A: We are a group of passionate people in advertising, marketing, design, branding and communications who like to share things that we’re passionate about. We number more than 100 people from around the world at every level – from students to executives – and are the social side of Advertising Week.
Q: So, you write about the business?
A: Sure. But we also like to write about other things. Some people write about being parents and being in advertising. Others write about things that inspire them. We have a bunch of people who like to write about music, food, style – basically things that people in the biz are interested in.
Q: Oh. It’s a hybrid, then.
A: Exactly. The most important thing about it is that we are highly social and experimental. As of now, we’re on 11 platforms and creating all kinds of stuff on each of them. We also have “themes” each day that weave through our normal day-to-day conversation. We are really just keen on having a fun, social place for industry people to hang out and share.
Q: But you’re not an industry trade?
A: Kind of hard to answer that one. In some ways, we are. We love the trades, but we also acknowledged that we wanted to have a different conversation with the industry. The people at the trades are incredibly talented journalists who provide an invaluable service to the industry. We’re a group of incredibly talented people who just want to tell slightly different stories so that we can add something meaningful to the overall conversation.
Q: I think I get that?
A: Yeah. Same here. We’re always a work in progress. But we do know that we are unearthing some pretty interesting stuff – and we’re a good social destination for people in the industry. Think of us as a Perrier or Burn Notice. You’ll get the taste of it after a few tries.
Q: Why are you different than the trades?
A: It’s mainly in our style. We’re a little more go-go, footloose and fancy free. We take the industry and its work very seriously. But we don’t take ourselves too seriously. We also try to be as positive and inspirational as possible because, let’s face it, this is a great business with so many amazing people in it.
Q: What platforms are you on?
A: Plenty. 11 to be exact. We’re always looking to add to the mix, so the number of platforms will grow over time. If you go to the top of this page, you’ll see where we’re listed.
Q: Who runs this thing?
A: The main guy, Doug Zanger, is in Portland, Oregon. Our Managing Editor, Newbear Lesniewski (yes, that’s his name), is in Lexington, Kentucky. The Content Manager, Chloe DeMars, is also in Portland. But Zanger is on the Delta Hipster Express from Portland to JFK quite a bit.
Q: You mentioned that you’re attached with Advertising Week?
A: Yes. We realized that we had a chance to have an even bigger conversation during the other 360 days of the year outside of Advertising Week. And here we are.
Oh, and we’d love for you to join us at Advertising Week in New York, October 1-5.
Q: You’re not associated with Adweek?
A: No. Adweek are wonderful partners and we absolutely love their stuff, but we are not part of their social posse.
Q: How can I get involved with this? It looks kind of fun.
A: Well, yes, it is fun. That’s by design. If you’d like to be considered as a social contributor, please get in touch with Doug Zanger. He’ll walk you through everything. You can also peek at the AWSC contributor guidelines to give you an idea of the types of content we like to create.
Q: So it’s not just blogging?
A: Nope. You may contribute on as many platforms as you would like. We just have some basic guidelines that we ask people to follow. If you’d like to just contribute blog posts, totally cool.
Q: What do I get from being a contributor?
A: A few things. First, some good exposure in the biz. Some of our contributors have used this platform as a pedigree-builder/portfolio piece – which is awesome, by the way. Some use it as creative oxygen so that they can share their creativity and passion. And everyone who contributes gets a press pass to Advertising Week. With a few exceptions, it’s pretty much all-access.
Q: What kind of commitment are you looking for?
A: For blogging, one post per month and two during Advertising Week. Posts are 500+ words. On other platforms, we just ask for fairly consistent contribution on the platforms you choose. Some choose to go one route; some choose both.
Q: How do I get in touch?
A: You can email Doug Zanger and he’ll be happy to chat with you.
