1 Year

Today marks my first year as a Jr. Copywriter.

I started my career as a Jr. Copywriter at Upshot at 9:30 AM, Jan. 5, 2009.

It feels good. Knowing that I've done what I love for 1 year and that for 1 year a group of people thought I was great at what I do.

I don't say that lightly, over 20% of the creatives at my office lost their job at some point this year, some of them I thought were better than me.

Here's to another year.

PJL

First Day Back

See what I did there, I used a title that incorporates two meanings.

This is my first post in a long time.

And today is my first day back after a nice week long vacation.

It's almost been a year since I started at my Agency.

Its been nuts.

I've seen our largest client leave. We then won enough business within 2 months to nearly replace that clients revenue.

I've personally written my first five minute sizzle reel. Won a big campaign pitch, have the client take that same campaign in house, then win their even bigger overall brand pitch.

I've been praised for my hard work and my big ideas. I've been scolded for not paying enough attention to the small details.

I've been asked to write a Holiday Invite to our client for a party. And I've been passed over for a project that I really wanted to work on.

Its been rough, its been fun and I don't think I'd want it any other way.

This is why you want to work in advertising.

1 Week ago today, I was finishing up my work for the day.

It had been a pretty good day. I spent most of it huddled with my art director going over background plates to generate some composite photos for a shoot on a upcoming campaign we're both excited about.

At the end of the day I poked my head into an office we use for brainstorming meetings.

A Sr. AD who sits next to me was in there looking frustrated.

"What's up?" I said.

"Nada just working on this [DELETED] pitch."

"Cool, mind if I look?"

"Nope."

For the next 15 minutes, I read the notes posted on the wall.

"Do you think if we do this..."

3 Hours later I was on the pitch team and my wife was calling me wanting to know why I was so late.

"I'm sorry sweetie. I'm makin' ads."

These are the moments you bust your butt in portfolio school for. That you sit in your cubicle and write catalogs copy for. This is what is so great about being in Advertising. The ability to get lost in your work and love every second of it.

The Most Exhausting Thing So Far...

I have now officially worked on a pitch team. I have worked on an exiting client. I have worked on a loyal client. And I have worked on a client that cancels every job.

But the most exhausting thing about advertising so far has been...

worrying about job security.  

I know people say work hard, do great work, and your job is secure. But it's still not easy, when things loom overhead. 

My agency has ben great about doing its best to retain people. And they have been great in how they treat the people they're forced to let go. Still, this economy sucks. It's not a downturn, its slow-down, its just a sucky-economy. And in a sucky economy, Advertising creatives have little faith in the security of their jobs.

And that lurking thought in the back of your head. The one that seems to pop up every time I get a project down and there isn't something immediately waiting on me the second I'm done, is the most exhausting aspect of working in advertising. 

Doing Partner Work for Clients

I got to work on an amazing brand last week, sorry can't say who. They do a lot of cool work, they have their own identity and ideology. 

They are not a client of my agency. They are a partner of one of our clients. They are good partners, but their styles are mutually exclusive, so I had to write a print ad, a banner ad, and a poster in their voice, our art director had to lay it out in their style, and then our client got to slap their logo in the bottom LEFT hand corner lol.

If it runs, it will be a piece I put in my book because it shows a different voice than the work I do for Disney and Aircell, plus they lines kind of kick ass (not to brag or anything).

So why am I telling you this, oh future Ad Stars.

Because you spend your entire time in portfolio school making ads for a specific client, with a specific voice, a specific style, and a specific problem you're solving.

In the real world you'll make ads for a client that must include their partners, merge their voices, merge their style, and merge their problems into one cohesive message.

So think about that next time you see an ad in a magazine or a banner ad that is done with partner clients. Think how you would have done it so that both partners feel satisfied with the work, and you'd feel proud of the work. Because when you got to work, that's the type of things a junior works on lol. (lets see if I can say work anymore times. work, work, work,)

That's it for now.

PJL

Aftermath

Yesterday was the first day back after layoffs. 

If you've ever wondered what it would be like if they showed the day after a zombie outbreak movie ends, walk into an ad agency the day after layoffs.

Life has to go on. It's a cliche, I know, but it's the truth. 

Awesome work still needs to get done for the clients, but you can't help but cringe every time you walk by a desk that used to be filled with a friend or a colleague.

However, the best remedy for the post-layoff blahs, is to do great work for a client that is excited about it. My partner and I have a campaign for our client and the client is even increasing the budget to do more tactics based on the concept.

Things will get better and we'll rebound, until then I'll be on the lookout for zombies.

PJL

Officially Initiated Into the Business

I went through my first round of layoffs this morning.

More than 20 people of varying skill and talent were let go.

I was not among them.

But a good friend whom I owe a lot of the start of my career too was.

You know who you are, if there is anything I can do you know my #.

This is one of those times Advertising reminds you that its still a job.

Regardless of how fun it is.