The Woodshed

I'm super excited to announce that we are doing a NEW podcast, we're gonna continue doing podcasts but this podcast is about something really personal for me and that's the bicycle. It's not about racing bicycles, although, it might be, it's not about mountain biking and dirt jumps and competing, although, it might be. But, it's really about humans and our relationship to this miracle machine that we invented over 100 years ago, and still is the greatest achievement of humanity, in my opinion.

Everybody can be creative if they push fear aside and allow themselves to be. Take Louis McConnell. He has always believed in self-discovery through hard and unfamiliar situations – from getting punched in the face during amateur MMA fights to quitting his cushy insurance career so he could pack boxes in a factory while pursuing mountain biking. That’s how he met Alex Bogusky, who took a chance and offered Louis a job as a copywriter, even with zero advertising experience to his name. Hear how this experiment started, what it’s taken for Louis to prove himself as a professional creative and why it’s important to be yourself 100% of the time, even if that means getting a face tattoo.

Tweens consume 6 to 9 hours of content every day. Adults, as much as 10. What is the responsibility of advertisers as narrative builders in this very real media environment? Michelle Lipkin is the Executive Director of the National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE). She and Alex talk about the importance of creating a free, positive and safe media environment and practical tips to be better contributors, from deliberate empathy to representing underrepresented demographics in casting. In the first half, Michelle shares a touching story of losing her father in the Pan Am Flight 103 air disaster and how it shaped her thinking of media coverage. In the back half, she and Alex talk about representation, the importance of media literacy education, and why critical thinking and analysis is imperative to our future.  Find Michelle on Twitter Find NAMLE or visit their Twitter Links: American Girl Lingerie Ad “Speechless” on ABC “Shantaram” by Gregory David Roberts

65% of ad pros are suffering "Burnout," more than teachers (58%) and consultants (55%), according to a recent AdAge article. And The World Health Organization just declared Burnout an official medical condition. What's going on and how to do you even begin to deal with the problem? Tim Dyer, founder of Manifesto Agency, was brave enough to come to The Woodshed and share his struggles. Alex and Tim then discuss tactics and tips they've tried to combat as well as expert suggestions. From de-powering failure to finding value in your work to challenging everyday assumptions about your job. Find Tim Dyer on Linkedin, or visit Interesting Development. The Woodshed is a CPB Podcast Production.

If you’ve worked in advertising long enough, or any industry, you’ve thought about running your own shop. Paul Caiozzo is a former CD at CPB who went on to lead Goodby Silverstein and Partners New York before starting his own agency, Interesting Development, in 2016. And like most founders, he has felt the highs and lows ever since. Paul stopped by The Woodshed for a cautionary yet encouraging chat with Alex about building an agency from the ground up, developing your own brand and what it takes to stand out in a crowded market. How do you name your agency? How do you identify and hire the best talent? How do you pick the right partners? Should you raise outside money or go it alone? Why is outreach so important? And maybe the most important question – how do you get clients? Find Paul on Linkedin and learn more about his agency Interesting Development. The Woodshed is a CPB Podcast Production.

As Microsoft’s Chief Creative Officer in the late 2000’s, Gayle Troberman and Alex worked closely launching the “I’m a PC” campaign and more. Gayle is now CMO of iHeartMedia, the world’s largest audio company which reaches nine out of 10 Americans every month. Listen as Alex and Gayle talk about the "good ol' days", what annoys Gayle about agencies, and the exploding world of podcasts. Find out what brands are doing wrong with audio, the good and bad of the fractalized media landscape, and how to engage the 27% of America that no one is talking with. Find Gayle on Linkedin The Woodshed is a CPB Podcast Production.  

Advertising has always been driven by instincts, opinions and luck. What’s been missing? The rigor to prove wildly creative ideas throughout the process. The same methods used by scientists since the 17th century. Join Caffeinated Mornings host Jay Ferracane as he sits with Alex to talk about applying the Scientific Method to creativity, why theoretical physicist are the most creative people on earth and why advertising needs more Einstein-like creatives to ask great questions. The Woodshed is a CPB Podcast Production. Links: Angry Bovine Caffeinated Mornings   

Things get crowded in the shed when guest Adam Chasnow brings in a jazz trio to prove a point about collaboration. An executive creative director at CPB, Adam has developed acclaimed ad campaigns for Microsoft, Kraft Heinz and Infiniti, and credits his early education in Jazz trumpet with his ability to collaborate creatively with others. His theory is that everyone in business can get better at their craft by taking a page from the tenets of collective improvisation. Musicians Paul Romaine (drums), Annie Booth (piano) and Mark Diamond (bass) join in the discussion and play a few tunes with Adam to help illustrate his points. If you don’t know anything about jazz, don’t worry. Neither did Alex.   Learn the rules, then forget them. Always be listening and reacting. Know the right time to stand out, when to support and when to lay out entirely. It’s only stolen if you do it worse.   Adam Chasnow – TRUMPET Adam's LinkedIn   Paul Romaine – DRUMS Paul is a working jazz drummer from Denver who teaches at the University of Colorado’s Thompson Jazz Studies program and co-founded CCJA (Colorado Conservatory for the Jazz Arts) – a non-profit dedicated to empowering youth to creatively express themselves through the language of America's art form.  Click here for more info on CCJA   Annie Booth – PIANO Annie is jazz pianist, composer and arranger who was voted “Best in Denver (Jazz)” by Westword magazine from 2015-2017. She is the Assistant Program Director at CCJA and runs “She-Bop”, a program for women in jazz.   Mark Diamond – BASS Mark has been a sideman on over 100 albums, toured throughout Europe and regularly appears at festivals and clubs across the country.

Art D’Elia is SVP, Chief Brand and Innovation Officer at Domino's. He dropped by the shed with Alex and creative director Kelly McCormick, to talk about innovation and consumer advocacy in the pizza category, as well as what agencies can do to better align with their clients and why Alex thinks advertising is 100% science. Art D’Elia on LinkedIn Follow Kelly on LinkedIn and Instagram *** 2:54 – The things agencies do that make Art go bananas 5:29 –  Basing creative on facts not opinion and why Alex says “There is no art to what we do, it’s 100% science.” 8:53 – Why the most creative people on earth are theoretical physicists 11:12 – The notion that a brand can be a consumer advocate. 14:09 – Why Domino’s decided to pave roads across America. 18:58 – The basis of a good agency / client relationships. 25:23 – What keeps people from building great client relationships 31:37 – Why all Domino’s advertising starts with a brand action. 34:32 – Why Domino’s always couples brand actions with above the line advertising. 40:30 – What’s next for Domino’s: e-Bike and autonomous robot delivery  

How to be well-rounded, what is method advertising, tips on getting over creative block and more. Alex sat down with the current group of CPB interns to answer their questions.   With Alice Fennelly, David Zosel, Brandon Dwight, Billy Boy Horn Chloe Gordon and Omari Green.   Quick Q&A summary   2:22 – To be a good, well-rounded strategist, where would you point someone? 4:40 – How does an intern develop an understanding of the brand they’re working on? 9:05 – How do you get out of creative block? 11:03 – How do you develop the art of noticing? 13:35 – What’s a skill not taught to ad students that they should learn? 10:40 – What would you say to the nervous intern afraid to speak up in a meeting? 18:20 – What stands out for you in student portfolios? 19:55 – What is it that you see in Millennials that makes you value their insight? 22:06 – Do you believe in the power of manifestation? 22:36 – What level of grit is required to succeed in an internship? 24:20 – How do you know if something is good?

Chances are you’ve talked about something and the next thing you know, you’re being served ads about it. Predictive analytics or surveillance? Who’s listening and what do they know about us? Alex is joined in the shed by Joe Toscano, author of the book “Automating Humanity” and Founder/CVO of BEACON, along with Jen Bollman (CPB Director of Communications Strategy) and Joe Corr (CPB Executive Creative Technology Director). The group digs deep into the creepiest of media, the importance of teaching Media Literacy in schools, tech addiction, Russian hackers, China, ethics and who’s buying your data.   Joe Toscano: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-toscano-30688b61/ BEACON: http://www.beacontrustnetwork.com/ Joe Corr: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephcorr/ Jen Bollman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-bollman-2270151/

We’re kicking off a new series of shows, where brands (big and small) come to the Woodshed to share their challenges and aspirations. Alex and a special guest host then duke it out with creative ideas on the spot, and take those ideas and test them to see what performs better in the actual marketplace. First up, the team from Baboosha – Frank Amoros, Heather LeFevre and Leo Lourdais – travel all the way from Paris to talk about “The world’s softest slippers.” Baboosha are high-end footwear crafted from ethical Alpaca fur, mixing Parisian glamour and style with the exoticness of Peru.  Alex’s guest host this week – Courtney Loveman, former fashion designer and co-head of strategy at CPB. Listen in as they riff on ideas and see who comes out on top. Check out the concepts we tested based on the ideas that came out of the show. Alex’s idea: https://promo.com/share/5ce5c573861eda260763323d?utm_source=multi_shared_link Courtney’s ‘winning’ idea: https://promo.com/share/5cdf0fe6861eda148477f395?utm_source=multi_shared_link For more info on Baboosha, visit: https://www.baboosha.com/ And check them out on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/baboosha/  The Baboosha team: Frank Amoros (CEO): https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankamoros/ Heather LeFevre (Strategist / Consultant): https://heatherlefevre.com/ Leo Lourdais (Fashion Model / Influencer(: https://www.instagram.com/eleonore.leojeanne

Alex recently joined Roben Farzed on his NPR program, Full Disclosure.  Get the full episode at: https://www.npr.org/podcasts/682205174/full-disclosure-with-roben-farzad

Former Schwinn Bicycles CMO Gregg Bagni joins Alex in the shed to design the perfect equation to create the perfect idea.  From bikes to natural foods and now working in niche start-up investment, Gregg shares his thoughts on building a brand, the DIY mentality and how to stay original while asking these 4 questions: Who are you? What will you sell? Who will you sell it to?  What will you say no to? Check out Gregg’s Alien Socks: https://aliensocks.com/ Follow Gregg on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greggbagni/ White Road Investments: http://whiteroadinvestments.com

Ari Kuschnir, founder of production company m ss ng p eces, has a crazy idea to implant a narrative film into live DNA. Well, that's where it started. Ari dropped by the shed to brainstorm with Alex and CPB tech lead Joe Corr about how to use emerging DNA technology to tell a powerful story that will ignite the world's imagination. Later in the show, we hear from Harvard genetics professor George Church about this crazy idea and what it will take to make it a reality. What do you think? Give us your take on this project and leave a voicemail at 720-432-6174 Links to things mentioned on the show: Find Ari online: https://mssngpeces.com/about/ari-kuschnir/ About George Church:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_M._Church Boy and his Atom:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSCX78-8-q0 The Golden Record: https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/ Allan Watts: https://www.alanwatts.com/ Eames Powers of Ten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0

Ari Kuschnir, founder of production company m ss ng p eces, has a crazy idea to implant a narrative film into live DNA. Well, that's where it started. Ari dropped by the shed to brainstorm with Alex and CPB tech lead Joe Corr about how to use emerging DNA technology to tell a powerful story that will ignite the world's imagination. Later in the show, we hear from Harvard genetics professor George Church about this crazy idea and what it will take to make it a reality. What do you think? Give us your take on this project and leave a voicemail at 720-432-6174 Links to things mentioned on the show: Find Ari online: https://mssngpeces.com/about/ari-kuschnir/ About George Church:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_M._Church Boy and his Atom:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSCX78-8-q0 The Golden Record: https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/golden-record/ Allan Watts: https://www.alanwatts.com/ Eames Powers of Ten: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fKBhvDjuy0

Our first return guest, John Bielenberg (Co-Founder at Pando Institute & Founder of Think Wrong Institute) is back in the Woodshed with his new project, THINKNADO. John share his new process for creative problem solving and how anybody from kids to adults should question assumptions and think ‘stupid’ in order to come up with solutions to everything from new ways to do dishes to fixing the world’s problems.

After a session of live concepting at Boulder Start-Up Week 2019, Alex and creative director Quinn Katherman opened up for a live Q+A session talking about the creative process, the biggest mistake most startups make and just how much "crazy" content should have.  

After a session of live concepting at Boulder Start-Up Week 2019, Alex and CPB Creative Director Quinn Katherman opened up for a live Q+A session talking about their creative process, how much "crazy" content should have and how to make B2B marketing more fun!

Two start-ups join Alex and Creative Director Quinn Katherman on stage at Boulder Startup Week. The challenge: come up with brilliant branding ideas on the spot. Alex and Quinn put themselves on the line all for the sake of our community of listeners in an ongoing quest to de-mystify the creative process. Hear what they came up with for Buderflys, an upstart earbud purposefully designed NOT for music, and Uncanny Wellness, a CBD brand that is becoming a hit among baristas. https://www.buderflys.com/ https://uncannywellness.com/