Colin the Hipocrit

Advertising is my life right now. Looking for a job, emailing people I know, sending out my portfolio, fixing my website, fixing my portfolio, redoing my portfolio, creating new camapigns, writing a blog are all things I have been doing for the past couple months. Especially this past week, I have been chained to my desk. But that's who I am.

I am a huge dork and I thank my father for that.

But I also remind myself that all work and no play is not the person to be. I'm in college. These are the last few years of my life I can enjoy time off, drink on the weekdays and watch Jack Bauer save the world with my best friends. It also is important pertaining to advertising. It is the one industry that you need to be a people person. I need to know pop culture. I need to know who people are and how they act. I need to be a 21 year old kid in college because this is the one time I can be.

But I'll be the first one to say that I do work too hard. So in this blog I have been preaching "DO THIS, READ THAT, LOOK AT THIS..." But in this post I'm telling you to be a student and live it up, not only because you should, but also it will make you a better ad person, which is kind of dorky way to look at it.

There are a lot of people out there that don't relate to this post and already live it up. If so, then it's another excuse to have an extra beer.

If you have any spare time.

List of the best Advertising books that I have read:

1. Where the Suckers Moon, by Randall Rothenberg

This book is probably the best book to read when entering the industry. It gives a full on look at how a campaign comes to be, from the new business pitches to finally seeing the spot on tv. It is very well rounded because it speaks from many different POV's, the account side, the creative side, the client side, the agency side. Truly, in my opinion, the best.

2. Hey Whipple Squeeze This, by Luke Sullivan

I have a soft spot for this book because it was one of the matches that lit the advertising fire for me. I feel it is the best book if you're just starting out. Learn how to think, how to write, how to design, how to get your name out there... I could go on.

3. The Advertising Concept Book, by Pete Barry

Pete Barry was one of my professors at Syracuse University, but from a non biased view this book is up there with Luke Sullivan's book. It is a great start-up guide to being a creative in the ad program or school. The best part about his book, is that he put in work, as examples, of what his students did. So as a beginner in the ad industry your not only looking at the best ads ever made, but your looking at great work that students made.

4. Lovemarks, by Kevin Roberts

Kevin is the CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi and has had every prestigious job you possibly can in the ad industry, including the client side, but in his dialogue he doesn't preach. This book is chalked up with great stories of how campaigns came to be and what it is like to be a part of one of the biggest ad agencies in the world. I'm currently halfway through it right now.

5. Advertising Now. by Taschen

These books are my MUST BUY books. I have the print version. They are a collection of some of the best of the best in advertising. There is always the One Show and CA and all of the other annuals, but this one is a well rounded compilation of ads.

I do have biases when it comes to reading because I was never a heavy book worm as a kid. I actually hated reading. So take it from me, that every single one of these books is an easy and entertaining read.

Lego Their Ego

So last week I saw Nina DiSesa come speak.

A little background to her ascent up the Mt. Olympus of Advertising. Nina started at a small ad agency writing radio spots in Virginia and yadda yadda yadda she is now the first female chairman of McCann Erickson.

So now that you're caught up. Nina came to talk about survival in the ad industry. Specifically she spoke a lot about being a woman in an industry filled with men, but there were a lot of things that apply to everyone.

The biggest thing I took from her talk was how to deal with everyone's ego, because honestly there are a lot of people in the ad business who like to eat at their own buffet. And ironically she said the way to deal with these types of people is to not fight it but turn the other cheek. I find this interesting but it makes sense because the ad industry is a "relationship" industry and as long as your own image isn't affected it doesn't hurt to be supportive and smile even when it hurts.

So beware of the chest pounding, lords of the ad business.

I highly recommend seeing her speak or read her book "Seducing the Boys Club". I skipped over a lot of important things she said because you just have to here how she says it.

Finding a Full Time Job is a Full Time Job

Good god. It has been crazy recently.
My mum who is now my agent, has been talking to her friends left and right because she is AMAZING! She has recently put me in contact with her best friends' brothers and sisters and cousins best friends, etc. And I have been accumulating contacts left and right. But it has been so good on the networking front, that it has been really hard to keep up. Emailing these people, responding to emails, sending websites and follow ups. My head is spinning like Beetlejuice.

But it could be worse and I could have no one to contact or email or send follow ups to. So I am saying, let's keep this up. If you can't run the marathon don't enter the race.

Finding Water in the Desert

So I'm starting to churn the butter in the networking world, by looking for any sort of connections I can get my hands on. And I have to say I started off pretty pessimistic.

Why? Well off the top of my head I don't really know anyone that works in the advertising industry that is in my family or friends of our family. My father is a general manager for a labels manufacturer and my mother is an independent contractor, that works with a real estate agency. So at first my perspective was blique.

But I've recently become aware of the power of networking. It truely is a majestic thing. For instance my girlfriend has an aunt in Rhode Island, who is best friends with an Account Executive at an agency in Chicago. Or My mum and dad live down the street from a woman who's neice works for an shop in Chicago, who then forwarded my site onto her design friend. TRUELY AMAZING.

All I have to say is, don't underestimate networking. Because even though you may think you're in the desert, but it turns out you're really surrounded by water if you look hard anough.

The Epic Journey to colinpaulmurphy.com

It is March 24, 2009 and now I can finally start networking.

But you think, "Wait a second mister, you should have been networking a long time ago." I would answer I have, but not "really" networking. I feel networking doesn't really happen once you face the inevitable monster, that is creating your own website. Once that happens you can send out your work as easy as JELL-O (because easy as pie, really isn't that easy).

And I have finally defeated that monster with an axe called Dreamweaver CS3 and an arrow called Flash CS3, because my website is up AND running smoothly.

(It's been up for about a week and a half or so, but it was not even close to being "ready". I had a whole bunch of small "detailed" problems that I became aware of every time someone had a complaint. But all of the major ones are fixed.)

So today is the GRAND OPENING of colinpaulmurphy.com.
If this were an actual, physical place there would be giant inflatable gorillas floating around with confetti and streamers filling the air while a professional marching band plays Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.
But it's not, so I guess this post will have to do.

So now I can begin networking... Does anyone need a copywriter or art director?

Messin with Fire

My Redbull campaign was finally done.

I finished designing my final print component and I was ready to show the world my amazing campaign that would get everyone in the world to drink Redbull. So I posted it on this blog and ihaveanidea.org.

Just a side story about ihaveanidea. Ihaveanidea.com has an open forum where students post work and anyone, usually people in the industry, can make anonymous comments. This is a website that I have to say is a necessary evil. Even though a lot of people are ruthless and spare no sugar coating, they do know what they are saying. This is why I post everything I can on there. To see how my work fares against the hungry wolves.

So I go back to my first sentence, "My Redbull campaign was finally done" where there is a keyword that pains me to say but is true, "was".

My Redbull campaign is no longer done. Actually it is no longer even close to being done because I have to completely re-execute everything. After reading the comments on my work on how the style has been done 1000x and the line has been executed before, verbatim, I knew what was inevitable.

But I am not mad, sometimes you have to swallow the medicine now because it will make you better in the end. So now I am back to the sweatshop. But next time, it will be done...hopefully.