won't John Cusack, Stephen Frears, or Nick Hornby please finally record one of those tracks for High Fidelity and put it out on the iTunes store?

Or why don't you grab your funniest two friends, your worst B movie, and make your own Mistery Science Theater 3000. Then share it with everyone.

Or -- what else will people come up with? This podcasting deal is cool stuff, boys and girls.

May 24, 2005

#13 is jinxed

We are, as they say, behind our time.

Last Friday's scheduled time just didn't work out. We regrouped over the weekend and were set to record at 7 a.m. on Monday but Jerome had "issues," and didn't make it to work until 8:30 a.m. at which time Tug and I had already been sucked inot meetings. Now, I am on the road and won't be back in the office until Friday. So, alas...we are delayed. In the meantime, give #7 another listen. It still amuses me personally. Another podcast will be online as soon as advertising allows.

May 20, 2005

Special Edition Podcast

A bonus podcast this week is now available. A meandering and philisophical ramble about what advertising people can learn from the Star War's movies. Just some extra content. Episode #13 will be out on time. Happy weekends all.

May 16, 2005

AC #12 now available.

Those of you who like "more advertising" and "less pop culture" may, at the outset, be disconcerted by this podcast. But stick with it. We land on how "the way they make movies" may indeed impact "the way we make advertising." There's a lot of think about. Plus, once again, we sing. Let us know what you think.

May 10, 2005

So ... how we doin?

Here's the thing.

American Copywriter has enjoyed some early success. But we all know it can be improved. Tug and I (and our day job employers) want to see the podcast continue to grow. We'd like to see our subscriber base continue to grow as well. Plus we'd love for the show to be the kind of thing that your friends get really sick of hearing you talk about. We want raving fans.

So, we're running a mini focus group here people. What's working? What could work better? What is tasty? What should be cut away like gristle?

Your comments are welcome here. Or, if you want to tongue lash us in private you may also send us email: americancopywriter@shscom.com.

Fire away.

May 06, 2005

Thanks!

Hey, we noticed today that a few of you had taken the time to visit Podcast Alley and had either voted for the show or left some comments. We humbly thank you. Currently our show is ranked at #483. Surely, we're better than that.

April 22, 2005

To #9A or not to #9A?

We did manage to record AC #9A today. We're calling it #9A because it's really a continuation of #9. Like the Kill Bills or The Godfathers I & II. Problem is that we feel that the show might really suck (sequels usually do). Tug is gonna put ears and editing tools on it Monday and see if he can salvage something worth your time.

As a preview, however, we do talk a little bit about these Star Wars Countdown spots that Tug, Paul Diamond, Russell Bates and I wrote and, unfortunately for all of you, actually starred in for The Sci-Fi Channel.

The three spots you'll see were part of a 10 spot package created to "count down" the days unti the release of Star Wars Episode One.

They were directed by Russell. The old regime at Sci-Fi ran them (all across this great nation) once an hour for 10 straight days. If everyone really does have 15 minutes of fame, we used up 13 of ours on that project.

If you ever wondered what lengths we'd go to for a good laugh, you won't after viewing these.

Happy weekend.

P.S. For those of you who have complained about levels we do believe we've discovered the issue. Should #9A post on time, we hope you'll hear exactly how loud we really are. Cheers.

April 21, 2005

Episode #9 and Episode #9A

I'm mad at us regarding AC#9. I

feel we spent way too much time talking about the way people talk and not nearly enough time talking about the marketing of Star Wars. Tug and I decided that we're going to do Episide #9A that picks up where Episode #9 left off. There's just too much ground we left uncovered.

Oh...check this site out:

Mpire

Let's hand it to our friends at Mars, Inc. This is a great tie-in. The best part? The Dark Chocolate line extension. Freakin' perfect. While we're talking about Mars....I like the "Sheep Boys" stuff. Much more charming on air than it might look on the pages of an industry rag.

The Latest Podcast

Episode 58
The Luke Sullivan Edition (Part Dos)

Ad Age Power 150

As Heard On

Audio Comments

Record a comment from your computer right now. Be pithy.

Podcasting Links

AC Show Notes/Full Library
There's more to AC than meets the blog.
Across the Sound
Joseph Jaffe's award-winning podcast. He has a cute accent.
Delta Park Project
Fuh. Knee.
For Immediate Release
Shel and Neville's prolific podcast and blog.
Jawbone Radio
We like this show.
Managing The Gray
C.C. Chapman's great 'cast. We wish he would have spelled it "grey."
Podcast 411
Seriously, get the 411 on podcasting. A fellow KC podcaster gone global.
Podcast Alley
Podcast Bunker
Podcrawl
Discover good shows here.
Six Pixels of Separation
Mitch Joel's fine podcast and blog. He's from Montreal. And he's cool.
Useful Sounds
The goddess of podcasting.

Sites of Note

3rd Martini
From creative generalist and all-around good guy Jeremy Fuksa.
Ad Feed (The)
All the best feeds about the world of advertising conveniently located on one nicely designed page. Delish.
Ad Rants
Snarkily delicious.
Adfreak
A great blog from the folks who bring us Adweek.
AdLand
Dabitch is our hero.
AdPulp
One of our favorite ad biz blogs.
AdScam/The Horror!
George skewers the ad world with piss and vinegar.
Adverblog
He's just so...so...European.
Advertising For Peanuts
Mr. Littlejohn won't be working for peanuts for long.
Advertising/Design Goodness
Via Toronto-based AD Frederik Samuel. Good place to see work.
Ask A Copywriter
Go ahead. Ask BT what you want to know.
Ben Thoma
One of our first listeners. Turns out he's smart and talented. No thanks to us.
Black Marks on Wood Pulp
A nice place to pause and refresh your appreciation for the craft of stringing words together and Indiana Pacer updates.
Brand Flakes For Breakfast
Our pals Plaid (formerly known as Via) serve up thoughts and good work from their agency in CT.
Brand Story
From Rob Marsh a.k.a. "The Smart Guy."
Bruno Pieroni
One of our own.
Chasing the Press
Andrea Rizk chases the press every day in an effort to expose every communications professional in the industry.
Chimp Media Monitoring
Frankly, no one is more qualified to blog about advertising the great ape that is FishNChimps.
Creative Skirts
The feminine side of creativity. Co-authored by former SHS intern and VCU Ad Center alum Lauren Peters.
Cup of Java
Hot posts from the Caffeine Goddess herself.
Diablogue
Smart stuff from the Land Down Unda' via our smart friends Michelle and Sean.
Ernie Schenck CTA
Funny. Smart. Not a wimpy blog. We like Ernie.
Experience Curve
Karl Long's intelligent takes on ye olde new marketing.
Fresh Glue
We see so much of ourselves here. Plus it's got a horsey!
Future Lab
Great collective of bloggers.
Hee-Haw Marketing
Paul makes Buck Owens proud every day.
Hiring Revolution
Tackling issues that affect human resources professionals, hiring managers and industry employment in general.
How I got a job in advertising
The trials and tribulations of Jac Madsen's hunt for a job in the wide world of advertising.
Jack Cheng
A great young mind.
Jaffe Juice
Drink his Kool-Aide.
KFADvertising
What some twenty-something copywriter from Kansas thinks about advertising.
Logic + Emotion
Gotta love David's uber cool takes.
Mack Simpson/Adverb
The daily life of a Texas Ad Monkey. We like Mack.
Madison AveNew
From "I'm stuck on Band-Aid brand" creator Harry Webber.
Make the Logo Bigger
Bill Green's cool blog about, what else, being an art director.
Mark Fenske
A great writer whom we are also proud to call our friend.
MultiCultClassics
High Jive's on multiculturalism in the ad industry and beyond.
Not Billable
A smartly written blog with, get this, a female's perspective on the biz. Man, that's different!
OTIS Productions
From left coast commerical director Russell Bates.
Russell Davies
We like him. Even if he is a famous planner and all that.
Seth Godin
We love this man. And not just because he put SHS in one of his e-books.
Seth Gunderson
We love this man, too. And not just because he coaches our softball team.
Shake Well Before Using
Ariel is funny, smart and ruthless.
SHS
An agency that stands out from the flock.
SHS Sheep Slayer Softball
God, we hope Sally Hogshead was right about that whole best creative/worst softball team thing.
Tangerine Toad
Maybe, just maybe, as smart and sensible about the business as we are.
Texturl
The poetics of new media from Atlanta-based copywriter and Cartoon Network fiend Brandon Barr.
The Ad Hole
From the man, the myth, the legend...Jason Fox.
The Bullshit Observer
Todd is the man.
The Client Side
Michael Seaton's refreshing take from the OTHER side o' the bidness.
The Hidden Persuader
Hidden? Not really. Planners this is a good haunt for you.
The Hog Blog
From the radical Sally Hogshead.
The Spunker
Ben's cool. Plus how can you not love a blog whose tagline is: Niptuck the Phat of the Adland.
Todd And
Home of some good insights and the Power 150. Plus, he likes Legos.
W+K London
They made Cog. They made "Grr." They make us sick with how delicious their ads are.
Where's My Jetpack?
It'sa question worth asking. It's a blog worth reading.
Why advertising sucks
Anonymous, yet often hilarious, rants about our life in advertising.
Wired & Hired
Helping professionals be more successful in their job search.
Woolard Speak
Andy is one smart dude. He also works for a great agency we happen to know.
Yonder Ponder
James-H says he's a card carrying member of the diatribe. That often equals funny. What's in the water in Dallas?

Talent Zoo Column

Everything I need to know about advertising I learned from Star Wars