DRTV
I was the senior writer at MacLaren MRM when we received this brief. My response was that we had a perfect storm of right product, right price and right time. We just had to executive textbook DRTV and lead with the interest rate. This is one component of an integrated campaign that netted the kind of cash some provinces dream of.
The TTC
This campaign idea was based on my insight that boredom is the only common ground for all TTC riders. This is one of the highest scoring campaigns for unaided brand recall in the commission’s history. Once I had the big idea, it was easy to roll it out. That’s the thing with insights, they have to be honest.
George Brown Centre for the Performing Arts
“Raw Talent” is based on the insight that people want to discover new talent. This was the most compelling point of differentiation for the George Brown Theatre School.
Columbia House
I wrote some classic direct mail for Columbia House before getting the chance to take the brand online. To sell DVDs I know that we had to be relevant to movie lovers and create an experience that rewarded their knowledge. The result was The Ultimate Players Club, which I based loosely on the Tim Robbins film. Invite me in and tell you more about it.
Social stunts and agency promotion
Here’s a case where I joined a brainstorm session over beer and came up the “big idea” of connecting Greg’s happiness message with the certain unhappiness caused by the G20. After I had the initial idea, everyone worked on this project. It was a trophy dash.