Agency Spotlight: BBDO

BBDO is one of the largest advertising agencies out there. It is based in New York, but there are almost 300 different offices all over the world. Their mission is to deliver compelling commercials, and they achieve it well with "the work, the work, the work", a phrase that can be seen throughout their website. Speaking of the work, the work, the work, they do A LOT OF IT. Their clients include some of the world's leading brands, including Campbell's, at&t, FedEx, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, Mercedes Benz, Volkswagen, Starbucks, Visa, Pepsico, Wrigley and many more.
BBDO's website is as impressive as their client list. It is clean, professional, and easy to navigate. Their work tab showcases a spot they did for Carlton Drought, which was called the best beer ad of 2012 by the Huffington Post. It's definitely worth watching, and after seeing this along with some of their other work, I am convinced this agency is as impressive and professional as it is made out to be.

TracyLocke Agency Spotlight

I heard about TracyLocke a few years ago at one of the campus career fairs. This was before I had been accepted to the Texas Creative Sequence, so I was totally fan-girling over them when I heard that this was one of the few agencies at the career fair looking for creative summer interns. I've come a long way since then, and now that I have a portfolio I decided this agency would be my next target in my research.
TracyLocke is based in Dallas but, they have several locations in other areas as well, such as San Fransisco, Wilton, and Soho. Their mission is to find new and groundbreaking ways to re-imagine retail in a creative way. Their website is incredibly easy to navigate and I really love the general look of it and its clean, modern feel.  The homepage shows samples of their work, including a Diet Pepsi campaign with Sofia Vergara. This campaign, called 'Love Every Sip', includes everything from radio commercials to in-store activation. For Valentines Day, they launched limited edition heart cans, in which the traditional logo is shaped like a heart rather than a circle. The campaign has been successful nationwide, as have many other campaigns TracyLocke has been involved in. My background research on this agency has led me to believe this agency would be a great fit.

Tocquigny Agency Spotlight

I need to start off by saying how much I love Tocquigny's website. The layout is interesting, the design has a modern feel to it, I'm loving the color scheme, and as a whole it is a hell of a lot easier to navigate than their name is to pronounce. Tocquigny is based in right here in Austin, TX. So far, other than the fact that I'd more than likely embarrass myself in an interview while trying to say "Tocquigny," this advertising agency definitely had caught my interest.
Tocquigny has worked with a handful of impressive clients, including Caterpillar, Dell Corp, IDG, Jeep, Seagate, Washington Times, and many more. While scrolling through the work they've done for their clients, one thing that stood out to me was the app they came up with for Jeep. The design for it is what caught my eye, but when I looked into it more I was intrigued by their creative way of allowing Jeep users to enhance their brand experience with the app to track their travels and share with friends. Tocquigny's creative strategies and conceptual thinking come through in all their work, and I could definitely learn a lot from them.

The RIchards Group Agency Spotlight

The Richards Group was my next target for my agency research. I have seen some great work come from this agency, so my interest was already piqued. The Richards Group is based in Dallas, TX. I've been to Dallas several times and loved it, so there was already potential before my research even began. I started by exploring their website. If you haven't seen it yet, you can do so now by clicking here. Though it didn't stand out to me in terms of design, it is much easier to navigate than other agency websites I have visited in the past. I tend to think very complex in anything I design, but in this case the simplicity works.

Though The Richards Group's clients were impressive, including Bridgestone, GameStop, H-E-B, Pier 1 Imports, T.G.I. Fridays, Chick-fil-A, ULTA Beauty, PODS,  Central Market, and many more, that wasn't what stoof out to me the most about this agency. Upon reading their 'About' section of the website, something really resonated with me. The Richards Group prides itself on being completely honest with their work. They firmly believe that to build relationships, you have to tell the truth. In an industry that has the tendency to be associated with trickery and deception, this is a refreshing thing to hear from an agency. I have a lot of respect for The Richards Group and could easily see myself working in this kind of advertising agency.

GSD&M Agency Spotlight

I can't go on an agency research binge and not talk about GSD&M. I pass the gorgeous building on all my frequent Whole Foods ventures, so the fact that working here means I get to live in Austin intrigued me enough to look into the agency more. I'd already done quite a bit of research when applying here for a summer internship (fingers crossed!) and was certain I could fit in here. Their clients include Southwest Airlines, Walgreens, Austin City Limits, and many more. Their work and the conceptual thinking behind it for these clients showed a great deal of creativity and initiative, two very important skills if you want to make it in this industry.

Their Jarritos campaign caught my eye while browsing through the website because its all about introducing the brand and raising awareness, which is something I am currently working on in one of my campaigns for P2. It was really helpful to see a good example of how this can be done in a creative and effective way. I really admire GSD&M for their strategic and creative work, and believe this agency would be a great place for me to thrive and learn more about making incredible ads.

Droga5 Agency Spotlight

This weekend, I was hanging out with a friend who asked me where I wanted to end up after I graduate. He was shocked when I told him I hadn't really thought about it. It kind of scares me to think about the fact that I only have about a year left before I graduate and set off into the real world, but I know it's about time I start looking into ad agencies that I could see myself working at. And so the research begins...
I have heard a lot of great things about droga5, so I made that my starting point. It's safe to say that with the exception of the first time I heard Adam Levine sing 'Sunday Morning", this is about as close to 'love at first sight' as it gets. Droga5's campaigns are all so out of the box and entertaining that you almost forget they're ads. My favorite piece from them is their Puma Lift Spot, which I can shamelessly admit to watching repeatedly for about seven minutes last night. As if that spot wasn't enough to sell me, I also learned one of their clients is Newcastle Brown Ale, which happens to be my favorite beer. Overall, droga5 creates some really brilliant and visually stunning work, and I could definitely see myself at this kind of agency after I graduate.

The Most Incredible Opening Credits EVER

I recently went to see the movie Oz the Great and Powerful with one of my cousins when it was out in theaters. I wasn't a huge fan of the movie itself, but I can appreciate how visually stunning every scene was. And obviously James Franco's perfection can't be overlooked. The gorgeous effects took off from the beginning, as Oz had one of the most incredible opening credits I have ever seen in a film before. It's also completely in black and white, which says a lot about how amazing it looks visually if it can grab attention without using any color. It perfectly captures the feel of the movie's initial setting, which takes place at a traveling circus. Even if you don't plan on seeing the movie, the opening credits are definitely worth watching at least once, and you can do so by clicking here for some of the most beautiful typography you will ever see.

Print Magazine

When I was at my internship a few days ago, I had caught up on all my work so I was scrolling through the design section of Pinterest, hoping to find some stylistic inspiration for my current campaign. My boss came in the room while I was mulling over an intricate typography piece and told me she had something that might help inspire me. She left the room and came back about a minute later with a huge stack of magazines. It turns out she has quite the collection print and design magazines, and she encouraged me to look through them and take some home. Most of my inspiration searching tends to take place on the web, but I decided this was an opportunity to immerse myself in something new, so I took her up on the offer.

If you’ve never heard of Print magazine before, that’s okay because neither had I until now. It’s a bi-monthly magazine that showcases print design from every angle imaginable. I spent the rest of my shift (a good 2 hours or so) flipping through the pile and allowing myself to get lost in each issue. It’s funny how different the experience is when you see something creative or visually pleasing on a computer screen, as opposed to having it right in front of you. Those two hours I spent flipping through page after page of brilliant design work made me realize that the Internet is simply not enough to get fully immersed in creativity. There’s so much out there in the world that you can’t find online, and it’s all worth seeing.

Brooke in Wonderland

We can all admit to having gone through that phase when we were little kids and were obsessed with Disney movies. Well, I never really grew out of mine. Back in my days when an infatuation with these movies was socially acceptable, Alice in Wonderland was always my favorite one, and I watch it just as regularly today as I did back then. In fact I currently have my Netflix open to the movie in another window as I type this. As I got older, instead of growing out of the obsession, I let it grow. I read the books and watched every other movie remake.
I feel like every creative needs something - a book, a movie, an art piece, anything at all - to draw inspiration from. And let's be honest, what storyline (besides Harry Potter, don't even get me started on that) is more creative than Alice in Wonderland? Anyone who can come up with a plot so bizarre, yet so brilliant, has to have quite the imagination. Watching these movies and reading these books just makes me feel so inspired and reminds me the importance of having a big imagination, especially for the industry I want to get into once I graduate.

Daily Dishonesty

Daily Dishonesty is a blog I recently discovered that is definitely worth sharing, described as "lovely little lies from a hungry graphic designer." As an art director who is never not in the mood to eat, this is the first reason I fell in love with the blog. Basically, each post is a clever phrase that describes the little white lies we tell ourselves everyday that we know deep down are far from the truth. Each phrase is its an inspiring piece of typography and design. "My diet starts tomorrow" and "I have read and agreed to the terms and conditions" has never been more beautifully written. See the blog for yourself here.

Iain Macarthur's Zentangle Portrait

My discovery of Zentangle art led to another incredible discovery: Zentangle Portraits. I stumbled upon the work of Iain Macarthur, who has several incredible illustrations of these portraits. My favorite one is pictured below

I think it's really amazing how geometric art can take on so many different meanings. Some might thing that geometric art  refers strictly to sharp clean edges, but I've been slowly finding that this is not the case. For example, Zentangle art is incredibly versatile but still comprised of  many different shapes, some that don't even have names. Geometric art has that same versatility.

Zentangle

My love for geometric art has led to a new discovery. I recently found a style of design known as "Zentangle" that I have become obsessed with. Its geometric design on a completely new level. Most patterns show curvy shapes that divide up the design, and each shape consists of some type of geometric pattern. Zentangle is typically black and white but I really think there is something cool about the way all these different patterns come together in one design and all compliment each other. I've attached a picture of one of the Zentangle designs that I discovered today.