Colle+McVoy’s PR arm, Exponent Public Relations, won seven awards during last night’s Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) 2013 Silver Anvil Awards ceremony in New York.

The Anvil Awards honor organizations that have successfully addressed a contemporary public relations issue with exemplary professional skill, creativity and resourcefulness. The Silver Anvil are the industry’s oldest and most prestigious awards program honoring complete strategic public relations program.

Exponent won two Silver Anvils for work on behalf of The Medtronic Foundation’s HeartRescue Project, which is dedicated to teaching proper bystander response to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) — the leading cause of death in the United States. The nominated entries, “HeartRescue Project Rallies Public to Save Lives” and “HeartRescue Project Inspires Virtual — and real-life — Heroes” provide an overview of the Save-a-life-Simulator, an immersive online experience that lets users make virtual life-or-death choices and teaches the proper steps to follow. The Save-a-Life Simulator has gained viral momentum, training more than 5.5 million people to save a life since the spring of 2012.

The agency’s third Silver Anvil was won for the entry, “Land O’Lakes Brings Butter Back.” Exponent helped inspire younger generations to cook with Land O’Lakes Butter more often, through a digitally integrated campaign that leveraged celebrity blogger and Food Network personality, Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman.

Exponent’s fourth Silver Anvil was awarded for the entry, “International Olive Council Adds Life to Olive Products Promotion,” in which Exponent developed a multifaceted campaign — called Add Some Life — that showcased how olives and olive oil can add excitement to everyday life, to help reverse stagnant sales in North America.

The Bronze Anvils, which honor tactics within public relations programs, were first announced in May. Exponent received three Bronze Anvils for work on behalf of Farm Credit Mid-America (in the annual report category), Medtronic Foundation (in the website category) and Winfield (in the direct mail category). The agency also received three Bronze Anvil Awards of Commendation for its work on the International Olive Council, Medtronic Foundation and Winfield.

“This recognition is a reflection of the creativity, passion and effectiveness of collaboration with our wonderful client partners,” said Tom Lindell, managing director, Exponent.

Jim Silburn

Dad’s role in the family is changing and it’s time for the media and marketers to catch up.

Over the past couple of decades, the New Dad has quietly made a place for himself in family life, in the kitchen, in the grocery store—wherever he’s
needed. He is parenting his own way, playing his role with confidence and gaining on Mom in spending power.

The New Dad is not a fad. He’s here to stay, and those who give him an authentic and relevant welcome are poised to win not just today, but in the future as well.

Who is the New Dad?

The New Dad is not just a hands-off economic provider. He still tosses baseballs in the yard, but that’s not all. He nurtures, he mentors. He changes
diapers, and he knows which aisle to find them in. He puts dinner on the table, and not just from the drive-through. He’s got opinions on brands of baby socks and considers himself an expert on car seats.

He doesn’t parent exactly like Mom does, but he parents just as much as she does. He’s present. And he wants his presence in his kids’ lives to be
recognized. He’s not out there crusading for recognition; he’s just quietly, confidently doing his thing.

The New Dad is not perfect, but he’s not a buffoon, and he doesn’t like to see fathers portrayed that way. Marketers should give dad as much respect as mom when marketing to their needs.

The New Dad reflects the new family

Traditional families in which one spouse works and the other stays home have shrunk to about 20 percent of all families, down from 44 percent in the 1970s. Dual-earner families are on the rise, making up almost 60 percent of all married-couple families with children under 18, the highest percentage yet. ^[1] That, inevitably, has changed the division of labor at home.

The new family is also closer than ever. More than half of parents describe their kids as their best friend. Families share interests in everything from
music to clothing, and everyone has a voice in making decisions. Taking time out together is parents’—dads included—most sought after activity.

The New Dad is in the kitchen and the grocery store

Today’s young parents (generally millennials/Gen Y) grew up in more egalitarian homes than the country had ever seen and expect to create egalitarian homes for their families. In 1965, women spent six times as many hours on housework as men did; today they spend a little less than twice as much time on these chores.^[2] It’s not even, but it’s getting there.

Men are also shopping more and spending more on groceries—and the trend should continue upward. More than 75 percent of dads claim they take primary responsibility for food shopping or share the task equally with their partner. And, in 2012, men spent $35.26 at the grocery store per trip, compared with $27.49 in 2004. ^[3]

Food industry consultant Phil Lempert even put men’s increasing presence in the kitchen and the grocery store on his influential list of the top 10 food
trends of 2013.

That means that the sight of Dad in the kitchen or the grocery store can no longer be played for laughs—at least not by brands who want to stay relevant.

The New Dad embraces social media

It’s not just Mom posting family updates and photos on Facebook and other social media channels. Dad is posting at a similar rate—more than half of dads write family-related status updates at least a few times a week.

Dad is also turning to social networks for inspiration at mealtime. About one-fifth use friends to crowd-source ideas, and a similar number use social media to hunt for recipes directly. In fact, fully 80 percent use technology in some way for cooking and meal planning. ^[4]

Dad is online for the same reasons as Mom: to stay connected with others despite busy schedules and to make family tasks like cooking easier and more fun.

The New Dad may not want to invite your brand or service into this social time unless you offer useful, relevant content—content that reflects his true role in the family.

Just being online where Dad is isn’t enough.

Brands and services that create tools that suit his needs and personality will have an edge. And brands that give him ways to have fun and involve the kids will be even farther ahead.

Reality does not match the New Dad’s ideal

While the New Dad aspires to share equally in the care of his family, he is often not able to do so in reality. Very few fathers take time off after the birth of their children. And fathers frequently report that responsibilities at work interfere with their family lives. ^[5]

In fact, dads in dual-earner couples now feel significantly great work-life conflict than moms—a remarkable change from decades past.

Brands should provide solutions, not stereotypes

Although wives are still doing more work around the house than their husbands, the decades-long trend toward a more even split is likely to continue as millennials model the more egalitarian households of their childhood.

The New Dad is inarguably more present in the kitchen, at family meals, and in family life in general than he ever has been before. He’s trying to balance work and family and live up to a new ideal of fatherhood. He’s not trying to be Mom—and certainly not Mr. Mom—he’s just trying to be the best dad he can be.

Savvy brands will dump the outdated stereotype of the bumbling, incompetent dad and offer useful tools and meaningful messages that reflect his new role in the family.

Mike Caguin

Spending time outdoors refreshes the soul, invigorates the spirit and reduces stress. For those very reasons, it should not be a surprise that the “Great Outdoors” has its very own month of June to inspire us to get outside, appreciate the environment and suck up all the healthy mind and body benefits it has to offer. But have you thought about spending time outdoors as a competitive advantage? The benefits of even 15 minutes outside can inspire thinking that is transformative for business.

Well over 100 studies of outdoor experiences in the wilderness and natural areas show that natural outdoor environments produce positive physiological and psychological responses in humans, including reduced stress and a general feeling of well being. According to a new study from Scotland published in The British Journal of Sports Medicine, “brain fatigue,” the mind being overwhelmed by the
constant noise and hectic demands of urban living, can be eased by simply walking a half-mile through a park. We don’t need a scientist to tell us that clearing the mind and invigorating the soul can inspire creative thinking.

But as a culture that works long hours and is enslaved by technology meant to keep us “always on,” how do we exactly take advantage of being outdoors during the energy-sapping, long workweeks? Here are ways that employers can encourage a culture that spends a portion of the day outside:

- Celebrate Great Outdoors Month and influence behaviors beyond June. Minneapolis ad agency Colle+McVoy is challenging the entire staff to take an “adult recess” each workday of the month or spend at least 15 minutes outside doing non-work related activities. We hope this becomes a behavior changing activity.

- Create a collective passion for getting outdoors by commemorating other related national movements like Bike Walk to Work Week. Host friendly, prize-incentivized competitions to see who bikes the most; compensate people for being active in their spare time through a company wellness fund; sponsor recreational sports teams among employees; create outdoor patios or seating areas; host a company picnic; create walking clubs.

- Lead by example. When a company’s C-suite is visibly partaking in the culture they are promoting — biking to work, taking runs over lunch, joining group workouts — others will follow.

- Give people the means to embrace the outdoors by providing a supportive infrastructure. Install bike racks, showers, lockers or other means that make it simple for employees to get outside and be active before or during the workday.

- Encourage employees to take their vacation days and get out into the great outdoors. Reimbursing the cost of a State or National park pass is a great way to support our parks. Supporting time off helps reinvigorate your most valuable asset – your people.

Encouraging people to do whatever they can, even during the workday, to stay healthy and be creatively inspired not only creates a happier culture, it’s well worth the investment since it affects the bottom line.

Briana Peterson

What’s the new consumer path to purchase, and are you ready for it?

As participants discussed at the recent Advertising Research Foundation conference in Minneapolis, the traditional sales funnel from awareness to purchase is a thing of the past. The new path to purchase is nonlinear and complicated, more like a flight map than a funnel.

To expand on the metaphor: There are more touch points (cities) at which users connect with the brand and more channels (flight paths) and platforms (type of plane) on which they can connect.
Think about buying a new car. In the past, you might see a commercial on TV that piques your interest, ask friends and family for their opinions, read some reviews, visit a couple dealerships and then buy a car when there’s a big sale.

Today you are more likely go online and start searching for cars based on specific requirements, read reviews on Edmunds.com, take to Facebook to ask for advice, and check out a dealer website on your iPad after seeing a commercial on TV. Once you finally make a trip to the dealership, you might even whip out your phone during negotiations to check prices at neighboring dealerships.
The path to purchase just got a lot more complicated.

This poses a huge challenge for marketers because it requires a much deeper understanding of the audience and their user journey to determine which channels and platforms are right for their brand (not everyone brand should be on Pinterest).

Mapping the new consumer path to purchase is only half the battle. The real work happens when you aspire to build a truly holistic strategy that engages users and gives them the content they want, when and where they want it. Within an integrated, full-service agency, this requires a level of client and cross-functional team collaboration that was unheard of in the days of Mad Men.

The digital landscape is changing rapidly. However, I believe there is enormous opportunity for brands and agencies to capitalize on these changes if they take a step back and build a holistic strategy based on a deeper understanding of their audience, the consumer path to purchase and the impact emerging digital trends will have on their businesses in future.

Ryan Sadeghi

People who work in advertising like to talk about living the brand. To fully understand the brands you work with, you must experience them on a regular basis—drinking your client’s brand of coffee or wearing their outdoor clothes. But is that fully living a brand?

I spent three days in a tent. With a dog. To tell our client’s story. Now that is living the brand.

At Colle + McVoy, we work with Novartis Animal Health on, among other products, Parastar Plus, which protects dogs against ticks and fleas. The brand is positioned to empower dogs and their owners to enjoy the outdoors without worry. To bring this positioning to life, we launched a campaign called Dogs Need Adventure in January 2013 at the largest veterinary conference in the world, North American Veterinary Conference (NAVC).

Like most major trade shows, NAVC is a sea of branded signage. Everywhere you turn, brands are screaming at you through massive banners, clings, wraps and fliers. When every brand is trying to get your attention this way, nothing really stands out. That’s why we decided to bring a real outdoor adventure to the conference in the form of a man, his dog and a campsite set up outside of the convention center. And when I say real, I mean real: a real person living, eating and sleeping at the campsite with his dog for three days. Adventure Man was born.

And, with plenty of camping experience and familiarity with Novartis. I got to be Adventure Man.

The night before the conference, I spent some time with my colleagues while soaking up the feeling of being inconspicuous, knowing tomorrow would be completely different. At the crack of dawn, I put on my branded camping gear and headed to the site to set up camp and meet Freckles, a calm and playful golden Lab. I was ready to start my adventure.

For three days, Freckles and I kept busy walking the convention floor, playing games outdoors and meeting curious, dog-loving veterinarians. And, yes, we even slept in the tent and made all our meals outdoors. With my yellow flannel, hiking pack and walking stick I sure stood out, but it was Freckles who quickly became the star of the show. I can’t even count the number times a group of vets ran up to pet Freckles and get their “fur fix.” This attention gave me plenty of opportunity to build awareness of the brand and drive people to the Novartis booth. Word from the convention floor was that it was working: There was a noticeable buzz and we stood out among the clutter of traditional signage.

After three days and two nights, Freckles and I became close pals on a common mission: to enjoy the outdoors together. I left Orlando knowing we made a difference for our client. I also left with a completely new perspective on what it means to live the brand.

Dogs Need Adventure from Colle+McVoy on Vimeo.

John Neerland

A few months back, to much fanfare, Twitter bought video-sharing service Vine. Like Twitter before it, Vine is another excellent example of the freedoms of limitations. Instead of 140 characters, Vine limits you to 6 seconds of looping video.

The app recently had its mass media moment when someone’s Vine of the recent terrorist attacks in Boston was featured by news programs across the globe. The Tribeca Film Festival had a Vine contest this past April and brands like Lowe’s and Urban Outfitters have been experimenting with Vine-centric campaigns.

I appreciate the immediacy and urgency when creating Vines and thought it would be a great way to capture my experiences at SXSW. Because you need to capture video “live” and there is no editing after the fact, creating a Vine involves careful planning or just plain lucky timing. Brands will find success in the former, figuring out what story they want to tell in a mere six seconds. Those who understand the medium will embrace the spontaneity and rawness of the output and take advantage of features like perpetual looping.

All in all, I found Vine to be a great way to capture some of the various themes at SXSW. Themes such as:

the lines…

the hotel scenery…

the overstimulation…

the promotions…

the swag…

the former Vice President…

the transportation…

and, of course, the National Beer of Texas.

Mike Caguin

Chief creative officer Mike Caguin gave a longer version of this speech at the Student Advertising Summit in February. For recent, and not-so-recent, grads heading into an advertising career, it’s also a good reminder of why they found this path so alluring in the first place.

It’s 1962 in New York City. Don Draper is looking at a second round of creative concepts for Mohawk Airlines. He sent his creative teams back to the drawing board just 24 hours ago because the work wasn’t good enough. Peggy Olson, a young, talented copywriter, and her art director partner, Sal, lay their work on Don’s desk with conviction. They’re confident they’ve nailed the campaign. They show two ads. Each concept overtly depicts an attractive woman in a short skirt. Pop quiz: who’s the target audience? It’s an attempt to deliver upon one of the oldest clichés in advertising: sex sells.

Don hates it. He steers the conversation in search of a deeper meaning for the fledgling airline. When Peggy challenges him, he counters, “Just so you know, the people who talk that way think that monkeys can do this. They take all this monkey crap and just stick it in a briefcase, completely unaware that their success depends on something more than their shoeshine. You are the product. You—feeling something. That’s what sells. Not them. Not sex. They can’t do what we do, and they hate us for it.”

Like any good period fiction, “Mad Men” is an exaggeration of what was the truth. Many of its characters carry enough personal baggage to fill a Boeing 747—they chain smoke, drink heavily, use drugs, cheat on their spouses. They are almost all morally questionable. Sounds like the best job on the planet, doesn’t it?

Of course, all of that juicy stuff helps keep the storyline interesting, but when you strip away all of that, you’re left with an industry and career choice that are still unbelievably exciting. What Don Draper meant when he said, “You are the product. You—feeling something,” was that when advertising is at its best, it stirs your soul in a big way.

It’s the reason why every first Sunday in February we debate at great length and measure in infinitesimal detail the most memorable commercials of the Super Bowl.

It’s the reason why we all know someone who’s cried or gotten goose bumps because a commercial tugged on their heartstrings.

It’s the reason why some people proudly and permanently tattoo their bodies with company logos.

Or share something hilarious—it just happens to be an ad.

Or decide to train for that marathon after all.

Or feel compelled to help those in need.

And, whether we admit it or not—or consciously think about it or not—every person in this room owns the things they own, at least in part, because somewhere along the way those brands we wear, share and evangelize made us feel something.

It’s the same in 2013 as it was in 1962. When marketing is done well, it not only connects with people, it becomes a part of people. The only difference is that today, things are more exciting than they’ve ever been. Today, with technology changing every minute and the lines separating advertising, design, digital, media, product development and public relations blurring all the more, our creative sandbox is now infinite.

Here’s the best part of all this. You will find many moments throughout your career where you will say to yourself, “I get paid to do this?” Yes, yes you will. And it’s a beautiful thing.

Rachel Zwirlein, Matt Stengel, Ryan Sadeghi

Digital communication, while unique and filled with infinite possibilities, is not that different from how other effective marketing strategies have helped brands connect people. The digital and physical spaces need to work together. You have to relate to people, make relationships, and create content that is relevant and engaging.

That’s the core of what was addressed at this year’s Ad Age Digital Conference – a 101 of the top digital marketing challenges facing brands today. Other topics that bubbled to the top include:

• Brands should create a content strategy in the digital space.
  A brand’s content is the brand’s ad in every space. People don’t see advertising in buckets; they know a brand from every touch point. Whether content is produced by a company or a person via social media, brands need to know how they make their consumers feel. It’s not just about the assets; it’s about finding a way to connect.
• A thriving digital engagement strategy focuses on providing value. People expect brands to know what they want and how they want to engage. Personalization is key and the customer should always be at the core. Marketers can enhance the experience by leveraging data and insights to define the strategy and objective. That said, content must drive the idea, with the understanding that being relevant, informative and nimble are important to increase and maintain engagement.
• Multi-screen is the new normal. People want convenience. They expect interactions across touch points to be seamless. Purchasing behavior is changing more rapidly than predicted, “anywhere commerce” is here and making it imperative for marketers to prepare for transactions at any time, whether content- or commerce-related.
• Visual storytelling creates emotional brand connections.By 2015, 50 percent of all photos taken in the U.S. will be from a smartphone. The digital space allows consumers and marketers alike to create stronger connections to the everyday, outside of the physical world, through photos and video. Storytelling through visual communication allows marketers to make emotional and lasting impressions with their consumers.
• Big data is here, but applied data is king.The byproduct of digital is data, but big data is more than just (exponentially growing) volume. Today, we have more tools to help us analyze the data and better communicate with the right audience at the right time in the right space. It is important for companies to leverage the data they have to anticipate the needs of people—before they even know what they need. But, we also have to recognize that although we have a vast amount of data, we can’t measure everything and expect to get ahead; we have to measure and act on those things that will benefit the audience.

In other words: the key to a strong digital strategy is about having a meaningful customer engagement strategy.

Tom Douty

So, the social world is all aflutter with news first reported by The Wall Street Journal that Facebook is working on incorporating the hashtag function into its platform.

As marketers we’re excited because hashtags on Facebook would provide a new search enhancement allowing users to group conversations and sort messages about one topic or news event. As social counsel, it gives us another tool to help brands find fans and get into conversations. It also could give us another tool on Facebook to promote conversations and much like Twitter, use hashtags to find fans, aggregate stories and react to trending conversations if relevant to the brand.

Not knowing what’s exactly coming though, our initial take is, “Why?”

The common language on Facebook is wordier and more conversational than on other social media platforms. It doesn't have the same post-length constraints as Twitter and Instagram. It’s even stranger when you think about Facebook's rollout of Graph Search, which is supposed to be so semantically smart in its parsing.

Why build a cornerstone feature that is so reliant on users to appropriately tag something with a hashtag? Why not build a search function that is actually smart enough to determine what’s relevant or recommend topic meta tags based on content without the distracting hashtag?

But rest assured, there’s a long-range plan behind it. Maybe it’s a positioning move to unseat Twitter as more people do all their socializing on their phone. Maybe it’s part of a grand plan for Facebook to bump Twitter from their hold on the instant feed.

Our faith is in your hands team Zuckerberg. We’re #waitingwithanxiousanticipationforyournewhashtagcoolness.

Mike Schwab

Dear Marketer,
While everyone else in our industry attended SXSW as a developer, advertiser, designer, or what have you. I actually attended SXSW as your consumer. And what I learned is that your entire industry is slowly getting in on my little secret:

It’s all about ME.

Yup, you used to think that you could bucket me with a bunch of other people who have similar HHIs, genital parts and ages. You were essentially saying that Marilyn Manson, Bobby Brown and Tim McGraw were the same person and had the same values. Turns out that we all want to be spoken to individually and that technology and the digital space are enabling that. Not only do we want to be spoken to individually, we want it on our terms and on our own schedule. I don’t want to wait for episodes of my favorite show; I want the entire season and I want it now on any device (see: Netflix’s “House of Cards.”)

And I want to be the star of the show. At SXSW I got to sit on the throne from HBO’s hit series “Game of Thrones.” I got my picture taken and of course I put it on Facebook so all my friends could see ME. The New York Times made a profile of my face out of words, but then I learned that the words weren’t about ME—not cool. I visited the GE Brilliant Brew truck for a free latte and got my face drawn into the foam. I could have gotten a free latte with a GE light bulb drawn in the foam and only waited a few seconds, but instead I waited 45 minutes to get ME in the foam. It ended up looking like a mash-up of Abe Lincoln and Mr. Clean. But it was well worth the wait, Why? Because it was a picture of ME.

I was also shocked to see that brands were actually offering me things that I needed and wanted rather than yelling at me with a megaphone. Chevy offered me free rides around town through their “Grab a Chevy” program. AT&T let me power up my phone in a secure locker as I roamed the conference (while feeling naked without my phone). And countless brands gave me free stuff, like 3M post-its, battery packs and cell phone cases. The cell phone case came from a company that lets me customize and design my cover with—what else—pictures of ME.

The sessions were great, and, shockingly, they all revolved around ME. A few sessions touched on the power of humor, and I like to laugh—as long as you make it easy. And storytelling—I love a good story and you’re actually starting to learn that I would rather hear about the story behind your products than the features of your products. I attended Jonah Berger’s session (he’s the author of Contagious) and realized that you’ve started to figure out what makes things contagious. And as you suspected, it’s the content and type of content that makes things memes, not just calling them “viral” or making sure the right blogger or TV show mentions them. And, speaking of contagious, I waited in line one hour to get a picture of Grumpy Cat (and ME).

I even found it comforting to hear the stories of how Panera Bread and Whole foods are becoming more meaning-driven. It makes ME feel good when I eat there.

So keep it up marketers.

Best regards,

Your consumer (ME)

Mike Caguin and Eric Husband

The Super Bowl is the most anticipated and talked about event in the advertising industry. It’s our Oscars, Grammys and Fashion Week wrapped into one. We expect to see some of the best creative, soundest strategy and most effective marketing of the year. But with all the flash and hoopla, how does it affect the average marketer? What can the millions of marketers, business leaders and entrepreneurs take away on Feb 3rd?

First, they should ask, “What is my Super Bowl?” Instead of looking at the event as the advertising star-studded night it is, consider it just a platform, a launching pad that top tier advertisers decide (or can afford) to leverage.  Every marketer has a “Super Bowl” or big stage and you don't need $4 million plus (average cost of the Super Bowl media buy) to own it. While helping Caribou Coffee with a major rebranding effort, we approached the design of their coffee cups as their Super Bowl. After all, to the nation's second largest premium coffee shop, their cups actually garner the sort of impressions a commercial during the Super Bowl does. All of a sudden, the cup designs became a lead element in the campaign and everything followed.

And with Land O'Lakes, we treated their new mobile site as their Super Bowl. Today's busy Moms (and Dads) are turning more and more to mobile devices to plan and prepare meals, so we placed great emphasis on creating a user experience that was intuitive, simple and inspiring. After all, it will be used by millions of people.

Once you identify your Super Bowl, it might not reach hundreds of millions of viewers in one fell swoop—or feature the mishaps of Janet Jackson— but there are some things we can all learn from the big game that can be applied.

It's not just about showing up, it's about standing out.

Whether it's at a trade show such as CES, packaging on a store shelf, or something as simple as a sweepstakes—just think, what would happen if you treated it as if everyone was watching? Pretend for a second that USA Today is going to gauge your efforts with a meter the next day. That your family and friends are going to point out "I know the person who did that…" The reason so many Super Bowl spots are memorable isn't just because they cost a lot of money. It's because a lot of thought went into them. No one wants to disappoint.

Make sure it’s the right kind of memorable.

Too often, in their efforts to stand out, advertisers make the mistake of not linking their creative idea to the uniqueness of the product. They do a great job making people laugh, or maybe even coaxing a tear or goosebumps with a heartfelt message, but the viewer is unable to remember what brand moved them in the first place. Will your audience walk away your Super Bowl message the way you'd like?

Get the most out of your investment.

Two trends have emerged from advertising during the big game. First, creating buzz for your ad prior to game day is a great way to make your marketing dollars work harder. Can you tease your Super Bowl effort before it launches?

Second, advertisers are doing an increasingly good job of tying a social component to their spot, whether it’s an online game or asking viewers to vote for the ending of the spot on Twitter. By doing this they engage consumers, increase conversations and build buzz. Be sure you’ve employed all the tools in your marketing toolbox to promote your Super Bowl.

Mike Caguin

Heading down to SXSWi for the first time, I was pretty skeptical that the conference could meet my expectations. So much hype has been built up over the years—it had me doubting that I’d return to Minneapolis digitally enlightened. In fact, I didn’t.

So much of the SXSWi experience is uninspiring. The long lines, the overabundance of choice, the panels that are simply boring. When I got past the harsh realities, however, I experienced what makes heading to Austin special.

Everyone who attends SXSWi is there to push the potential of what people can do. And it’s much bigger than talking technology. I was surprised by how most of my favorite talks barely touched on the notion of interactive as we typically understand it. Rather, the best speakers simply shared their ideas on how they’re improving the lives of people. It reminded me why interactive is not just a medium. It’s everything. Interactive has the power to affect everyone who roams this great Earth in the most meaningful ways. It's what we, as an agency, strive for with interactive.

I hope, in the years to come, to attend SXSWi. Or as I call it, The Human Potential Conference.