A Clean Start

Ahhh, protein. For our second assignment in copywriting, the product was New-Whey Liquid Protein. Aside from a dreadful name (which we subsequently renamed the Liquid Protein Bullet) and absolutely abominable packaging (a couple of batteries and the thing might have started vibrating), the product itself was pretty remarkable: 42g of protein in a 3 oz. indestructible dildo-esque tube, 0g fat, 0g sugar, 0g carbs, 0g cholesterol, 176 calories.

Pretty much God in a 3 oz. liquid form.

While my partner James and I probably did close to 50 executions that we presented to the class (and hundreds more ridiculous and juvenile ideas that never saw the light of day outside our minds or notebooks), I am going against my gut instincts and am putting up what I'm pretty sure are my 5 favorites: 2 one-shots. 1 campaign.

Due to the uniqueness of the product, our entire strategy revolved around convenience and ease-of-use.

Enjoy. I hope.


Visual: stopwatch at 3 seconds. Headline: Dinner. Product shot. Tag: 42g of protein in 3 oz.


Visual: man on a bike. Yes, that's a chicken peeking out of his backpack. Product shot. Tag: Ridiculously convenient protein.


Tag: 42g of protein in 3 oz.


Tag: 42g of protein in 3 oz.


Tag: 42g of protein in 3 oz.

Our new assignment is for Toastmasters International, a nonprofit organization that offers club-like meetings in which professionals can practice and hone communication and leadership skills in a supportive environment.

Preliminary thoughts: Speaking in front of a group of people is terrifying. An obvious insight, but a truth nonetheless. Where we go from there remains to be seen...

With every new assignment, there is another opportunity to do something truly great.

Let's see what happens this time.

dubs. out.

Bud Light

Our spot. A bit rushed. Probably works better as a :60, but I suppose we have to get used to the :30's.

Sidenote-- this actually happened to a friend of mine.

Sidenote 2-- everything but the ending

Other credits:

AD & Editor: Leslie Edwards
AD: Terence Foster
CW: Kyle Davis

dubs. out.

Work Hard. Play Harder.

This weekend I am actually going to experience the above mantra, drawing my inspiration to do so from what is written below.

Written by a man way more articulate than I’ll ever be on the subject.

“Leaving work to go to a baseball game opens something inside your heart that advertising has been doing its best to lock up. The quest for award-winning work keeps you at work late. The struggle to do better than those around you makes you work through dinner, get up early, cancel the vacation you planned. There are times these sacrifices bear fruit. Mostly they don't. Because greatness at writing ads comes only partly from how hard you work at reaching inside yourself. A greater deal of it has to do with being a person worth reaching into. Leaving work to go to a baseball game is a sign you have taken charge of your life. It's a sign you accept death is coming and have chosen what to do about it for today. It will do you no good to learn to write from your heart if you have nothing in your heart.”

-Mark Fenske, VCU Adcenter professor, linguistic badass

On Friday afternoon I am going to drive the four hours North on I-95 to Newark, DE, home of the past four years of my life, characterized by the mayhem that was my undergraduate career at the University of Delaware.

It’s homecoming, baby. My first one as an alumni. And certainly not something that I ever though would have sprung up on me this quickly. Almost as if I feel asleep at 19 and woke up this morning at 23, dazed like a dream whose details I only vaguely remember.

I am going not only because I feel I deserve a break from what seems like an endless barrage of work, but also because I deserve to be reminded of what got me to this stage in my life in the first place. Spending four years in a place and having met people whom I will forever consider some of my best friends is a pretty significant part of one’s life. All too often we forget this simple truth. Sometimes you just need to take a break from the present, step away from your current life, and go back to where you came from. To see what has made you who you are.

This weekend, stories will be told, laughs will be shared, and undoubtedly, drinks will be drunk. Hopefully not a dangerous amount.

And hopefully I’ll be able to recall a sliver of it all in order to have something to feed my heart for another week of the advertising that will follow.

dubs. out.

Because I Couldn't Say it Better Myself.

I now know the definition of work.

Courtesy of Jesse Bowen.

Who is a Golden God.

And my roommate.

And abnormally tall.

dubs. out.