When I was a marketing director for a fast-growing restaurant brand, I had a bad case of Chipotle envy. Everything they did was smart. The real estate, the restaurant décor, the portions, the quality, the menu board layout…you name it, I pretty much was a fan. Then the communications tied it all together. From the …
What Happened To Chipotle: The Demise Of A Clever Communicator Read More »
Creating a Super Bowl ad is a slippery slope, maybe even more slippery than the playing field was at this year’s game. A brand has committed to spending a ton of money buying the media and then has to decide how to fill that space and impart something meaningful. Sometimes it goes well. Sometimes it …
Advertising’s Big Day: Quick Takes On The Super Bowl Read More »
As sure as TBS will air “A Christmas Story” and ESPN will air a bowl game featuring two not very good college football teams, there’s a good chance you’ll see Corona’s Christmas spot this holiday season. If you’re thinking you’ve seen this spot for years, you’re right. They have used this same commercial for 32 …
Nucleus Ad Review: Quiet Appreciation For Corona’s Christmas Spot Read More »
I get it. Company newsletters and LinkedIn aren’t supposed to be for cute dog pictures. The adventures of our favorite pets are typically supposed to go on, well, every other social media platform. However, there is a work-related connection here if you’ll allow me to explain. Otis Bast was “employee #2” at Nucleus. After 16 …
There were a few reasons I didn’t want titles at Nucleus. First, my original attitude was that if you think you’re too good for something, you’re probably good for nothing. I didn’t want titles to make people feel constricted. This was inspired by a senior art director I worked with early in my career. The …
Entitled In A Good Way: Why We Finally Decided To Go With Titles Read More »
Malcolm Gladwell is at it again, blending together seemingly disparate observations and phenomena from world history and much more recent events into what seems like it should be intriguing tapestry. Subtitled, “What We Should Know About People We Don’t Know,” Talking To Strangers covers a lot of ground, much of which is surprising. Winston Churchill …
The third quarter was a busy one for Nucleus and saw a tremendous return to face-to-face insights work. In August alone, we conducted something like 15 qualitative groups, which included a trip to Minneapolis. In this busy month, we did some card sorting and some shelf display work that just isn’t the same in a …
Anyone who ever made a mixtape gets it. You wanted a certain energy…the right flow…a definite feeling. You deliberately assembled a blend of artists, creators and innovators that you respected. And you absolutely wanted something that would never get old. That’s exactly what we did with Mixtape Creative Coworking, a brand we soft launched this …
Introducing Mixtape: A Funky-Yet-Functional Coworking Space Brand Launch Read More »
“Next-Stepper.” I had never heard these two words used as a compound phrase to describe someone but that is what my colleague Kim Atkinson called Kristen Katzman back in 2002. This took place at the rapidly-growing corporate marketing department of the even more rapidly-growing Cold Stone Creamery chain of restaurants. The unique description came a …
Welcoming Kristen Katzman To The Squad (or, The Tale Of The Next Stepper) Read More »
There is a homeless mission here in my adopted city that provides meals, shelter, clothing and job placement for the homeless. I’m not looking for a Congressional medal or anything, but we’ve tried to support them when we can over the years. Side Note: If you’re looking for a rewarding team-building activity, get your crew …
Perfectly Put: What A Homeless Shelter Can Teach Us About Knowing Your Consumer Read More »
