The Brief Bros.

106. The case for waiting to launch your ad career.

Do you jump right from college or your portfolio program into an ad agency or client-side job? Maybe that makes good sense, but don't think you have to. Today, Henry and I talk about the advantages of waiting and doing something else before you start your career. The dividends could pay handsomely.

105. A chat with the AdWeak editor, Paul Taylor.

You've never seen his handsome mug before, but today's the day. Paul Taylor, aka The Adweak Editor,  makes his video debut with Henry Gomez and me. It's an honor and a privilege. He's skewered us all, no matter which role we play in AdLand, because he's one of us. And now he's our guest. We had a lively and entertaining conversation. Don't miss this one!

104. When you don’t need to write a creative brief.

I put this question to my partner and co-host, Henry Gomez, resident strategist at Zubi Advertising in Miami and he came up with some great answers. The brief is hard to write so don't think you need one for every project. Save your time and energy and be judicious about when it's time for a brief. Watch this episode and give yourself a break.

103. Creative Review: New OOH for McDonald’s from DDB New Zealand

Henry Gomez and I exchange our views on a new OOH campaign for McDonald’s by DDB New Zealand. We haven’t disagreed about much lately, but today we take opposing views. DDB New Zealand’s work brings a searing spotlight to the issue of advertising’s powerful role as an influencer. Henry and I bat this one back and forth. Tune in to find out where we land.

102. A conversation with Bob Harrison, creative director at Luckie & Company

Bob Harrison is an old friend and colleague from my Minneapolis days. He worked for me as a copywriter when I ran the British Airways NA loyalty programs advertising business. Today, he’s a respected and award-winning creative director/writer at Luckie & Company in Birmingham, AL. And I could not be more proud. Henry Gomez and I invited Bob to join us this week and we had a great chat about his work—Bob and Henry swapped notes about the thrill of winning at Cannes—and the challenges around getting good briefs for his team of creatives. He shares with us Luckie’s commitment to data-driven insights and how that is reflected in the briefing process.

101. A conversation with Mara Rada, chief strategist at Feral Corp.

On our way from episode 100, we plunge ahead into our next 100 episodes! Today we bring you a fascinating conversation with Mara Rada, chief strategist at Feral Corporation. In a short phrase, Mara and her team launch brands from scratch. Most of us in Adland work on existing brands. Mara loves the challenge of working with entrepreneurs to bring to the market the next Apple or Nike or Tesla. It’s a rarified world, and Henry Gomez and I engage her in a wide-ranging conversation. Join us!

100. Our 100th episode. Woo-hoo!

We can hardly believe it, but Henry and I have reached 100 episodes of The Brief Bros. Almost two years of weekly jawing about creative briefs and chatting up guests. Plus the occasional creative review. Today, Henry and I share our thoughts about what we’ve accomplished in the past couple years and bring you clips from our favorite episodes. This is a fond and fun bit of nostalgia and pride in our idea and our partnership. Enjoy the show!

99. What to think about before you write a brief.

What should newbie and veteran brief writers alike consider before they put fingers to keyboard or pen to paper? I put this question to Henry and he gave us some valuable thought-starters. A creative brief is a thinking document, not a mindless form to fill out. Join us on this episode of The Brief Bros. as we offer brief writers sound advice on what to think about before you start writing your next brief.

98. Final Creative Review for 2022.

Henry and I review two new spots for our final Creative Review of 2022. The first spot is for the latest Covid booster by Pfizer Biontech by Fierce Pharma Marketing. Spot number two is by Luck Generals, whose work we’ve reviewed before. This one is a new Christmas spot for Amazon. We like one more than the other. Watch this episode to find out which one wins our approval. Maybe you agree. Maybe you don’t. See you again in 2023!

97. A conversation with Matt Ryan, senior strategist at Popcorn.

Matt Ryan’s official title is Sr. Director of Communication Plans, which is a fancy way of describing his role as the top strategist for Universal Resort Orlando’s in-house ad agency, Popcorn. Henry and I had a chance to talk in depth with Matt about the laudable process Popcorn developed to foster a collaborative environment to write creative briefs. It’s a system worth copying because it works so well. Join us today as Matt tells about what Popcorn does to support great brief writing.

96. Another conversation with Cameron Day, author of Spittin’ Chiclets.

He’s back! Our friend Cameron Day, author of The Advertising Survival Guide—Stage One: Launch and Ascent: Chew With Your Mind Open, and our guest about 10 months ago, returns for another wide-ranging and fun conversation. This time, Henry Gomez and I welcome Cam back to talk about his new book, The Advertising Survival Guide—Stage Two: Managing the Messy Middle Years: Spittin’ Chiclets. Cam weighs in on briefs, writing taglines, why brands matter and don’t, and other juicy topics creatives love to talk about. And we just tickled the surface of Cam’s essential book for advertising creatives. It’s advice we all wish we had when we were starting. So read his books and join us in our conversation.

95. A conversation with Leticia Rita, co-founder of HolaBrief.com.

Henry Gomez and I welcome Leticia Rita, co-founder of an online creative brief platform called HolaBrief.com. Her site offers free customizable briefing templates designed for freelancers, small to medium-sized agencies, design firms and start-ups. Leticia, a former creative, comes to us from Spain. She felt a similar pang of frustration as I did before I wrote my book, during a creative briefing that prompted her to start HolaBrief with a colleague. Today, her team is ten strong. She tells us about HolaBrief, how she got it off the ground and why it’s so important to the creative process. Leticia brings an infectious passion to her work. Don’t miss this episode.

94. Creative Review: Northern Tool Equipment

Henry Gomezhttp://henrylouisgomez.com and I bring you another Creative Review this week. As we try to do with these Reviews, we focus on real products. Northern Tool + Equipment fits the bill perfectly. NT+E is one of the nation’s leading retailers of high-quality tools and equipment for professionals and DIYers. Today we discuss and dissect three spots: one :30 and two :15s. Agency of Record: Colle McVoy, Minneapolis.

93. A conversation with Paul MacFarlane.

Henry Gomez and I welcome one of our more devoted viewers and fans, Paul MacFarlane. He’s also a fellow traveler committed to writing and advocating for great creative briefs. His work as a creative director and brand strategist for his own company, The 1101 Experiment, demonstrates how he puts walks the walk. Paul came to our attention months ago when he started liking and commenting on our LinkedIn posts and the episodes of The Brief Bros. he most enjoyed. You’ll love today’s conversation because Paul brings a unique passion to briefs and briefing we don’t see too often. He’s one of us, ladies and gentleman. God bless him!