Head Snap.

Here with the next in our series of guest posts by our experts here at Denmark {the agency} is our CEO/Founder, Priscilla Jessup, AKA Chief Viking.

Great creative often takes a double-take. It uproots normal and changes the way you look at it.

In the case of this Coca-Cola outdoor board made completely out of plants, the way you look at it is powerfully – and quite literally – changed.

Congratulations to Coca-Cola’s team in the Philippines for taking a worthy message completely out of context…compost…context…and planting it firmly in the mind of its audience.

Punch versus Pace?

Here with the next in our series of guest posts by our experts here at Denmark {the agency} is our CEO/Founder, Priscilla Jessup, AKA Chief Viking.

(click here to view the video)

The age-old question in advertising (business, dating and overall human relations) is the debate on Punch v. Pace: which is more effective?

For Punchers:

Ardent believers in the big bang approach to advertising, it is far better to spend heavy resources upfront to make an indelible impression in the mind of the consumer (client, date or UN member nation) - counting on the permanence of that impression to block the competition and hold sway over the market.

For Pacers:

Philosphically more aligned with beliefs such as Repetition is Reputation, Out of Sight Out of Mind and The Hare Ultimately Wins, it is far better to stretch their marketing spend over the long haul - counting on the ubiquity of that exposure to block the competition and hold sway over the market.

And the answer is...

Recently it seems the answer to Punch v. Pace was writ large in the night sky over Oban in Argyll, Scotland as the annual, 20-minute fireworks celebration of Guy Fawkes Day exploded in a gorgeous 50 seconds. Something had gone horribly wrong as hundreds of fireworks exploded in less than a minute.

PUNCH. Then poof. It was over.

And as the stunned audience stared at the now smoking but otherwise empty black sky, no one complained. Not one. No one asked for his/her money back. No one booed. Instead, they cheered those fiery 50 seconds and what they described as the "best fireworks display they've ever seen."

As I see it:

The fireworks of Oban in Argyll delivered far more punch in 50 seconds than it ever could have in the scheduled 20 minutes. No one who saw that is likely to forget it. And, thanks to CNN and YouTube, Oban in Argyll, Scotland is now on the global map in a way that only Punch can deliver. The problem for Pacers is that the ubiquity of their advertising is dependent on budget. The problem for Punchers is that the indelibility of their impression is dependent on memory. Budgets, memories and aging global population aside, I'm going with Punch.

How do you see it?

Meet Jim

First up in our series of Viking Q & A sessions is Assistant Account Executive, Jim Losée, (pronounced LOW-SAY). He’s THE go-to guy for questions, answers and so much more. You name it, he knows it.

So, Jim, tell me a little bit about yourself.

Well, I am a 23 year old University of Florida grad, class of 2010 (Go Gators!!!!). I spent some years in Boston, MA; spent last year in GA and 15 before that in Jacksonville, FL.

Amazing! Congratulations on your 1 year anniversary with DENMARK! How does it feel? What have you enjoyed about being a Viking ?

It’s nice to have been here for a year, I really feel like an essential part of the team. I’ve really enjoyed working my way through from intern to today, and the people that make up this team are great.

What made you choose marketing as a career?

I like the challenge that marketing presents. There may or may not always be a clear path to solving the difficulties a company/industry is facing, but it’s always a puzzle. The fun part lies in finding out how all the pieces fit together.

Have you read anything interesting this week? (marketing news, tech news ect.)

As odd as it sounds, I tend to stay away from marketing news, but I can’t get enough politics! I’ve been keeping up with the Republican primary contenders lately… occupies a good chunk of my reading time.

Since social media is becoming an integral part of everyday life, would you consider yourself a Twitter, FB or Google + Junkie?

Originally I was all about Facebook, but then I got into Twitter a lot. I love the idea of telling a story in 140 characters or less. I’m on Google +, but I still prefer Facebook over Google +.

I heard through the grapevine that you got the new iphone! What phone are you switching from, why the switch and what's so cool about this particular Apple product?

Yes! I’m so excited. Being on the Sprint network, this is my first opportunity to own one, and it just so happened to coincide with an eligible upgrade time. I’m switching from a Sanyo phone, which was reliable in its own right, but just older and not 3G ready. I’m an Apple junkie, so this was the missing piece of my collection… The camera on it is amazing, it’s super fast, and Siri really is a gamechanger.

What song or album is in heavy rotation on your ipod or spotify account?

I can’t get enough of Mayday Parade’s new self-titled album! It’s my candidate for best pop-punk album of the year. Also, I can't wait for the new fun. record coming out in February of next year! The Picture Show never goes a day without a listen, and I’m also dabbling in some dubstep (Skrillex).

What good movies and bad ones have you seen lately?

The last movie I saw in theaters was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (twice), and it was epic. The last one I saw at home was the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street, I bought it on BluRay and watched it on Halloween. Not great, but not bad… definitely visually stunning in high definition!

What would you like to conquer this week?

The South Carolina Gamecocks when my Gators head to their house this weekend!

All I Want for Christmas is my Throwable Panoramic Ball Camera.

Here with the next in our series of guest posts by our experts here at Denmark {the agency} is our Creative Director, Todd Haislip, AKA Small Beard.

I’m a guy. So I’m no stranger to getting all sorts of throwable things for Christmas. I’ve received footballs, frisbees and baseballs. There’s even the basketball I bounced through my parent’s bedroom window when I was eight.

And then there’s this: The most amazing throwable ball thing ever. It’s a 360-degree camera, in a ball. You throw it in the air, and it snaps a panoramic shot at its highest point. All you need is a decent throwing motion and a computer to download the image. I’m working on my throwing arm as we speak. 10-pound dumbbell curls, 30 reps a day.

So Santa, if you’re reading this, see below. I know it’s not even Thanksgiving yet, but the elves will probably need to work overtime to build this bad boy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Th5zlUe6gOE

—Small Beard

Finding the Great Garanimal of Go With

It is my pleasure to introduce the next in a series of guest posts by our experts here at Denmark {the agency}. This one is written by our CEO and Founder, Priscilla Jessup, Aka Chief Viking.

In the world of big decisions (like picking your family room’s paint color) and pricey, non-returnable considered-purchases (like choosing the new carpet to go with your new paint color), decorating resolutely ranks right up there on the top tiers of terror.

Okay, the truth is that most of us (even those of us who revel daily in creative realms) are more than likely to be reduced to quivering pools of shudder at the mere thought of picking colors for our own home. Imagine, given the challenges of room size, ceiling height and all the vagaries of natural and unnatural light, picking paint color and carpet that actually go with each other. What are the chances of that?

And, when you come right down to it, what does “go with” really mean?

Now, to make matters more terrifying, the process of discovering “what goes with what “ is neither condensed nor convenient. And while you might start your journey by spending a gajillion late night hours on a gajillion websites, your adventure has only begun. Because no matter how hard you try to convince yourself that you can match colors online – you can’t. Or maybe you can, but what you absolutely cannot do is convince yourself that you can. So you don’t.

Ultimately it all becomes peripatetic. You start by using your lunch hours, then your dinner times, and eventually your sick days (yes you do!) to run from paint store to furniture store to drapery store to carpeting store and back again.

And for all this running, your reward is lots of tiny, little, begrudgingly given samples and chips and swatches of variously colored carpet, wallpaper, paint and fabrics clutched in your sweaty hands and purse and pockets and bags – and “Oh-My-God, where did I put that orange and magenta-ish paint chip that goes with the hue like we liked on Aunt Marsha’s ottoman?”

Yes, I have heard that conversation (and who would not have committed that word-for-word to memory?) and I have witnessed that journey.

So back to the running around and clutching of samples and whatnots. Like Judgment Day, there eventually comes the point when the creative question has to be answered: will that color paint go with that color carpet?

And who has discovered the answer? Who has suddenly changed the game for all weary seekers of “go with”?

Martha Stewart.

Not to mix brand references, but Martha Stewart has created The Great Garanimal of “Go With.”

(Garanimals – you know, the famous children’s clothing line that uses sweet little babyish icons to show you how to match tops with bottoms, etc. Really, you didn’t know? )

Now, even the most confirmed decorator-phobe, can walk into Home Depot, go to the Martha Stewart Living Paint and Carpet Collections and choose from over 280 interior paint colors that are expertly matched to their best “go with” by cute little icons (apples, stars, etc). So if you truly can not see the nuanced differences between Barely There Beige and Bright Morning Beige, you can simply match one apple (or star, etc) icon with another and voila! You have your perfect Go Withs.

But that’s not all.

MSL has taken those little MSL paint icons and put them on all her MSL carpeting…. So now you can also take your perfect paint Go Withs (walls, trim and ceiling) and using those angelic MSL icons, find the inarguably perfect carpet Go With.

So now you can go back to sleeping at night. Martha, the patron saint of keeping–it-simple, has tamed the terrors of creative Go Withs.

Have you found new methods for solving creative problems? If so, please share. We are always eager for great conversations on creativity, commerce and communication.

- Chief Viking

Pixel Perfect

It is my pleasure to introduce the beginning of a series of guest posts by our experts here at Denmark {the agency}. The first is written by our Creative Director, Todd Haislip, Aka Small Beard.

One of the best things about the creative process is that you can find inspiration just about anywhere. Sometimes, a movie might spark a great idea. Other times, it might be the beauty of Mother Nature. And yet sometimes, it’s just others in the creative industry doing really great work. When it comes to the Web, there a number of sites that are fun to peruse when looking for a little design inspiration.

Here are three that we check out from time to time.

www.designbombs.com

www.webdesignledger.com

www.fwawards.com

Have favorites of your own? Post them below. We’d love to hear how you get inspired to make every pixel perfect.

- Small Beard