Last week marked a major shift for our country. The mood changed. The rules changed. Which meant that many brands had to change their messages and tonality in order to sound in sync with the times. While other brands that had not been part of our collective conversation finally found their pick-up lines working like Joey Tribbiani’s best material.
This meant a McFlurry of activity at The Weaponry, my advertising and idea agency. While other business were grinding to a halt, our services were sought after like a jumbo pack of toilet paper at Costco.
Did I mention that my entire team also moved to our spring offices this week? Which is a fun way to say that we all worked from home. So did all of our clients. You probably did too.
Here are some of the highlights from our week.
Monday
- We had our first client meeting at 9am on Monday morning.
- In that meeting we planned significant messaging adjustments to respond to new social and economic conditions.
- We spent the rest of the day ideating. It felt like we were in a movie about advertising. Complete with Glen Frey’s The Heat Is On playing in the background.
- At 5pm we presented a new creative campaign for that same client we met with at 9am. Boom!
Tuesday
- We added 2 news clients to our roster.
- 1 in Columbus, Ohio.
- 1 in Los Angeles
- We had a kickoff meeting to get the L.A.-based client rolling. Because there was no time to waste.
Wednesday
- I had a 2-hour video call with my CEO roundtable to talk with other business owners about what they are facing, and the challenging decisions that need to be made in response to the current uncertainty. Several of the member’s businesses were essentially stopped in their tracks by the current ban on gatherings. Which made me extremely thankful for the strong demand for our services.
- I did an interview with Julia Fello from WTMJ-4 (NBC) in Milwaukee about working from home. You can see the interview here. Thanks to Monica Baer for connecting me and Julia.
Thursday
- We presented a new fully-integrated campaign for a new sponsorship that we created on behalf of one of our clients. The campaign included TV, outdoor, long form video, print, in-store displays, event activation, barn painting, social media, digital display and vehicle wraps. That was about it. #ThingsBubbaSays
- We presented 37 new logos designs for a long-existing brand as part of a major rebrand initiative. Our 4 clients were all on video-conference, from home, while under house arrest.
- Thursday night at 11pm I received an email from one of our clients inquiring about availability to meet the next day. They wanted to discuss ideas for a new promotion to take advantage of the new normal. I responded minutes later with a meeting time on Friday to kickoff the project.
Friday
- We presented a new content campaign featuring online videos, ranging from 15 seconds to 4 minutes long.
- Late on Friday afternoon we received client approval on a re-edit and new voiceover language for a television commercial. I contacted the recording studio to book time with them to record and master 2 new spots. They asked if I wanted to book time on Monday. I said no, I wanted time today, or tomorrow, which of course was Saturday. Since it was late in the day on Friday, and most people had gone home for the day, we settled for first thing Saturday morning.
Saturday
- My team, the audio engineer, voiceover talent, and editor gathered virtually to help speed new commercials to market to help our client respond to our current climate.
- We sent brand new commercials to TV stations for immediate airing.
- We took a deep breath, and were thankful for the ability to take deep breaths.
Key Takeaway
These are unique times. The rules, challenges and opportunities are different right now. Help your customers, clients neighbors, family and friends get through this and they will never forget what you did for them. Yes, the stage is different. Most of us are everything-ing from home. But what it takes to shine during these times is the same. So shine on you crazy diamonds.
Adam Albrecht Blog 