Transcript
1
00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:03,560
Some people are naturally candid and some people are naturally kind, and to
2
00:00:03,560 --> 00:00:08,100
find that balance can be a challenge, but it's something we work on every day.
3
00:00:08,100 --> 00:00:10,610
And it's a very important part of how we work
4
00:00:10,610 --> 00:00:12,230
with each other and how we work with our clients.
5
00:00:13,520 --> 00:00:14,870
Welcome to We Built This Brand.
6
00:00:14,889 --> 00:00:16,120
I'm your host, Chris Hill.
7
00:00:16,309 --> 00:00:18,610
And today we're talking with Glen Hilzinger,
8
00:00:18,820 --> 00:00:20,920
the Chief Creative Officer at Luquire.
9
00:00:21,160 --> 00:00:24,280
Now, Glen has been named one of the top 10 copywriters in the
10
00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:27,669
world, according to AdAge, and is actually one of the 25 most
11
00:00:27,670 --> 00:00:30,560
creative people in advertising, according to Business Insider.
12
00:00:30,860 --> 00:00:33,790
So, he's got a lot of experience and background, and I'm
13
00:00:33,790 --> 00:00:37,820
really excited to talk to him today about what got him to that
14
00:00:37,820 --> 00:00:41,230
place, and the business, and the stuff he's doing at Luquire.
15
00:00:41,620 --> 00:00:45,620
He spent his career creating breakthrough campaigns for a wide range of brands.
16
00:00:45,860 --> 00:00:49,940
He's worked with the NCAA, he's worked with Minute Maid, Expedia, even Amazon.
17
00:00:50,219 --> 00:00:54,810
And he draws on this experience to come and create a really
18
00:00:54,810 --> 00:00:59,740
unique approach to marketing and advertising and everything
19
00:00:59,750 --> 00:01:03,410
that Luquire has to offer as their Chief Creative Officer.
20
00:01:03,870 --> 00:01:05,809
Today, we're going to talk to him about
21
00:01:05,980 --> 00:01:09,170
the culture that he's created at Luquire.
22
00:01:09,389 --> 00:01:11,699
A little bit about his background, but also the culture.
23
00:01:11,699 --> 00:01:13,660
I think it's really interesting because they went
24
00:01:13,660 --> 00:01:16,830
to the point of trademarking a word for their brand.
25
00:01:16,830 --> 00:01:17,779
It's called "Kindor."
26
00:01:17,779 --> 00:01:22,150
We're going to learn about what it is, how it got trademarked, and how it
27
00:01:22,150 --> 00:01:26,400
influences not only the company internally, but also how they deal with clients.
28
00:01:26,860 --> 00:01:29,090
We're also going to dive into some of Luquire's campaigns
29
00:01:29,090 --> 00:01:30,890
and some of the things that he's really proud about in
30
00:01:30,890 --> 00:01:33,860
the time he's been there helping that business grow.
31
00:01:34,270 --> 00:01:37,730
And it's just overall really enjoyed this conversation.
32
00:01:37,740 --> 00:01:39,190
He's got a lot of really good thoughts.
33
00:01:39,250 --> 00:01:40,630
I think you'll really enjoy it.
34
00:01:40,630 --> 00:01:42,840
So let's not hesitate any longer.
35
00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:43,980
Let's dive in.
36
00:01:44,179 --> 00:01:48,990
Here's my conversation with Glen Hilzinger, Chief Creative Officer at Luquire.
37
00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:54,619
Welcome back to We Built This Brand.
38
00:01:54,880 --> 00:01:56,300
I'm your host as always, Chris Hill.
39
00:01:56,300 --> 00:01:57,840
And today we're joined by.
40
00:01:58,130 --> 00:01:59,140
Glen Hilzinger.
41
00:01:59,380 --> 00:02:01,310
Glen, thank you for joining us today.
42
00:02:01,820 --> 00:02:03,119
Well, thank you very much for having me.
43
00:02:03,119 --> 00:02:03,900
It's great to be here.
44
00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:04,759
Yeah.
45
00:02:05,010 --> 00:02:09,740
So today I want to talk to you a little bit more about your, your journey
46
00:02:09,780 --> 00:02:14,820
to getting to the company you're at now as Chief Creative Officer at Luquire
47
00:02:15,040 --> 00:02:19,009
and then talk a little bit about Luquire and the business, the brands
48
00:02:19,009 --> 00:02:22,550
you're building there and a little bit about Luquire itself and its brand.
49
00:02:22,559 --> 00:02:24,590
So, let's dive in.
50
00:02:25,270 --> 00:02:28,149
Tell me where you got your start in business.
51
00:02:28,520 --> 00:02:32,579
I got my start by, my mother talked me into going to art school.
52
00:02:32,790 --> 00:02:34,790
My brothers all went to Michigan Business School, and I
53
00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:37,500
think she realized that probably wasn't the right fit for me.
54
00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:40,389
So she talked me into art school, and so I went
55
00:02:40,389 --> 00:02:42,210
to the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit.
56
00:02:42,359 --> 00:02:46,340
Once I graduated, it took me a couple years, and then copywriting found me.
57
00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:48,029
And I've been a copywriter ever since.
58
00:02:48,270 --> 00:02:51,970
So when you were in art school, what was your art medium of choice?
59
00:02:51,970 --> 00:02:53,529
Like what was your favorite medium to work in?
60
00:02:53,650 --> 00:02:54,950
I was graphic design.
61
00:02:54,950 --> 00:02:58,769
I had a graphic design degree, so I knew I had to do something commercial.
62
00:02:58,770 --> 00:03:01,900
I didn't have the wherewithal to make a go as a fine artist.
63
00:03:01,900 --> 00:03:04,709
So I knew I had to do something that was more commercially viable.
64
00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:06,030
So I did a design degree.
65
00:03:06,510 --> 00:03:08,170
So you did that and then you became a copywriter.
66
00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:09,840
What was that transition like?
67
00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:12,090
Because you had been doing graphic design work.
68
00:03:12,300 --> 00:03:15,940
Copywriting is synonymous with like marketing advertising in
69
00:03:15,940 --> 00:03:19,010
the industry, but I don't think about going from, "I'm doing
70
00:03:19,010 --> 00:03:21,440
graphic design," to all of a sudden jumping to copywriting.
71
00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:23,710
So what was, what made you do that jump or was
72
00:03:23,710 --> 00:03:26,130
that just part of your undergraduate studies?
73
00:03:26,420 --> 00:03:29,089
Well, I can't say I ever really wanted to be a writer, but
74
00:03:29,090 --> 00:03:31,910
I guess my only real thought about being a writer was I
75
00:03:31,910 --> 00:03:35,109
either had to be a journalist, or I had to write a book.
76
00:03:35,250 --> 00:03:38,810
And long form writing has never been my forte.
77
00:03:38,890 --> 00:03:42,769
And I was introduced to some copywriting classes in art school.
78
00:03:42,820 --> 00:03:45,330
And I guess I didn't realize quite how much I liked them until I
79
00:03:45,330 --> 00:03:48,569
got out in the world, and realized I didn't like being a designer.
80
00:03:48,650 --> 00:03:51,939
So I had a, I was working for a small marketing firm, and I had a
81
00:03:51,940 --> 00:03:55,269
boss who was very well connected in the Detroit advertising industry.
82
00:03:55,270 --> 00:03:57,769
And of course I didn't even you know what a copywriter was.
83
00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:01,230
And through her, I got to understand the advertising business a
84
00:04:01,230 --> 00:04:04,040
little bit and understood there were copywriters and art directors.
85
00:04:04,040 --> 00:04:07,649
And I went to her one day and said, I, cause I was sort of doing
86
00:04:07,660 --> 00:04:10,590
some of the copywriting on the side when we needed headlines and
87
00:04:10,590 --> 00:04:13,620
stuff, and I realized I was enjoying that more than the design part.
88
00:04:13,690 --> 00:04:16,239
So I went to her and said, "I wonder with your connections, I wonder if
89
00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:19,200
you could help me get a job as a copywriter," and she said, "Okay, you're
90
00:04:19,209 --> 00:04:23,550
fired, but I'll give you two weeks and see if I can help you find a job.
91
00:04:23,550 --> 00:04:24,930
So I got a job at J.
92
00:04:24,930 --> 00:04:27,300
Walter Thompson as a Junior Copywriter.
93
00:04:27,820 --> 00:04:31,500
That is really interesting because getting into the copywriting field, like
94
00:04:31,500 --> 00:04:35,050
what comes to mind to me is like, when I got out of college, I had a similar
95
00:04:35,310 --> 00:04:39,429
feeling of like, I never could, like, I just felt like there was so much I
96
00:04:39,429 --> 00:04:42,289
didn't know about the business world, even though I had a business degree.
97
00:04:42,540 --> 00:04:44,800
Like so many roles, so many jobs, so many opportunities
98
00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:47,899
that just weren't made, I wasn't made aware of in school.
99
00:04:48,129 --> 00:04:51,020
So yeah, that's, that's really cool making
100
00:04:51,020 --> 00:04:52,720
that career transition and making that job.
101
00:04:52,720 --> 00:04:53,700
It stinks the chip.
102
00:04:53,820 --> 00:04:54,440
Got fired.
103
00:04:54,460 --> 00:04:58,040
But, or was that, that more, was that more of an in jest "you're
104
00:04:58,050 --> 00:05:00,780
fired," or was that like, "no, you're, I have to let you go now.
105
00:05:01,190 --> 00:05:03,650
"
I think it was a little of both because I think she knew
106
00:05:03,670 --> 00:05:06,090
she had to find something, somebody quickly to replace me.
107
00:05:06,090 --> 00:05:09,259
So yeah, it was a little bit of a joke, but
108
00:05:09,270 --> 00:05:11,030
she was great, and she worked really hard.
109
00:05:11,330 --> 00:05:13,520
Her name was Laura Parlov, and she was, she's really
110
00:05:13,520 --> 00:05:15,420
the one that got me started my advertising career.
111
00:05:15,790 --> 00:05:16,650
Moving on to that.
112
00:05:16,650 --> 00:05:19,200
So now you're into writing and just from doing a little
113
00:05:19,210 --> 00:05:22,750
digging research on you, you're pretty good at copywriting.
114
00:05:23,340 --> 00:05:26,820
I mean, according to AdAges Creativity, you're
115
00:05:26,910 --> 00:05:29,130
one of the top 10 copywriters in the world.
116
00:05:29,230 --> 00:05:31,200
I mean, that's really cool.
117
00:05:31,530 --> 00:05:33,889
How, how did you get to that phase?
118
00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:35,270
I got lucky.
119
00:05:35,270 --> 00:05:40,690
We had a- that accolade comes specifically from a campaign we worked on to save
120
00:05:40,690 --> 00:05:45,520
our local library when I was back in Detroit, and we won quite a few awards.
121
00:05:45,530 --> 00:05:48,099
So that's where that accolade came from.
122
00:05:48,100 --> 00:05:50,820
But I like to think of myself as a student, as
123
00:05:50,820 --> 00:05:52,929
much as a teacher, so I can always get better.
124
00:05:53,479 --> 00:05:54,300
Yeah, for sure.
125
00:05:55,020 --> 00:05:56,630
And then from there, it looks like your copywriting
126
00:05:56,630 --> 00:06:00,599
career really took off, you started to grow until you've
127
00:06:00,990 --> 00:06:04,160
basically ended up at Luquire about four or so years ago.
128
00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:08,440
So tell me, like, was it your desire to move up into a creative
129
00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:11,289
officer role when you moved into copywriting, or were you
130
00:06:11,309 --> 00:06:14,229
just hoping that copywriting would be the rest of your career?
131
00:06:14,830 --> 00:06:16,260
Well, that's a good question.
132
00:06:16,260 --> 00:06:17,449
I wasn't really sure.
133
00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:19,599
I mean that first job I had at J.
134
00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:23,430
Walter Thompson was an eye opener for me because, of course I just,
135
00:06:23,440 --> 00:06:27,400
I was just excited that I could use creativity in my job every day.
136
00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:29,189
And I love that job.
137
00:06:29,190 --> 00:06:32,880
When I got my very first assignment as a copywriter at J.
138
00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:37,090
Walter Thompson was a radio commercial for the Ford Mustang.
139
00:06:37,260 --> 00:06:39,520
It was a little bit of a shootout with the other copywriters, of
140
00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:42,030
course, that they were, they were all more experienced than I was.
141
00:06:42,030 --> 00:06:44,789
It was the, my first assignment ever.
142
00:06:44,790 --> 00:06:48,383
And it was the quintessential medium, which is radio for a copywriter.
143
00:06:48,599 --> 00:06:49,500
I knew that much.
144
00:06:49,740 --> 00:06:52,780
My boss gave me a stopwatch, and I didn't even know what that was for.
145
00:06:52,859 --> 00:06:54,120
That's how green I was.
146
00:06:54,150 --> 00:06:57,680
And I went in and presented my radio script, and the Chief Creative
147
00:06:57,680 --> 00:07:00,270
Officer leaned across the table and he wiped his butt with it.
148
00:07:00,270 --> 00:07:02,260
And he handed it back to me and said, "Next."
149
00:07:04,139 --> 00:07:09,549
So in answer to your question, I'm not sure I really had a clear path forward.
150
00:07:09,549 --> 00:07:13,420
I think that was a moment where I realized that, I don't know, I
151
00:07:13,580 --> 00:07:17,070
guess I was meant to be a copywriter cause I wasn't really deterred.
152
00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:19,260
I went back and wrote another script.
153
00:07:19,300 --> 00:07:22,190
I can't remember if I got it in the meeting or not, but anyway,
154
00:07:22,190 --> 00:07:24,810
I just loved copywriting that much, just the theater of the
155
00:07:24,810 --> 00:07:29,359
mind and the ability to sort of manage that craft and learn
156
00:07:29,359 --> 00:07:32,750
that I was better at that than I was at design, fortunately.
157
00:07:32,750 --> 00:07:34,305
And then I just followed that path.
158
00:07:34,620 --> 00:07:35,250
I was at J.
159
00:07:35,250 --> 00:07:36,220
Walter for.
160
00:07:36,370 --> 00:07:40,460
A couple of years and realized I was looking for more variety.
161
00:07:40,460 --> 00:07:43,969
So I went to Doner Advertising for, I think I was there about
162
00:07:43,969 --> 00:07:48,039
13 years, and that's where I really sort of managed my career.
163
00:07:48,059 --> 00:07:49,820
Just sort of, you know, it just sort of happens.
164
00:07:49,820 --> 00:07:52,159
You become an associate creative director and creative director.
165
00:07:52,210 --> 00:07:54,520
And then I went from there to Leo Burnett,
166
00:07:54,520 --> 00:07:56,979
and I was there for, eight or nine years.
167
00:07:57,099 --> 00:07:58,360
And then the path to Luquire?
168
00:07:59,690 --> 00:08:04,400
I think I had gotten to a point where I felt like I still had a dragon to slay.
169
00:08:04,600 --> 00:08:06,649
Things were going well at Leo Burnett.
170
00:08:06,690 --> 00:08:07,429
It's a great company.
171
00:08:07,430 --> 00:08:08,430
It's a great agency.
172
00:08:08,740 --> 00:08:12,040
The big network agencies, there are certain limitations, and I think what I
173
00:08:12,040 --> 00:08:18,680
was really looking for was an agency where we could really do true 360 work.
174
00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:23,469
So Luquire popped up on my radar, and they have media.
175
00:08:23,510 --> 00:08:25,359
They have PR, of course.
176
00:08:25,359 --> 00:08:29,479
Strategy and creative and content, and I was really excited
177
00:08:29,550 --> 00:08:33,880
at the opportunity, not as much to be a Chief Creative Officer
178
00:08:33,880 --> 00:08:37,300
as it was to, to work at a place where I could really flex
179
00:08:37,309 --> 00:08:41,059
those 360 muscles in a way that I really hadn't previously.
180
00:08:41,059 --> 00:08:43,450
So Chief Creative Officer part is great.
181
00:08:43,860 --> 00:08:47,010
It's really exciting to have a new experience
182
00:08:47,010 --> 00:08:48,460
that I hadn't had up until that point.
183
00:08:48,460 --> 00:08:50,870
You know, I've managed teams, but never really managed a
184
00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:54,270
department or a vision or been part of a leadership team.
185
00:08:54,280 --> 00:08:56,110
So that part's been really exciting for me.
186
00:08:56,520 --> 00:09:01,170
That is really interesting and growing with the career you never know
187
00:09:01,170 --> 00:09:04,980
where it's going to take you when you start, but it's really fun when
188
00:09:04,980 --> 00:09:07,820
it takes you to new and exciting places and allows you to continue
189
00:09:07,820 --> 00:09:10,590
to pursue what you're passionate about and be creative like that.
190
00:09:10,590 --> 00:09:13,209
I mean, creativity is something that drives me
191
00:09:13,210 --> 00:09:15,100
in my business and something I really enjoy.
192
00:09:15,110 --> 00:09:18,649
So I can totally identify with that passion, that enjoyment.
193
00:09:18,940 --> 00:09:20,820
And then the dragon to say, I love that phrase.
194
00:09:20,890 --> 00:09:23,170
Tell me more about this dragon you felt you had to slay.
195
00:09:23,170 --> 00:09:25,670
Was there something specific you hoped to do with that?
196
00:09:25,670 --> 00:09:28,340
Is that just like a desire for more, achieving
197
00:09:28,340 --> 00:09:30,669
more in the business or just like personal growth?
198
00:09:30,690 --> 00:09:31,389
What was that about?
199
00:09:31,650 --> 00:09:35,070
I think it's less personal growth and more, I
200
00:09:35,629 --> 00:09:37,850
think I felt like I really had a lot to give back.
201
00:09:37,980 --> 00:09:40,200
The industry has been really, really good to me.
202
00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:42,640
I've had some lucky breaks, and I've worked with some really great
203
00:09:42,640 --> 00:09:46,259
people, and I've worked for some really great people over the years.
204
00:09:46,290 --> 00:09:49,399
Particularly when I was at Doner, I had some really great mentors
205
00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:52,790
who really helped me understand the power of creativity, and I
206
00:09:52,799 --> 00:09:55,770
sort of saw this as an opportunity to provide that for others.
207
00:09:55,900 --> 00:09:58,939
And again, not just, and to me, part of the exciting,
208
00:09:59,020 --> 00:10:01,230
the excitement of it wasn't just the creative team.
209
00:10:01,230 --> 00:10:04,080
It was the agency, a fully integrated agency, and being
210
00:10:04,080 --> 00:10:07,720
able to help provide that kind of vision to a team.
211
00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:10,100
I think it's the part that was really exciting for me.
212
00:10:10,100 --> 00:10:11,710
I hadn't really had a chance to do that yet.
213
00:10:12,190 --> 00:10:16,010
When you came to Luquire, you mentioned they're a fully integrated agency.
214
00:10:16,010 --> 00:10:19,700
They're a virtual agency, which probably is appealing because
215
00:10:19,710 --> 00:10:22,790
you don't have to go into an office, I would assume, or do you
216
00:10:22,790 --> 00:10:25,820
all have some physical space there in, I think it's Charlotte?
217
00:10:26,530 --> 00:10:27,170
In Charlotte.
218
00:10:27,170 --> 00:10:28,230
Yeah, we're based in Charlotte.
219
00:10:28,230 --> 00:10:31,050
We're actually just this year celebrating our 40th anniversary.
220
00:10:31,090 --> 00:10:34,070
So we were not virtual for many, many years.
221
00:10:34,070 --> 00:10:37,830
The agency was started by Steve Luquire, it was actually a sports
222
00:10:37,830 --> 00:10:43,400
marketing agency back in 1986, and has evolved over the years
223
00:10:43,400 --> 00:10:47,449
to become a fully integrated advertising agency with PR, media.
224
00:10:47,969 --> 00:10:52,560
And I moved here to join the team just before the pandemic,
225
00:10:52,580 --> 00:10:55,410
my family and I moved down here to Charlotte from Detroit
226
00:10:55,500 --> 00:10:59,579
in December, and of course, the pandemic hit in March.
227
00:11:00,009 --> 00:11:03,579
And, you know, we were surprised as I think a lot of
228
00:11:03,580 --> 00:11:06,559
companies, a lot of agencies were how, just how well.
229
00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:09,990
It worked virtually, of course, and I can remember,
230
00:11:10,110 --> 00:11:12,610
gosh, they've been talking about that for 20 years.
231
00:11:12,620 --> 00:11:13,550
Laptops came out.
232
00:11:13,570 --> 00:11:15,200
Everybody said, "yay, we can work from home.
233
00:11:15,200 --> 00:11:17,520
We can work from anywhere," but we never really had the
234
00:11:17,520 --> 00:11:20,859
tools until we got Zoom, and particularly Teams is what we
235
00:11:20,860 --> 00:11:26,150
use, and suddenly we were running this business from home.
236
00:11:26,150 --> 00:11:30,190
And I guess when it came back to it, one of the things, the biggest
237
00:11:30,190 --> 00:11:34,720
advantage we found was for an agency like us, a small agency in
238
00:11:34,720 --> 00:11:38,169
Charlotte, North Carolina, which is not exactly an ad market, to
239
00:11:38,170 --> 00:11:42,880
try to get really top level talent to join an agency like ours is a
240
00:11:42,880 --> 00:11:46,410
struggle to try to get some, not that Charlotte isn't a fantastic city.
241
00:11:46,410 --> 00:11:50,100
It's wonderful, but it's not an ad community, and so there's risks
242
00:11:50,679 --> 00:11:54,060
for those who decide they want to move their families, for example.
243
00:11:54,060 --> 00:11:57,469
And so we really started to discover the benefits of being a
244
00:11:57,469 --> 00:12:00,790
virtual agency in that we could hire from across the country.
245
00:12:00,790 --> 00:12:04,800
So we are 30 percent virtual at this point, I should say
246
00:12:04,810 --> 00:12:07,550
30 percent of our staff lives outside of North Carolina.
247
00:12:07,640 --> 00:12:09,859
And it really, yeah, being virtual has really
248
00:12:09,860 --> 00:12:13,000
allowed us to hire the best and the brightest.
249
00:12:13,049 --> 00:12:16,500
I've got people from all the big network agencies, you name it.
250
00:12:16,510 --> 00:12:21,120
We've got a Digitas, Leo Burnett, Ogilvy, and we've really
251
00:12:21,150 --> 00:12:25,360
been able to bring some level of talent to the agency that
252
00:12:25,360 --> 00:12:28,339
I don't think we would have had we stayed in the office.
253
00:12:28,340 --> 00:12:32,180
And I think that being the case, we didn't feel it was fair to require those
254
00:12:32,180 --> 00:12:35,270
who are locally in Charlotte to come in for a limited number of days a week.
255
00:12:35,270 --> 00:12:39,290
So we are, although we have office space, workspace here in
256
00:12:39,290 --> 00:12:42,140
Charlotte, we don't require people to come in and use it.
257
00:12:42,430 --> 00:12:44,689
It's open for use for those who are here.
258
00:12:44,690 --> 00:12:49,060
And for those who aren't, we bring people in twice a year.
259
00:12:49,070 --> 00:12:51,970
In fact, we just finished last week and all agency week.
260
00:12:52,650 --> 00:12:55,640
So we fly in all of our virtual employees to spend the week
261
00:12:55,640 --> 00:13:00,030
with our local employees with all sorts of fun presentations and
262
00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:03,726
team building exercises and just having a lot of fun as a team.
263
00:13:03,960 --> 00:13:05,330
What are some of the challenges?
264
00:13:05,330 --> 00:13:09,029
Cause like I've, we've worked virtually as a company ever since
265
00:13:09,030 --> 00:13:12,169
I started my business, and I know some of the challenges, but
266
00:13:12,170 --> 00:13:14,970
I'm curious from your perspective, working with creatives, are
267
00:13:14,970 --> 00:13:19,140
there any challenges that arise from dealing with at least three
268
00:13:19,140 --> 00:13:21,340
different time zones when you're dealing with these creatives?
269
00:13:22,230 --> 00:13:26,090
Well, I think if you ask those that are on the West Coast, they'd say,
270
00:13:26,090 --> 00:13:28,810
"yeah, there are definite challenges," but you know, you sort of have to be
271
00:13:28,810 --> 00:13:35,109
willing to work in the time zone of where the main agency is in our clients.
272
00:13:35,110 --> 00:13:39,180
And most of our clients are on the Eastern seaboard.
273
00:13:39,190 --> 00:13:42,530
So, yeah, those on the West Coast do have a little bit of a challenge.
274
00:13:43,020 --> 00:13:45,029
Early meetings, but you know, they also get
275
00:13:45,070 --> 00:13:47,290
a good part of their afternoon to themselves.
276
00:13:47,299 --> 00:13:50,220
So there's upsides and downsides, and I think it takes the
277
00:13:50,220 --> 00:13:54,200
right kind of personality to want that to thrive in that.
278
00:13:54,390 --> 00:13:56,219
I think it takes the right kind of personality
279
00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:59,560
period to thrive in a virtual agency.
280
00:13:59,630 --> 00:14:03,980
One of the things that we implemented coming out of the pandemic was, it's
281
00:14:04,010 --> 00:14:08,020
one of our five core values, but we found it really critical for how we
282
00:14:08,020 --> 00:14:12,270
work as a company and for maintaining our culture, we call it "Kindor,"
283
00:14:12,330 --> 00:14:16,709
which is a "kindness" and "candor" put together in a trademarkable form.
284
00:14:16,830 --> 00:14:19,500
Although we branded it and have some fun with it, it really is
285
00:14:19,500 --> 00:14:23,509
at the core of how we work, cause if you- you don't have the
286
00:14:23,510 --> 00:14:26,750
opportunity to have those sort of hallway conversations and casual
287
00:14:26,750 --> 00:14:31,620
lunches and cups of coffee in the break room as a virtual agency.
288
00:14:31,620 --> 00:14:36,570
So it requires you to be able to have really honest conversations,
289
00:14:36,610 --> 00:14:39,899
but done in a way where people walk away feeling heard.
290
00:14:39,900 --> 00:14:40,920
They feel respected.
291
00:14:41,350 --> 00:14:45,060
So it's something we've really focused on as a company is this idea of Kindor
292
00:14:45,060 --> 00:14:49,569
to the point where we now, it's something that we now engage in with clients.
293
00:14:49,590 --> 00:14:52,089
So we often talk about Kindor with our clients.
294
00:14:52,099 --> 00:14:52,950
Give us the feedback.
295
00:14:52,969 --> 00:14:56,270
We can't, you know, we can't make the work better unless we get honest feedback.
296
00:14:56,330 --> 00:14:57,489
You won't hurt our feelings.
297
00:14:57,490 --> 00:14:58,469
We won't hurt your feelings.
298
00:14:58,760 --> 00:14:59,429
We're your partner.
299
00:14:59,430 --> 00:15:00,180
We're not a vendor.
300
00:15:00,199 --> 00:15:02,530
We're here to help you make your project the best it can
301
00:15:02,530 --> 00:15:05,460
be, and that requires those kinds of honest conversations.
302
00:15:05,470 --> 00:15:10,650
So that's been, I think, you know, as we at the leadership team, we try to
303
00:15:10,650 --> 00:15:16,040
unpack sometimes how our, as a virtual company, how our culture is so strong.
304
00:15:16,139 --> 00:15:19,810
And I think Kindor is, as we sort of try to deconstruct it and
305
00:15:19,810 --> 00:15:22,010
figure out what are the, what are the elements that work, that
306
00:15:22,010 --> 00:15:25,310
are working, we think Kindor is really an important part of that.
307
00:15:25,760 --> 00:15:29,650
Having those sometimes difficult conversations, but the conversations you
308
00:15:29,650 --> 00:15:32,875
need to have in order to have that honesty and that transparency so that
309
00:15:32,880 --> 00:15:36,249
you can thrive, even though you're not all together in the same space.
310
00:15:36,840 --> 00:15:41,210
I find that word to be really interesting because I've worked with tech
311
00:15:41,220 --> 00:15:45,960
startups and VC firms, and especially I think this was more back towards
312
00:15:45,960 --> 00:15:50,180
the pandemic, there was this real big trend towards "Radical Candor."
313
00:15:51,099 --> 00:15:52,960
Yes, there's a book called Radical Candor.
314
00:15:52,960 --> 00:15:54,260
I've got it sitting on my desk.
315
00:15:54,529 --> 00:15:58,550
And several people in the tech world that I've dealt with have been like,
316
00:15:58,550 --> 00:16:02,580
"Oh, I practice radical candor," and they would just be completely blunt.
317
00:16:02,599 --> 00:16:05,410
And it was just like this, it's like they were jabbing
318
00:16:05,410 --> 00:16:07,800
a knife into you every time they would talk to you.
319
00:16:07,800 --> 00:16:09,259
And it was like, okay, I get it.
320
00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:10,259
We need to make this better.
321
00:16:10,260 --> 00:16:12,180
But did you really have to say it that way?
322
00:16:12,540 --> 00:16:15,300
Like, you could be, you could have candor without being mean.
323
00:16:15,300 --> 00:16:17,790
So I love this, this idea of Kindor.
324
00:16:17,980 --> 00:16:21,860
Well, Radical Candor is when you wipe your butt with somebody's script.
325
00:16:22,290 --> 00:16:23,389
That's exactly right.
326
00:16:24,170 --> 00:16:27,929
I said I would never do that, and that, you know, that doesn't help anybody.
327
00:16:27,929 --> 00:16:29,880
There's the, it's a business filled with egos.
328
00:16:29,889 --> 00:16:31,030
And I don't know.
329
00:16:32,020 --> 00:16:34,610
Steve Luquire started the company four years ago.
330
00:16:34,610 --> 00:16:39,569
His son is now CEO Brooks, and they're just really, really nice people.
331
00:16:39,610 --> 00:16:44,229
And as we're growing as an agency with something we didn't want to lose.
332
00:16:44,249 --> 00:16:47,729
It was one of the things I was looking for was that independent
333
00:16:47,730 --> 00:16:51,390
agency, that sense of autonomy, and I think what comes
334
00:16:51,390 --> 00:16:54,430
with that is a responsibility to be kind to each other.
335
00:16:54,480 --> 00:16:56,209
And I've always been a big believer that you can
336
00:16:56,250 --> 00:16:58,420
catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.
337
00:16:58,420 --> 00:17:00,830
And, and so that's what Kindor is.
338
00:17:00,849 --> 00:17:03,250
You still got to catch the flies, but you can do it in a way
339
00:17:03,410 --> 00:17:06,220
where everybody feels respected, and they feel like they're
340
00:17:06,260 --> 00:17:09,410
contributing, and they're not being chewed up and spit out.
341
00:17:09,410 --> 00:17:13,470
And I've worked at those kinds of places, and that's not, it's not fun.
342
00:17:13,880 --> 00:17:17,889
There's lots of theories on how to get ideas
343
00:17:17,889 --> 00:17:19,950
out of people, how to get people to be creative.
344
00:17:20,270 --> 00:17:23,659
I like to do it in a way where people are excited to go to work the next day.
345
00:17:23,660 --> 00:17:25,460
They're not doing it because they're worried that they're
346
00:17:25,460 --> 00:17:27,149
going to lose their job if they're not being creative.
347
00:17:27,150 --> 00:17:29,800
I just don't think that's the way to really inspire creativity.
348
00:17:30,100 --> 00:17:33,010
I agree wholeheartedly having worked with creatives for a long time.
349
00:17:33,010 --> 00:17:36,880
The worst thing you can do is just be angry, direct, blunt,
350
00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:39,510
literally wiping your butt with a script, or what have you.
351
00:17:40,539 --> 00:17:45,030
That all to me makes total sense, and so, wow.
352
00:17:45,060 --> 00:17:47,370
That's really cool that that's part of the brand.
353
00:17:47,400 --> 00:17:49,800
Would you say that's that- I mean, it looks
354
00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:51,720
like you've literally trademarked Kindor.
355
00:17:51,720 --> 00:17:52,700
Is that accurate?
356
00:17:53,040 --> 00:17:53,480
We did.
357
00:17:53,480 --> 00:17:54,940
Yes, we did actually trademark it.
358
00:17:54,940 --> 00:17:55,150
Yeah.
359
00:17:55,530 --> 00:17:55,850
Yeah.
360
00:17:56,340 --> 00:17:59,880
Well, I think part of it for me is when I was at Doner, which
361
00:17:59,880 --> 00:18:03,900
is really my formidable years, that was early in my career.
362
00:18:03,990 --> 00:18:08,510
Doner was in a suburb of Detroit, and not unlike Charlotte, although
363
00:18:08,520 --> 00:18:13,110
Detroit was a very large ad market, it tended to be insular, in that all the
364
00:18:13,110 --> 00:18:16,579
agencies, the creatives would sort of drift among all the agencies in Detroit.
365
00:18:17,619 --> 00:18:21,830
It was hard to get people to move to Detroit from outside, just because
366
00:18:21,830 --> 00:18:25,380
of the nature of at the time, the city it's become pretty cool now.
367
00:18:25,380 --> 00:18:27,939
But Doner was a culture of mentorship.
368
00:18:28,059 --> 00:18:30,830
The Chief Creative Officer at the time, John DeCerchio was
369
00:18:31,219 --> 00:18:34,599
very much that way, and two of my best mentors were at Doner.
370
00:18:35,109 --> 00:18:36,939
And you can't mentor somebody.
371
00:18:37,290 --> 00:18:41,150
You can't beat good thinking out of somebody and consider that mentorship.
372
00:18:41,150 --> 00:18:42,335
Mentorship is where you sit and, you know,
373
00:18:42,335 --> 00:18:43,889
you have to, you can't go hire the big guns.
374
00:18:43,890 --> 00:18:46,310
You got to turn your own people into those big guns.
375
00:18:46,320 --> 00:18:48,750
And so it takes a lot of sitting around talking about work.
376
00:18:48,770 --> 00:18:49,969
What makes ideas good.
377
00:18:49,969 --> 00:18:50,770
What makes them fresh.
378
00:18:50,799 --> 00:18:51,950
What makes them not so good.
379
00:18:52,260 --> 00:18:55,630
Why your idea is bad and helping people understand how
380
00:18:55,630 --> 00:18:57,950
to become better creatives through that mentorship.
381
00:18:58,010 --> 00:19:01,250
And I think that for me, that's sort of the
382
00:19:01,900 --> 00:19:04,629
essence of Kindor and some of where that came from.
383
00:19:05,150 --> 00:19:07,629
That's cool because it's an internal principle, but it's something
384
00:19:07,630 --> 00:19:11,209
you've taken the time to trademark and say, put a stamp on it and
385
00:19:11,209 --> 00:19:14,350
say, this is not just internal, but like, this is part of our brand.
386
00:19:14,350 --> 00:19:17,770
This is who we are, and I think that's really interesting because coming
387
00:19:17,770 --> 00:19:21,250
into this conversation, realizing that, you know, Luquire is a family
388
00:19:21,250 --> 00:19:25,000
name, you know, so it's got that historical astuteness to it, but knowing
389
00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:29,770
that part of the heart of the business is Kindor is really cool, and I
390
00:19:29,770 --> 00:19:32,389
think that's something that definitely makes your business stand out.
391
00:19:32,570 --> 00:19:32,950
Yeah.
392
00:19:32,950 --> 00:19:33,200
Yeah.
393
00:19:33,200 --> 00:19:34,830
I think I, I like to think so.
394
00:19:34,830 --> 00:19:36,953
I mean, I, it certainly seems to be the case with our, with
395
00:19:36,953 --> 00:19:39,410
our staff and you know, it's one of those things that we
396
00:19:39,410 --> 00:19:43,380
evaluate people on in our annual reviews and quarterly reviews.
397
00:19:43,380 --> 00:19:45,050
How are they doing with their Kindor?
398
00:19:45,050 --> 00:19:48,640
And I would say, generally speaking, people are okay with it.
399
00:19:48,810 --> 00:19:51,160
Not particularly good, not particularly bad.
400
00:19:51,210 --> 00:19:51,810
It's hard.
401
00:19:51,880 --> 00:19:53,270
It's not easy to- always, it's much easier to be nice
402
00:19:53,450 --> 00:19:56,540
than to be critical, and to find that right combination.
403
00:19:56,550 --> 00:19:59,480
Some people are naturally candid, and some people are naturally
404
00:19:59,480 --> 00:20:02,779
kind, and to find that balance can be a challenge, but it's
405
00:20:02,780 --> 00:20:05,930
something we work on every day, and it's a very important part
406
00:20:05,930 --> 00:20:08,360
of how we work with each other and how we work with our clients.
407
00:20:08,960 --> 00:20:11,600
So speaking of working with your clients, let's take a little
408
00:20:11,600 --> 00:20:15,759
bit of time and talk about some of Luquire's Business, some of
409
00:20:15,760 --> 00:20:18,389
what you all have done, some of the branding work you have done.
410
00:20:18,520 --> 00:20:22,129
What would be a project that you would say, man, we're really proud
411
00:20:22,490 --> 00:20:26,850
of the work we did on this project since you've been here at Luquire?
412
00:20:27,200 --> 00:20:30,350
Oh, I think there's a, there's well, two, one, the shirt I'm wearing.
413
00:20:30,360 --> 00:20:30,379
So
414
00:20:33,910 --> 00:20:36,810
we just helped launch the Sullenberger Aviation
415
00:20:36,820 --> 00:20:40,820
Museum, which is, yes, Sully, Sully Sullenberger.
416
00:20:40,820 --> 00:20:41,045
The Sullenberger.
417
00:20:41,250 --> 00:20:46,340
There was a local businessman who was on that flight, and he's a Charlottean
418
00:20:46,370 --> 00:20:50,959
and decided he really wanted to do something special for Captain Sullenberger.
419
00:20:51,530 --> 00:20:54,580
And so they rebranded what was this little tiny,
420
00:20:54,960 --> 00:20:58,280
sort of airplane, dusty airplane warehouse here in
421
00:20:58,280 --> 00:21:01,340
Charlotte, and turn it into really a world class museum.
422
00:21:01,360 --> 00:21:04,170
So the Sullenberger Aviation Museum was just launched
423
00:21:04,170 --> 00:21:07,250
this spring, and we did the logo and the branding for it.
424
00:21:07,250 --> 00:21:10,810
And the campaign was really celebrating those that love
425
00:21:10,880 --> 00:21:15,129
aviation or have some aspirations for understanding aviation.
426
00:21:15,130 --> 00:21:17,360
And that was the line, I'm an airhead.
427
00:21:17,369 --> 00:21:19,870
That's sort of the people who love aviation are airheads.
428
00:21:20,110 --> 00:21:21,280
They have their head in the clouds.
429
00:21:21,490 --> 00:21:26,270
I love that on so many levels and, as a kid, just so you know, I was the
430
00:21:26,270 --> 00:21:31,770
kid that subscribed to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Magazine, and
431
00:21:31,780 --> 00:21:35,120
would get it, would open it up, was so excited it would come all the time.
432
00:21:35,120 --> 00:21:37,089
And I remember going up for like the, what
433
00:21:37,110 --> 00:21:39,370
was it, Safety Patrol did a Washington, D.C.
434
00:21:39,370 --> 00:21:43,480
trip in fifth grade and going to D.C., getting to go to the museum.
435
00:21:43,960 --> 00:21:48,199
Actually getting in trouble there because I complained, because we were
436
00:21:48,200 --> 00:21:50,999
with chaperones that only wanted to take the kids to the gift shop.
437
00:21:51,020 --> 00:21:53,030
And I was like, I knew all the exhibits that were there.
438
00:21:53,030 --> 00:21:55,470
And I was like, "This stinks," and I said that out loud,
439
00:21:55,470 --> 00:21:58,610
and I got chewed out for it, but I stood by my principles.
440
00:21:58,610 --> 00:22:01,420
I mean, it stunk that we only went to the gift shop, and they finally gave
441
00:22:01,420 --> 00:22:06,570
me some time to explore, but man, it was just love that, love aviation.
442
00:22:06,599 --> 00:22:07,830
My grandfather was a pilot.
443
00:22:07,840 --> 00:22:10,359
Just always have had a fascination with it.
444
00:22:10,379 --> 00:22:10,975
So that's really cool.
445
00:22:10,975 --> 00:22:11,017
Yeah.
446
00:22:11,017 --> 00:22:11,143
I'm in Knoxville.
447
00:22:11,143 --> 00:22:13,640
In fact, my sister lives in, Winston Salem.
448
00:22:13,650 --> 00:22:15,100
So we're going to have to come for a visit.
449
00:22:15,430 --> 00:22:16,350
You should come and see it.
450
00:22:16,350 --> 00:22:17,660
You would be really impressed.
451
00:22:17,660 --> 00:22:19,800
So they actually have Sullenberger's plane there.
452
00:22:19,960 --> 00:22:21,179
It's something to see.
453
00:22:21,179 --> 00:22:24,740
And they did this wonderful film where they shot it with, it's a one
454
00:22:24,759 --> 00:22:27,770
take, and they shot it with a drone following the actual pattern, I
455
00:22:27,770 --> 00:22:30,600
think the eight minute flight where you can actually see it from the
456
00:22:30,609 --> 00:22:34,870
pilot's point of view as it circled New York and landed in the Hudson.
457
00:22:34,870 --> 00:22:38,570
It's remarkable, and they've got just a whole host of other planes there.
458
00:22:38,570 --> 00:22:40,650
They do STEM education.
459
00:22:40,650 --> 00:22:44,770
It's really a wonderful, in fact, when I went to first see it, we had just
460
00:22:44,770 --> 00:22:47,730
finished the advertising, and I was really relieved to see the museum was
461
00:22:47,730 --> 00:22:51,040
as great as it was because we sure made it sound good in the advertising.
462
00:22:51,110 --> 00:22:53,639
So it was, it's nice to see it all come together.
463
00:22:53,639 --> 00:22:53,794
That's really exciting.
464
00:22:53,794 --> 00:22:55,950
Is there a, you said it sounds like a smaller museum.
465
00:22:55,950 --> 00:22:58,379
So is there like a, outside of Sully's plane,
466
00:22:58,380 --> 00:23:01,609
is there a focus on a specific type of aircraft?
467
00:23:01,610 --> 00:23:02,489
Is it commercial?
468
00:23:02,490 --> 00:23:03,230
Is it private?
469
00:23:03,230 --> 00:23:05,850
Like what's the focus of the airplanes at the museum?
470
00:23:05,969 --> 00:23:07,130
It's all of the above.
471
00:23:07,220 --> 00:23:10,760
As you know, as an aviation enthusiast, I'm sure you know that the Wright
472
00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:14,450
brothers did their test flight here in North Carolina on the Outer Banks, and so
473
00:23:14,450 --> 00:23:18,300
there's some of that history there, and there's helicopters, there's jet fires.
474
00:23:18,300 --> 00:23:20,240
It's really, it's pretty remarkable.
475
00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:21,199
So it's definitely worth it, and it's big enough.
476
00:23:21,660 --> 00:23:22,379
It's worth a trip.
477
00:23:22,420 --> 00:23:23,629
It's worth a day trip for sure.
478
00:23:23,639 --> 00:23:23,659
Yeah.
479
00:23:24,049 --> 00:23:27,169
Well, both myself and my sister each have two kids.
480
00:23:27,180 --> 00:23:28,890
So we will definitely, we're always looking
481
00:23:28,890 --> 00:23:29,950
for things to do when we get together.
482
00:23:29,950 --> 00:23:31,170
So I'm putting this on the list.
483
00:23:31,360 --> 00:23:33,310
Then there is a gift shop, although you
484
00:23:33,310 --> 00:23:34,800
don't have to just stay in the gift shop.
485
00:23:37,349 --> 00:23:39,679
Oh, I'm going there for the airhead t-shirt for sure.
486
00:23:39,719 --> 00:23:40,380
That's awesome.
487
00:23:40,529 --> 00:23:44,360
So, Sullenberger Aviation Museum and you said there was another one.
488
00:23:44,370 --> 00:23:45,140
What was the other one?
489
00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:48,580
Oh, there was another one we did during the pandemic.
490
00:23:48,660 --> 00:23:52,290
Visit North Carolina, North Carolina Tourism, is a client of ours.
491
00:23:52,500 --> 00:23:54,660
Has been for, gosh, 12 years now.
492
00:23:54,710 --> 00:23:58,729
And they got some, through Visit North Carolina and the
493
00:23:58,740 --> 00:24:02,130
North Carolina Restaurant Administration, they got some
494
00:24:02,160 --> 00:24:06,660
federal funding to promote the safety protocols around COVID.
495
00:24:06,660 --> 00:24:10,320
And so we did a campaign here in North Carolina, specifically
496
00:24:10,320 --> 00:24:14,060
to North Carolina, to promote really wearing masks.
497
00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:15,420
There was social distancing.
498
00:24:15,420 --> 00:24:18,360
We remember all those parts, but it was really about wearing masks.
499
00:24:18,820 --> 00:24:20,280
It was a very fun campaign.
500
00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:23,440
Of course, all the production was shut down during the pandemic.
501
00:24:23,440 --> 00:24:27,370
So we had to do something animated, and anyway, it was quite the
502
00:24:27,370 --> 00:24:30,799
scramble, but at the end of it, we did a statewide study and found that
503
00:24:30,849 --> 00:24:35,160
as a result, direct result of the campaign, 70 percent of residents were
504
00:24:35,160 --> 00:24:39,210
more likely to wear a mask is what they said, which was really exciting.
505
00:24:39,210 --> 00:24:44,290
So we won some awards, and we were clinking glasses, and then got a note from
506
00:24:44,290 --> 00:24:48,330
our client who said, "yeah, the awards are great, but what we should really
507
00:24:48,330 --> 00:24:52,280
be celebrating is the fact that we probably saved some lives," and I thought
508
00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:56,090
that was, that was really, that was probably one of the best messages I've ever
509
00:24:56,090 --> 00:25:00,020
got from a client, but certainly made us all feel really good as an agency.
510
00:25:00,020 --> 00:25:03,799
It is- we loved helping our clients win, helping our
511
00:25:03,800 --> 00:25:06,430
brands win, but when you can do something that truly has
512
00:25:06,430 --> 00:25:09,120
an impact on society, that's something really special.
513
00:25:09,370 --> 00:25:13,740
That definitely is always a good feeling when it goes beyond just, "Hey, we're
514
00:25:14,020 --> 00:25:17,300
spending a bunch of money on ads and making something clever and snarky."
515
00:25:17,310 --> 00:25:19,960
We're influencing people in a positive direction, which
516
00:25:20,000 --> 00:25:22,800
helps going back to your, I guess, slaying the dragon.
517
00:25:22,849 --> 00:25:25,239
I mean, this is part of that for you.
518
00:25:25,460 --> 00:25:25,730
Yeah.
519
00:25:25,730 --> 00:25:26,500
It's amazing.
520
00:25:26,509 --> 00:25:28,999
You know, creativity can solve so many problems,
521
00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:32,140
and that's really what I love about this business.
522
00:25:32,140 --> 00:25:32,220
Yeah.
523
00:25:32,500 --> 00:25:33,850
I love helping brands.
524
00:25:33,850 --> 00:25:36,669
I love helping move the needle, but when we can really have an
525
00:25:36,670 --> 00:25:41,250
impact on human behavior in a way that benefits, it's really special.
526
00:25:41,570 --> 00:25:44,489
So speaking of learning, what have you learned over the course
527
00:25:44,500 --> 00:25:48,650
of your career, your time in Luquire about branding businesses?
528
00:25:48,660 --> 00:25:51,950
Like what principles, what things would you say, "this
529
00:25:51,950 --> 00:25:54,649
is a core tenant that I bring into the business with me.
530
00:25:54,680 --> 00:25:57,560
When we go to talk to a new client," or something.
531
00:25:57,650 --> 00:25:58,810
What would those be for you?
532
00:25:59,150 --> 00:26:01,039
Keep it simple and make it memorable.
533
00:26:01,170 --> 00:26:03,860
I think if you can do, of course, it's way, way
534
00:26:03,860 --> 00:26:06,420
more complicated than that or complex, I should say.
535
00:26:06,420 --> 00:26:10,270
But if you can nail those two, it's a pretty powerful combination.
536
00:26:10,780 --> 00:26:13,300
Keeping it clean and simple always does the job.
537
00:26:13,899 --> 00:26:16,210
And I I think, you know, one of the things that I've enjoyed over
538
00:26:16,210 --> 00:26:20,600
my career as the industry has evolved, because of course, my career
539
00:26:20,620 --> 00:26:24,530
started sort of pre-internet, which is such a weird thing to say.
540
00:26:24,900 --> 00:26:28,790
And then, and even as you know, we're top of mind right now, as we
541
00:26:28,790 --> 00:26:32,440
think of what AI might do to our business, what our industry, what
542
00:26:32,460 --> 00:26:35,860
the digital revolution did to advertising, there were, you know,
543
00:26:35,889 --> 00:26:40,570
people scared and gnashing of teeth and white knuckled, and what we've
544
00:26:40,570 --> 00:26:44,629
all learned in the process is it's just made us better marketers.
545
00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:48,530
Suddenly now we can surround consumers with our messaging in a
546
00:26:48,530 --> 00:26:53,040
way that we couldn't do pre-internet, and that's been probably the
547
00:26:53,040 --> 00:26:56,569
biggest evolution for me and my career is going from just being
548
00:26:56,570 --> 00:27:00,960
a creative problem solver to a fully integrated problem solver.
549
00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:03,660
It's just provide such a richness to the messages
550
00:27:03,660 --> 00:27:06,020
we can deliver and so many more opportunities.
551
00:27:06,030 --> 00:27:10,559
So that's probably been as in terms of the evolution of my
552
00:27:10,570 --> 00:27:13,150
thinking as a creative, that's probably had the biggest impact.
553
00:27:13,509 --> 00:27:14,300
Definitely a big one.
554
00:27:14,300 --> 00:27:15,589
It's been an influence for me.
555
00:27:15,589 --> 00:27:20,100
I won't date myself, but definitely been an influence
556
00:27:20,110 --> 00:27:24,350
in my childhood development, all that as well.
557
00:27:24,350 --> 00:27:25,760
So that's interesting.
558
00:27:25,860 --> 00:27:27,959
Well, what is top of mind right now?
559
00:27:28,070 --> 00:27:29,120
You mentioned AI.
560
00:27:29,120 --> 00:27:31,949
Are you all How are you all tackling that?
561
00:27:31,969 --> 00:27:34,289
Or are you saying, you know what, we're just going
562
00:27:34,330 --> 00:27:35,939
to pretend it's not there and keep moving on?
563
00:27:38,179 --> 00:27:40,860
Well, I think we're tackling it like you tackle anything.
564
00:27:40,860 --> 00:27:44,980
I don't think it's the next NFC, which was, you
565
00:27:44,980 --> 00:27:47,209
know, that was the big rage three years ago.
566
00:27:47,450 --> 00:27:49,510
If you weren't doing that, you weren't advertising,
567
00:27:49,620 --> 00:27:50,930
and of course we saw what happened there.
568
00:27:51,099 --> 00:27:54,089
But I think the, I do think AI is probably going
569
00:27:54,090 --> 00:27:57,310
to be the next big revolution for our industry.
570
00:27:57,310 --> 00:28:00,139
It already is, and I think we'll continue to be.
571
00:28:00,220 --> 00:28:03,659
I think we're like many marketers and brands, we're trying to
572
00:28:03,660 --> 00:28:07,019
understand how we can use it both for ourselves and for our clients.
573
00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:10,699
It's too early to say other than, you know, ChatGPT
574
00:28:10,699 --> 00:28:13,530
and Midjourney and sort of treating it as a tool.
575
00:28:14,070 --> 00:28:17,800
I think where there's always fear associated with those kind
576
00:28:17,800 --> 00:28:22,500
of revolutions, which I do think AI will be for our business, I
577
00:28:22,790 --> 00:28:26,329
choose to look at it as an opportunity for us to become better.
578
00:28:26,330 --> 00:28:28,450
I think there's, you know, it's interesting.
579
00:28:28,450 --> 00:28:31,660
There was an award show that I was judging this
580
00:28:31,660 --> 00:28:34,060
spring, and there was a student entry section.
581
00:28:34,060 --> 00:28:37,130
And one of the entries was, and of course, for those that don't
582
00:28:37,130 --> 00:28:39,320
know those student entries, those aren't real assignments.
583
00:28:39,330 --> 00:28:41,240
Something that's created for students to work on.
584
00:28:41,240 --> 00:28:43,120
Sometimes they're an association with brands.
585
00:28:43,660 --> 00:28:50,110
And the assignment was to pick a brand and create some sort of social good
586
00:28:50,230 --> 00:28:53,220
with the brand, and so this particular group, and I'm going to botch it
587
00:28:53,220 --> 00:28:56,939
cause I can't- it was one of many entries, but it does stand out to me.
588
00:28:56,940 --> 00:29:01,060
I can't remember all the details, but I thought that the thinking was amazing.
589
00:29:01,060 --> 00:29:05,900
It was based on this idea of safely handling food and
590
00:29:05,910 --> 00:29:10,090
salmonella poisoning, particularly in respect to eggs.
591
00:29:10,100 --> 00:29:14,110
So they found a brand, it was an egg company, and they had all sorts of great
592
00:29:14,110 --> 00:29:17,899
stats about the amount of salmonella poisoning in the world, and wouldn't it be
593
00:29:17,900 --> 00:29:21,409
great if we could at least through this company with eggs start to change that?
594
00:29:21,409 --> 00:29:25,440
And so what they did is they printed their, the idea, they didn't actually
595
00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:28,640
do it because it's a student assignment, but their idea was they printed
596
00:29:28,640 --> 00:29:32,959
their message about safe food handling on the eggs themselves with water
597
00:29:32,960 --> 00:29:38,540
soluble ink, so that when you crack the egg, you get the ink on your fingers.
598
00:29:39,290 --> 00:29:41,279
And so it forces you to wash your hands.
599
00:29:41,699 --> 00:29:44,129
It was so simple and so smart.
600
00:29:44,130 --> 00:29:45,390
Would anybody actually do it?
601
00:29:45,510 --> 00:29:47,870
I don't know, but it was so smart.
602
00:29:47,880 --> 00:29:52,190
So when we think about something like AI, I can't imagine
603
00:29:52,190 --> 00:29:55,280
AI ever getting to a point where it could do that.
604
00:29:55,490 --> 00:30:01,000
Cause that's so grounded in human understanding, human insights.
605
00:30:01,140 --> 00:30:03,939
It's such an original thought.
606
00:30:04,430 --> 00:30:09,409
I think AI will, in many ways, I think, fill
607
00:30:09,410 --> 00:30:12,490
in where we do currently a lot of parody.
608
00:30:12,490 --> 00:30:19,130
Whether that's personalizing emails or, you know, oftentimes we test and
609
00:30:19,130 --> 00:30:22,040
learn in paid social, we'll take a headline and we'll tweak it a couple of
610
00:30:22,040 --> 00:30:25,340
different ways and put it out in the market and see which performs better.
611
00:30:25,340 --> 00:30:28,139
I could see AI starting to take over some of those tasks,
612
00:30:28,620 --> 00:30:31,220
but I have a hard time imagining it ever really doing
613
00:30:31,549 --> 00:30:34,970
that true creative problem solving like that example.
614
00:30:34,970 --> 00:30:37,710
And I think what it's going to do is it's going to force us as
615
00:30:37,750 --> 00:30:41,130
advertisers to get more creative because there's going to be such
616
00:30:41,130 --> 00:30:45,960
a din and such a noise of work created by AI out in the world.
617
00:30:46,679 --> 00:30:49,320
A lot of marketers who think, "well, I'll just get this AI program,
618
00:30:49,330 --> 00:30:51,919
and they'll write my ad campaign for me," and that may be fine, and
619
00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:55,220
those things may work, but I think in order to break through the
620
00:30:55,240 --> 00:30:58,590
clutter, the sea of sameness, we love to talk about it in advertising,
621
00:30:58,700 --> 00:31:01,970
I think it's going to require us as advertisers and creative people
622
00:31:01,970 --> 00:31:05,750
to be even more creative and original, which I'm really excited about.
623
00:31:05,750 --> 00:31:06,860
I think it's fantastic.
624
00:31:07,200 --> 00:31:09,950
I've seen it in recent weeks, even I feel
625
00:31:10,100 --> 00:31:11,769
like it's accelerating some creativity.
626
00:31:11,770 --> 00:31:16,150
There's a YouTuber right now who's doing some really hilarious alien
627
00:31:16,150 --> 00:31:19,260
parodies where they're like aliens looking back at human civilization,
628
00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:24,179
and the way he does it, it's written by a human, and you can tell, and
629
00:31:24,210 --> 00:31:27,360
of course he says, I wrote it, but everything else is developed in AI.
630
00:31:27,720 --> 00:31:30,970
And the fact that he can do it all, and it looks like something that would
631
00:31:30,980 --> 00:31:35,810
years ago have taken a team of CGI animators, and creators, and developers,
632
00:31:35,810 --> 00:31:40,020
and cast, and all that to do, that he can do that on his own, is incredible.
633
00:31:40,030 --> 00:31:44,699
Yeah, I see it as accelerating that and helping in a lot of ways.
634
00:31:44,719 --> 00:31:48,350
But yeah, I don't think, God willing for the foreseeable future, I don't see
635
00:31:48,350 --> 00:31:51,939
that like that creativity that you talk about with the eggs coming to fruition.
636
00:31:52,280 --> 00:31:55,150
Yeah, I think that's true, and I think there
637
00:31:55,150 --> 00:31:58,180
will be significant changes in our industry.
638
00:31:58,180 --> 00:32:00,759
So, you know, a good example, I believe it was Tyler
639
00:32:00,790 --> 00:32:05,069
Perry had a production studio planned in Atlanta.
640
00:32:05,240 --> 00:32:09,200
An $800 million something that he just cancelled because of
641
00:32:09,200 --> 00:32:13,290
what's happening in AI and the ability for AI to generate images,
642
00:32:13,290 --> 00:32:19,029
and I mean where it will have a dramatic impact on certain
643
00:32:19,030 --> 00:32:22,310
aspects of what we do, and when we think about TV production.
644
00:32:22,459 --> 00:32:25,660
Yeah, I could imagine a time where we're potentially
645
00:32:25,960 --> 00:32:30,560
generating our TV commercials in days instead of weeks and
646
00:32:30,560 --> 00:32:33,979
months and changing the way we have to think about executing.
647
00:32:33,980 --> 00:32:38,270
But I think that what's at the core of it is creativity and ideas
648
00:32:38,270 --> 00:32:41,639
and originality, which to me is probably the most important part.
649
00:32:42,139 --> 00:32:44,980
I mean, if AI ever gets there, that's going to be big for all
650
00:32:44,980 --> 00:32:47,630
of us, but I can't imagine it ever getting to the point where
651
00:32:47,920 --> 00:32:51,499
it could really supplant that original creative thinking.
652
00:32:52,500 --> 00:32:52,890
Yeah.
653
00:32:52,990 --> 00:32:56,780
I don't know if you're this way or if anybody on your team is
654
00:32:56,780 --> 00:33:01,440
starting to think this way, but I've really admired and noticed
655
00:33:01,450 --> 00:33:05,090
that like most people are already picking up on what AI is.
656
00:33:05,400 --> 00:33:09,690
Like AI content, AI content writing, like it becomes- like we've
657
00:33:09,690 --> 00:33:12,840
already adapted to the point of like, that's the uncanny valley.
658
00:33:12,840 --> 00:33:14,840
We can tell that's fake, which is good.
659
00:33:15,160 --> 00:33:17,959
May not always be the case, but it's a good thing, I think,
660
00:33:18,630 --> 00:33:21,250
to that testament of like why we will always be needed.
661
00:33:21,310 --> 00:33:25,370
At the same time, I try to make sure that I ground myself, and I
662
00:33:25,370 --> 00:33:31,920
don't want to be naive or not realistic in a sense of being defensive.
663
00:33:32,080 --> 00:33:36,270
You know, Microsoft just came out with a voice generator that they will not
664
00:33:36,270 --> 00:33:41,350
release because it is so accurate, and so I think that's just going to continue.
665
00:33:41,490 --> 00:33:44,280
I think that's just going to continue, and I think it's going to be
666
00:33:44,280 --> 00:33:47,340
on us as an industry, and I was heartened to see Microsoft do that.
667
00:33:47,340 --> 00:33:50,610
Although something tells me that it's on pause because
668
00:33:50,610 --> 00:33:51,856
they're trying to figure out how to monetize it.
669
00:33:51,856 --> 00:33:55,030
But anyway, let's say they did it for the good of humanity.
670
00:33:55,260 --> 00:33:55,930
It's coming.
671
00:33:56,050 --> 00:33:58,550
It's coming, and there will be a point where you will not be
672
00:33:58,550 --> 00:34:02,170
able to tell visually generated content that's AI generated
673
00:34:02,170 --> 00:34:04,860
over things that we think of as traditional productions.
674
00:34:04,860 --> 00:34:08,639
Now, I know that's coming, and it's, yeah, it's going to be something to watch.
675
00:34:08,949 --> 00:34:10,360
Definitely is something to watch.
676
00:34:10,879 --> 00:34:15,009
So typically we wrap up the show with just a few questions at the end.
677
00:34:15,320 --> 00:34:17,889
First of all, I want to know what does the future
678
00:34:17,920 --> 00:34:21,179
of Luquire look like maybe in the next few years?
679
00:34:21,179 --> 00:34:22,989
What do you see the company going, or what
680
00:34:22,989 --> 00:34:25,149
are you hopeful for in the coming years?
681
00:34:25,380 --> 00:34:30,659
You know, we're on a growth trajectory and some of that, the agency was, you
682
00:34:30,659 --> 00:34:34,460
know, around for 40 years and sort of got to a point where it stopped growing.
683
00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:37,440
I think at the time, somewhat intentionally, but I think
684
00:34:37,600 --> 00:34:42,190
that the new leadership team, we see certain advantages in a
685
00:34:42,190 --> 00:34:46,060
level of growth that allows our own internal staff to grow.
686
00:34:46,060 --> 00:34:50,300
Otherwise, you know, if you cap what size you are, then the only way you can
687
00:34:50,300 --> 00:34:52,935
move up and move around is through attrition, and we don't want that to happen.
688
00:34:52,935 --> 00:34:54,400
We have some really amazing people.
689
00:34:54,409 --> 00:34:58,969
So we want to keep growing at a pace where we can help those people at
690
00:34:58,969 --> 00:35:04,060
Luquire grow and get what they want out of their careers and also provide
691
00:35:04,070 --> 00:35:08,780
the kind of depth of marketing expertise that our clients are looking for.
692
00:35:08,950 --> 00:35:12,360
I don't think we really, we don't really have a, you know, we all have those
693
00:35:12,400 --> 00:35:16,170
little things in our, we'd like to be a small agency of the year, Ad Age
694
00:35:16,170 --> 00:35:20,310
small agency of the year is one of our lighthouses we're steering towards.
695
00:35:20,310 --> 00:35:23,410
But I think what we really want to do is maintain
696
00:35:23,410 --> 00:35:27,750
the culture of Luquire which, it's interesting.
697
00:35:27,750 --> 00:35:30,860
There's a, this was just last year, our staff
698
00:35:30,860 --> 00:35:33,840
started referring to themselves as Lunicorns.
699
00:35:34,230 --> 00:35:36,829
Which has been kind of fun.
700
00:35:36,830 --> 00:35:38,779
In fact, to the point where we actually created
701
00:35:38,780 --> 00:35:41,500
a, I should say the staff created a book.
702
00:35:42,209 --> 00:35:42,450
I don't know.
703
00:35:42,450 --> 00:35:43,180
Can you see that?
704
00:35:43,700 --> 00:35:44,580
Yes, I can.
705
00:35:44,650 --> 00:35:45,480
Oh, please.
706
00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:50,200
And it's, "I am a Lunicorn," and it's just daily "ad-firmations," we call them.
707
00:35:50,210 --> 00:35:53,930
So yeah, it's the, and to me, that's the sign, as I've mentioned to
708
00:35:53,930 --> 00:35:57,140
the, our other leadership team members, particularly Stephanie and
709
00:35:57,140 --> 00:36:00,740
Brooks, our CEO and president, that to me, that really says something
710
00:36:00,750 --> 00:36:03,680
when you have something organic like that come from your staff.
711
00:36:03,720 --> 00:36:06,359
And I think whatever the next years bring, I
712
00:36:06,370 --> 00:36:08,220
think we want to make sure we don't lose that.
713
00:36:08,290 --> 00:36:10,880
That's probably the most important thing to me is that really
714
00:36:10,910 --> 00:36:14,400
creates an environment for sharing and openness and transparency and
715
00:36:14,400 --> 00:36:16,990
creativity, and I think that's when we're going to be at our best.
716
00:36:17,400 --> 00:36:18,619
That is amazing.
717
00:36:18,670 --> 00:36:20,379
I want to read the rest of that book now.
718
00:36:20,400 --> 00:36:20,990
That's so cool.
719
00:36:23,690 --> 00:36:24,240
That's awesome.
720
00:36:24,570 --> 00:36:27,479
So then the next question I always ask at the end, and this is on the
721
00:36:27,490 --> 00:36:31,080
more personal note, but what brand do you admire the most right now?
722
00:36:31,330 --> 00:36:34,859
There's one, there's a campaign that came out last year that I just love.
723
00:36:34,859 --> 00:36:35,850
I thought it was fantastic.
724
00:36:35,850 --> 00:36:39,220
It's for, it was produced in Europe for Orange, which is the
725
00:36:39,350 --> 00:36:43,390
telecoms company in Europe, and they were promoting women's soccer.
726
00:36:43,390 --> 00:36:47,579
And it was this really amazing campaign where they look like they were
727
00:36:47,590 --> 00:36:50,770
promoting men's soccer, and they were showing all these soccer highlights
728
00:36:50,770 --> 00:36:53,580
where you sit there and as a soccer fan, you go, "Oh my gosh, that's it.
729
00:36:54,270 --> 00:36:55,350
That's football is life.
730
00:36:55,350 --> 00:36:56,370
That's why I watch.
731
00:36:56,370 --> 00:36:56,724
That's why I watch."
732
00:36:56,724 --> 00:37:00,490
And tehn they revealed that all of the scenes were actually women's soccer
733
00:37:00,500 --> 00:37:05,420
games that they had CG men, did visual effects to put men in place of the women.
734
00:37:06,000 --> 00:37:10,430
And then they replay all those same scenes with the female soccer players.
735
00:37:10,430 --> 00:37:13,050
And I just, it was just so powerful.
736
00:37:13,109 --> 00:37:16,640
And I think it's one of those kinds of ideas that just regardless
737
00:37:16,640 --> 00:37:20,790
of how you feel about gender in sports, just knowing that we need
738
00:37:20,800 --> 00:37:24,219
to have a message like that and that it can be done in such a
739
00:37:24,450 --> 00:37:28,140
powerful way that you can relate to regardless of how you feel
740
00:37:28,140 --> 00:37:30,920
about the sport itself to me, it's just really, really remarkable.
741
00:37:30,920 --> 00:37:32,470
I thought it was incredibly powerful.
742
00:37:32,580 --> 00:37:37,060
That's definitely powerful, and I know the campaign you're talking about,
743
00:37:37,220 --> 00:37:40,869
and it definitely does a lot to like connect emotionally with the audience.
744
00:37:40,870 --> 00:37:43,209
And I think that that was one of the really powerful things about it
745
00:37:43,210 --> 00:37:47,060
was just that almost shock value of like, "Oh wait, no, they lied to me.
746
00:37:47,060 --> 00:37:48,180
Oh, but it's this.
747
00:37:48,230 --> 00:37:49,670
Oh, wow.
748
00:37:49,680 --> 00:37:49,700
Yeah."
749
00:37:50,240 --> 00:37:51,150
No, no, it's true.
750
00:37:51,740 --> 00:37:52,490
It's pretty accurate.
751
00:37:52,740 --> 00:37:54,310
That's sort of the visceral response.
752
00:37:54,350 --> 00:37:58,690
But what I love about ideas like that is that if you are a believer in gender
753
00:37:58,690 --> 00:38:01,749
equality, you can watch something like that and cheer, but at the same time, you
754
00:38:01,750 --> 00:38:05,679
can look at it and say, gosh, for those who don't believe in gender equality,
755
00:38:05,699 --> 00:38:08,950
or even those that don't think much about it, or those that have some sort
756
00:38:08,950 --> 00:38:12,830
of prejudice against women's football for no particular reason, you can share
757
00:38:12,830 --> 00:38:15,740
a campaign like that because you know, it's going to change somebody's mind.
758
00:38:15,780 --> 00:38:17,840
Somebody's going to see that and think, "you know what?
759
00:38:18,070 --> 00:38:19,810
Maybe I will watch women's soccer," and
760
00:38:19,950 --> 00:38:22,029
to me, that's just so incredibly powerful.
761
00:38:22,029 --> 00:38:26,259
It's just one of those kind of brand ideas that you can just fall in love with.
762
00:38:26,680 --> 00:38:27,980
It's a fascinating campaign.
763
00:38:27,980 --> 00:38:29,080
So that's, that's great.
764
00:38:29,410 --> 00:38:29,810
All right.
765
00:38:29,810 --> 00:38:32,190
Well, last question, where can people connect with
766
00:38:32,190 --> 00:38:34,250
you and where can they learn more about Luquire?
767
00:38:34,719 --> 00:38:37,419
Well, they can go to our website, luquire.com.
768
00:38:37,500 --> 00:38:39,660
They can see our work and reach out to us there, and
769
00:38:39,670 --> 00:38:41,770
of course, you can reach out to me on LinkedIn anytime.
770
00:38:41,980 --> 00:38:43,770
I'm on LinkedIn and checking regularly.
771
00:38:43,770 --> 00:38:45,240
So yes, or send me an email.
772
00:38:45,430 --> 00:38:46,100
Also works.
773
00:38:46,110 --> 00:38:48,250
ghilzinger@luquire.com.
774
00:38:48,440 --> 00:38:50,030
Happy to respond to emails as well.
775
00:38:50,240 --> 00:38:50,520
All right.
776
00:38:50,590 --> 00:38:53,500
We'll include that info in the show notes and yeah.
777
00:38:53,670 --> 00:38:56,269
Glen, thank you so much for coming on today.
778
00:38:56,639 --> 00:38:59,130
It's been a pleasure to have you, and yeah, thanks for being here.
779
00:38:59,400 --> 00:39:00,349
Well, thank you so much.
780
00:39:00,350 --> 00:39:01,700
I really appreciate the opportunity.
781
00:39:01,700 --> 00:39:02,270
It's been great.
782
00:39:03,890 --> 00:39:06,570
Thanks for checking out this episode of We Built This Brand.
783
00:39:06,640 --> 00:39:10,130
Don't forget to like, follow, and subscribe on your player of choice.
784
00:39:10,349 --> 00:39:14,679
You can also keep up with the podcast on our website at webuiltthisbrand.com.
785
00:39:15,130 --> 00:39:18,920
If you liked this episode, please give this podcast a five star review and make
786
00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:22,300
sure to tell all your friends about it so we can continue to build this brand.