Jef's blog

2010-04-28T04:45:00.000-07:00

JEFLOVESYOU moved HERE

2010-01-28T07:54:00.000-08:00

How even the most standardized concepts can mean different things to different people: the Liberian lottery.

2009-05-08T19:57:00.000-07:00

Nobody can get angry at the waitress for not having your favorite dish on the menu anymore after seeing this much love instead. Sweet like sweet chili sauce!

2009-04-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Millions of dollars are being spent on finding the right brand and product names every year. That's a fact. So this morning, at breakfast, it struck me how the English language decided to use some of the most childish logic to name a product known by pretty much every person in this world....an 'orange'. Aaaah, simplicity!

2009-04-02T00:12:00.000-07:00

Sometimes people wonder why I travel and live in other places so much. Well, AskMen.com will answer that question instead of me in their Top 29 Best Cities to Live in for Men:

Hamburg (28).........check
Copenhagen (9)......check
New York City (6)....check
Sydney (5)............check
San Francisco (3)....check

Chicago (1)............Let's go!

2009-03-26T02:21:00.000-07:00

A pretty funny but intriguing thought on why account planners use social media like Facebook and blogging so much @ Adliterate.

"I have a very cruel, but accurate, joke about why planners have adopted social media with more enthusiasm than others in the advertising business. In advertising only planners blog, account handlers have nothing to say and creatives have better places to say it."

2009-02-22T15:21:00.000-08:00

There is a reason why this blog is going so slow these days. That reason is Australia. I left Europe for this great sunny and friendly place about two weeks ago with Maxime. In the meantime we have been exploring Sydney, looking for an apartment and hunting for a job. You can find my daily aussie adventures on my kangaroo blog. This means there is less time/brain food to write for this blog. But when the adventures get a bit less and my days a bit more structured I am sure I'll get this thing running again 'mate'. In the meantime I am getting my aussie perspective on things...great fun!

2009-02-02T06:12:00.000-08:00

I am a sucker for simple but brilliant 'top topical' ads. But then again they had 8 long years to come up with this.

via: Marijn

2009-02-02T01:29:00.000-08:00

Strategic planners do strategy. What's in a word? But apparently we are not the only ones who like to think we can change the outcome of the game by planning in advance.

In an interview with the Dutch cyclocross world champion of 2008, Lars Boom, the camera shows a strategy book laying in Boom's living room. To give you a situation overview: Boom is one Dutch cyclocross talent in a sport dominated by the Belgians. Cyclocross is a very individual sport with internal struggles between riders and teams. Of the 7 Belgian boys appearing at the start for their country at the world championship, 7 can become worldchampion. So how do you get these 7 top riders, who fight each other every single race during the year, to form one solid block against the talented Lars Boom for one day? In cycling only one person can go home with the world title and wear that beautiful jersey for one full year.

The past 10 years there hasn't been a real Belgian team at the start of a world championship. Instead there were 7 individual riders who only wanted to get that title for themselves. Not to mention Belgium is probably the least patriotic country in the world. But this time things had to be different to get a Belgian on the top stage, the strong Dutch rider could beat every individual Belgian rider on a good day. It happened in 2008 and it shouldn't happen again. Our Belgian top riders sat together a couple of times to get everyone on the same line for once. The press jumped on it with disbelief: 'Belgium has never worked as a team, so why would they do it this year. The riders can say what they want, but when racing day is there...'.

Now back to that strategy book on Lars Boom's coffee table. Of course Lars picked up the debate in the press about how the Belgians were trying to get a real team together. Boom reacted on this the same way as the press did: disbelief. From a strategic point of view he probably thought it was a good thing to show he wasn't scared at all, that he was untouchable. He pushed it a little bit with some 'dirty' interviews and telling everyone who wanted to hear that a real Belgian team was an utopia. Good thinking one would say. Until racing day came and the Belgian team was a Belgian team for once and Boom didn't even finish in the top 10...

Apparently Lars had forgotten about one simple strategy rule that overrules most of the others: when you give a group of people a mutual enemy, they can and will rise above their individual goals. Smart brands have used this strategy many times in the past. One example is Apple Computer against IBM. Lars had been profiling himself as the untouchable Dutch giant who would learn the Belgians a lesson for the second year in a row. He wanted to play the card of intimidation, but that card just doesn't work with a group. It cost him his world championship jersey...

Wrong strategy for the wrong goal this year Lars, but I'm sure we'll see you again next year.

Congratulations to the blue Belgian armada!

2009-01-17T07:07:00.000-08:00

I have to admit...I have a crush on an older woman. Her name is Axelle Red (40), she's one of Belgium's musical export products and I think she looks smoking hot with her red hair. Rock on Axelle!

2009-01-11T03:48:00.001-08:00

I live in a free part of the world where everyone can have an opinion, where there is room for reason. A part of the world that boomed because of science and philosophy. Opinion and research countered by other opinions and research, civilization. Yet there has always been one subject that was out of everyones league: religion.

Being an atheist I get frustrated by the fact that the moment you start a decent discussion about religion, people think it is the rudest thing you can do. "You do not ask questions about religion!" Well that is just not good enough for me. I show respect for other people's beliefs, but apparently there is a lack of respect for my beliefs that don't include a god. The moment I start giving my view on things, my 'religion', I am a disrespectful person. If a religious person gives me his or her opinion then he is someone who stands for his beliefs. Now what is the damn difference between that person and me? Religion is belief, and my belief is one without a god. Why do I not get the respect that the other one gets?

I can still sleep at night. The question doesn't really keep me awake, it just frustrates me once in a while. But that's not all. The past year(s) some new religions appeared at the horizon. One is called 'crisis', the other is called 'global warming'. I can't deny there is a financial crisis hitting the world today. The only problem is that the media have turned this crisis into a religion. A state of mind that makes people act in a certain way according to that religion: keeping your walled closed. It doesn't take a big brain to realize that is pretty much the opposite people need to do in times like these. Production, anyone? By pushing the crisis (it sells) the media have turned the damn thing into a self fulfilling prophecy. Of course the crisis will have dramatic consequences if you keep pushing apocalyptic images in the minds of consumers and investors. Hearing the word "crisis" 673 times a day must have some influence on the mind, no?

The second religion of the the past years is global warming, brought to your living room by Al Gore. Probably a nice guy and what he did with his inconvenient truth is a good thing. We as humans needed to take a step away from what we were doing, just to get the overview and get back on track. But for me this is more a community and social cause, not a global warming issue. Why? Because in my view it is just not true. I've been reading, listening and watching many publications on global warming the past years and the only conclusion for me is that it is based on lies.

Now think back of what I said about religious opinions before. I am not the devil because I don't believe in global warming. In fact, just like I try to be a good person as every religion preaches, I really try to do my best to live a bit more environmental friendly. And that is the keyword for me: 'Environment'. Having dirty factories and polluted rivers is NOT a good thing. It does affect us in many ways: cancer, endangered species, cutting the rain forrest... But there is a big difference between 'environment' and 'global warming'. We as people do not affect the big laws of our earth. We are not the cause of the last tsunami, the melting ice caps and so on.

Once again someone is putting apocalyptic images in our head to keep us awake at night. Someone who is making money of this, someone who would not have a job without keeping this religion big and bright in the minds of the people (and I'm not talking about Al Gore, he probably has other ways to make his money). And that is what I deeply hate: when religions try to make people scared. So scared that reason and other opinions are left behind, ignored, seen as evil. I could go on forever about this, but maybe you should just watch this documentary. One of those programs you rarely see on television. Why is that? Right, the apocalypse sells!

So please, make yourself sleep at night again. Watch the documentary and don't act like those people who want to kill Salman Rushdie for a book they didn't even read themselves. Take the effort to get the story from all sides and THEN come to your own conclusion. As you will see, information can be shaped in any way possible to get your point across. For you to find out who shaped it the most.

Just to give you some direction (20 minutes into the video):
The guys who found a correlation between Co2 and rising temperatures show that the graph Al Gore likes to use is wrong. Not that there isn't a correlation between both, but the conclusion is the other way around. The temperatures don't rise because of Co2. Pretty much the opposite, Co2 rises because of higher temperatures. Where do the high temperatures come from: the sun.

My wish for 2009 is that everyone in this world could broaden his or her perspectives and take their own conclusions. Because just like religious views nobody knows who is really right, but it is always a smart thing to be open to all sides.

Happy 2009!

Thank you Joanna

2008-12-11T01:16:00.001-08:00

The other day I got reminded of "friendship" after seeing a presentation of Benjamin Zander, the director of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and a passionate music teacher. A couple of minutes into his presentation he mentions how he decided to give all his students an A in the beginning of the year. The only thing they had to do was come to class and write him a letter at the start of the course describing with passion how they see themselves at the end of the year. 12 months later all of his students really deserved that A.

Now I am in the stage again of leaving a place I have called home for half a year, it struck me that this is the way I handle my friendships. Living out of a suitcase (California, Copenhagen, New York, Hamburg, Copenhagen again, Sydney) isn't always easy. You meet many great people along the way, but then you leave them behind to see them again in a year, maybe 5 years. And when I see those people back after a long time I am always surprised how time after time it feels like I never left them. Hearing Benjamin Zander's talk I realize now it is because I give them an A from the start.

You could spend the days leading to seeing back an old friend with wondering how much they have changed, how awkward it might be because you might have nothing to say to them,... What you are actually doing is giving them a C to start off. From the first seconds you'll see this person he/she will feel that he has to fight to get that A from you. That is how you create awkward situations. And the last thing that will happen is having "a great time like in the old days" together.

Many people I know can't understand that, they tell me you can only have a couple of friends. And they are right. There are only a couple of people in this world who know me through and through, who know who I am, what drives me, etc. But that doesn't mean I have to let the other great people in my life fight for that A. Everyone who I once shared a great moment with, who struck me as a good person, is free to be my guest anytime. I will get you the high score from the moment I'll shake your hand or give you a hug and you'll get the chance to be yourself from the start.

There are so many great people in this world, and it would be a shame to only stick with your 'top 5' friends. It is as with food: you can be that person who never tries different things, sticking to what you know, what your mother used to cook for you...if only you would know the taste of Japanese, Algerian or Croatian food...

2008-12-09T07:08:00.000-08:00

It's official: I LOVE DENMARK

2008-12-09T01:22:00.001-08:00

These days I really feel like getting a Whopper from Burger King. The new Whopper Virgins campaign from Crispin Porter is all over the blogging place, mostly with a reminder of their previous Whopper Freakout campaign. A lot has been said about both campaigns already and I don't have much to add to that. But there is of course one thing...

What really strikes me about both campaigns is how much it touches the area of account planning. Two very simple ideas that could come straight from a focus group lead by the planning director or so called cognitive and cultural anthropologist at Crispin Porter. In these focus groups questions along these lines are often asked to the participants:

- Imagine if the brand would throw a party
- Imagine if the brand would have it's own country
- Imagine how the world would look like without the brand
- Imagine ...

Now take a look again at both Burger King campaigns...

2008-12-08T02:56:00.000-08:00

Today I received an email from a colleague with a long quote from Marc Faber, an investment guru:

"The federal government is sending each of us a $600 rebate. If we spend that money at Wal-Mart, the money goes to China. If we spend it on gasoline it goes to the Arabs. If we buy a computer, it will go to India. If we purchase fruits and vegetables it will go to Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala. If we purchase a good car, it will go to Germany. If we purchase useless crap, it will go to Taiwan and none of it will help the American economy. The only way to keep that money here at home is to spend it on prostitutes and beer, since these are the only products still produced in the US. I've been doing my part....."

Marc wrote this in June of this year, 3 months before the financial crisis really hit. It reminded me of what Peter Schiff already said in 2006. How a crisis was inevitable. How the American citizens used to borrow money to build factories and production facilities, but how they now borrow to buy flat screen televisions and an extra holiday in the Bahamas. Things that are produced outside the United States...and that's where the money goes.

That last sentence is very important for the future of the United States if they decide to keep heading for disaster. These so-called smart people who make the calls should study their history, and not only the financial study books. In The Wealth and Poverty of Nations, David Landes writes about how some countries became rich and others lost their position of world leader. The perfect example is Spain, a world power at one point in time, now one of Western Europe's poorer countries. How did that happen, and why do I think it is an important lesson for the United States today?

The simple story is that Spain was getting profits out of its colonies across the ocean. For a long time gold was coming in like it was a year round harvest. The Spaniards had everything they could wish for and they decided to live big. The best clothes from Italy, the best porcelain from Holland, ... Spain was bathing in wealth. Until the time came that the money supply from across the ocean came to a hold (that's a total different story). At that point it took them a while to realize that all they really had were things they bought abroad. For years they had thought they were the elite of Europe, too good to produce something. Why would they? They could buy whatever they wanted. But when the last piece of gold was spent on the best Europe had to offer they came to the conclusion they needed to start producing themselves. The problem was that nobody ever thought about investing in production facilities.

Ever since that moment in time, Spain has been running behind on the rest of Europe. The countries which the Spaniards saw as less sophisticated before, used the money they received from trading with Spain to build infrastructure, to produce more and to surpass the country that once ruled the seven seas. A simple piece of history, apparently forgotten by the new rulers of the world.

Get your act together guys!

2008-11-25T03:37:00.000-08:00

When I tell people how I landed my internship in New York and my job here in Copenhagen, they mostly think I am a fool. In both cases I just sent a mail to the agency director. No 'dear sir' or included cv's. Just an informal mail telling my story with all the attributes that cross my mind at that exact moment. Last time I even sent a picture of a cut off arm two days after my first mail that stated: "I will cut off my left arm to work at your place.". I'm an idiot, right?

Well, not quite. It is my way to find out if the agency is the kind of environment I want to work in. I would never want to work in a place where people feel too good about themselves, where you have Mr. X and Mr. Y and where nobody has respect for the coffee lady. The utterly ridiculous and informal mail is my way of screening, and until now it has always worked out for me.

I am writing this because just today Seth Godin wrote a little piece about it on his wonderful blog. I recommend you give it a read, and particularly keep in mind the last two sentences of this post. They describe exactly why I do it the way I do.

Thought: Of course the advertising industry is more open to this than let's say the financial industry.

2008-11-24T03:47:00.000-08:00

Only one month before the most wonderful day of the year, time to go get your christmas elves out of storage just like last year!

2008-11-20T05:17:00.000-08:00

Exactly what I was trying to say here.

2008-11-04T09:26:00.000-08:00

Right now we are hours away from knowing who will be the next president of the United States. A lot has been said and a hundred books can be written, but what I saw on social network site Facebook today really brought cold chills over my back. It actually made me very emotional. It made me proud to be part of this new generation that has an opinion and that has no problem to share it with the whole world. If Obama wins tonight, he will have to thank the young generation. A generation that has been given one of the best tools history has ever provided: the internet. 10 years ago this would not have been possible, our opinion would have been formed by privately (read: politically) owned radio and television stations. Now we have the power to reach millions...let's make sure nobody will ever take that away from us again.

2008-10-30T05:07:00.000-07:00

Just sad...

2008-10-20T00:58:00.000-07:00

The art of bubbling. I see some use for 'qualitative' research.

via: Fallon Planning

2008-10-16T06:01:00.000-07:00

Apparently I am not the only one who is a bit scared of the power of statistics, especially in the hands of the wrong people. Goddamn boardroom terrorists!

"It's a whole lot harder to shoot a wrong statistic down than a wrong opinion"

2008-10-16T01:29:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I've seen such cute commercial. Idea, art direction, music, casting and facial expressions are all in sync to make me a little warm inside, this morning.

2008-10-15T07:11:00.001-07:00

...and of course Steve Jobs is still my presentation hero...

2008-10-15T06:26:00.000-07:00

Random thought: If the feet of your kid are hanging on the ground, scraping the pavement, it is time to get him/her out of the f#cking stroller and in to the real world!

2008-10-15T06:05:00.000-07:00

This interview brings cold chills over my back. I already knew there was something tricky about this whole bailout bill, giving the so called central bank even more power. A bill that was voted against by a majority the first time but was passed less than a week later with no problems at all. As the 'founding fathers' of America already knew, the country would be doomed when the money supply would be controlled by a (private) central bank, we are now even closer to that doom scenario. And not only from a financial point of view. Remember something like 'the patriot act'? The United States is gliding towards a police state in the same way as the former Soviet Union and Italy under Mussolini. I don't say that you have to take all the words from this interview without forming your own opinion, but if you have been paying attention the past years the signs are pretty obvious. It might be an exaggeration, but it might as well become reality...

Panic atmosphere, didn't I write something about that before? (with reference to this post)

Here the video of Rep. Brad Sherman (talked about in the interview)

2008-10-13T06:10:00.000-07:00

Just today I was thinking about my answer to a Miami Ad School application question: how will advertising look like in 2020? I remember writing: "There will be some kind of chaos, but bright minds will be able to create the most wonderful things out of this confusion." I am still behind that idea today, and even more I think it translates to other things too. Out of chaos and uncertainty come the most beautiful things mankind has to offer.

In the present that could mean that great new ideas arise from the clutter of the worldwide financial crisis. New ways of economy, social interaction,... Created by people who don't fear the uncertainty with in the back of their heads the idea that fear prevents progress. These are the people who realize that the only thing we should fear is...well, fear. Take a look back at my post below, and you'll get the point.

I don't know if the restaurant owner in this video has created a 'beautiful' new idea, but at least it shows that people get more creative in times of a so-called crisis.

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys...

2008-10-13T02:03:00.000-07:00

I am starting to feel very sorry for John McCain, I even dare to say he gained a lot of respect from me. Having these kind of people as your supporters is like being friends with all the wrong kids in school...and you know it. Poor rich guy.

2008-10-06T07:52:00.001-07:00

Talking about banks handling the crisis on a consumer communication level: this short but interesting piece on the blog of author and strategic planner Mark Earls.

2008-10-06T01:50:00.001-07:00

On the website of Dexia bank this message: "The worldwide financial crisis and the consequences of the crisis are getting incredible attention in the press lately. For YOU it is probably not always that easy to separate the important from the unimportant facts in this overflow of information. Discover our dossier."

So are you trying to say that I am stupid?

2008-10-02T07:21:00.000-07:00

Showers are a very good place for random thoughts. Like this morning when the ideas in my head went from t-shirts over 'my X went on a vacation to X and all I got was this lousy shirt' to souvenirs in general. I was thinking that the market for souvenirs must have declined drastically in the past years, at least in this part of the world. It is just a hypothesis, so if you don't agree please let me know.

One point is that traveling abroad has become more and more normal. Instead of one big vacation every year we take more and often shorter trips. If you would have to bring souvenirs from all these places for all your family members you would be spending a fortune each year. But that is not really my point. It is more important that we and the people around us got used to traveling. You arrive from vacation and people will ask you if you 'had a good time'. It used to be that you came home and people would ask you 'how it was'. Just three words that make all the difference: photo collages, stories, imported food,... souvenirs. Because of that, souvenirs have partly lost their reason-for-being: making your whole holiday story more tangible.

That brings me to my second point: multi-media. In a way internet and digital cameras made us step away from tangible memories. Paper photos and big leather photo albums have lost their importance. They got replaced by digital memories, often shared with the whole world. And that is where the word souvenir comes from: French for memory. So in a way we just took the souvenirs from the analog to the digital age. Sharing our holiday story in another way, giving it less importance but often sharing it with more people then before (facebook, online photo albums,..).

From another point of view you could argue that the souvenir industry must have boomed, because there are more people going on more vacations. But then again, I just don't see them bring that many souvenirs back home anymore. Except of course the very personal kind of souvenir, a little wooden statue you got from an orphan child in Peru... Not the I love NY t-shirts, but I wasn't talking about that kind of souvenirs in the first place.

2008-10-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

Something uplifting after the previous posts: old people! We all know that 'experience' is worth gold. And this lady has loads of it. Experience, not the gold. Ask her any question and she will enlighten you with answers you could only dream of before.

via: Claudia Schiepers

2008-10-01T04:18:00.000-07:00

Never before have I seen such shameless copy/paste. Of course it can happen that around the world people have the same campaign idea for an almost identical product, but this is far out. While scrolling through Ads of the World, I bumped on this work from Inter Publicity in Mumbai, India. It looked very familiar to me, and then I realized why... It has been done before by Robin Stam, a Dutch advertising talent who was at Miami Ad School Europe in the same period I was there. Going through Robin's Flickr pictures I was in shock when I noticed the 'resemblance' with a print campaign that Robin developed as an intern at Saatchi NY. I don't even think you can call it resemblance anymore. This is just shameless copying mister Viren Kamdar from Mumbai. You didn't even take the time to change the art direction...nice one!

top image: the Mumbai version
lower image: Robin Stam's work

ps: There are three print ads in this series ('shit'/'oh no'/'hell'), all three are EXACTLY the same

2008-10-01T01:14:00.000-07:00

This blog is getting very political lately, but hey 'it's the election stupid'. Next up: Sarah Palin. Her name has been going around for a couple of weeks now and I needed to find out for myself what all this fuss is about. I had never heard this lady speak before, but when she broke the silence between us (thank you youtube) I was AMAZED. This woman, who might become the next president if McCain would die in office, sounded like me at an oral examination for chemistry class. She had no clue what she was talking about! "OH, it's gotta be all about job creation too"...wow! This running mate even had a piece of paper on her lap to help her out, but that only made her look more stupid.

On top of that Sarah Palin believes that people used to live together with dinosaurs 6000 years ago. You want a creationist ruling your country, one that doesn't know anything about what is going on in this world? Until lately she hadn't even been outside the United States. A great choice for office right? At least you get your 'change'...

Here, a new interview as a reaction on the one above.
Here, the Saturday Night Life skit: search for the difference. Oh wait, there is no difference!

2008-09-30T07:22:00.000-07:00

After thinking of the current economical situation in the United States yesterday, my mind went off to the war in Iraq. Another liability on the account of the American government, a big liability. It is obvious that billions of dollars are wasted on this ridiculous war (Vietnam anyone?). Of course on the opposite side of the spectrum some very privileged people are making tons of money on this...but then my mind wondered off again...

Apparently many Americans are convinced that their boys and girls in Iraq are welcomed as liberators by the people of Iraq. This might sound very logical when you think back about this silly Sadam guy. But logical thinking and reality are not always the same. I get reminded of that every time when I go through statistics. The numbers can give you a beautiful story, but you don't know before you have been standing with your two feet in the story. As many influential people in the past already knew, the story of one is much stronger than the story of many. It is the number thing again...

So think of this dear American friends:

It is 8 pm on a thursday night in winter. You just served dinner and the whole family is sitting around the table. Your daughter is telling you a story about her day at school when you hear some noise on the porch. A split second later the door gets kicked in with a loud bang! Seven Arabic soldiers storm in and yell in Arabic to get your f#cking face to the ground. One even swipes all the dishes off the table. Three others go upstairs straight into your bedroom, looking through every drawer and behind every single corner. In the meantime you are taken outside with your hands on your head. One soldier pushes you on your knees and puts a gun against your head. You hear your kids inside screaming and your wife crying while you feel the cold of the gun. An American guy in Arabic army gear comes up. He translates the angry words of the soldier holding his gun to your head: 'If you don't talk horrible things are gonna happen'...

But you didn't do anything...
Welcomed as liberators, right?

2008-09-29T07:51:00.000-07:00

More Peter Schiff candy. Or how a genius always has to defend himself against ignorant idiots who don't even show a little respect for his ideas. Of course on the smartest television channel in the world...Fox.

2008-09-29T07:13:00.000-07:00

The United States are going through a deep recession, no doubt about that. But let's go back in time to august 2006 when Wall Street was aiming for the stars. Two financial experts give their vision on the future on CNBC. One (Arthur Laffer) will probably have a hard time finding a job in finance ever again, the other (Peter Schiff) predicts the recession from two years later in a creepy accurate way. Both Arthur and the CNBC anchor woman make fun of Schiff's predictions like he is the biggest idiot on earth. But economics is not for idiots dear mister Laffer. When you were a consultant for Ronald Reagan, you cut taxes for the wealthy and America went into a time of high unemployment. The same thing happened again. So maybe the people in charge shouldn't be listening to people like you? Or am I a complete idiot for saying this and will you bet a nickel on it dear mister Laffer?

2008-09-29T01:41:00.000-07:00

The world championships cycling in Varese are over. No Belgian medals but in both the U23 and pro races our guys showed we are still one of the top cycling nations. Belgium is holding the record with 25 world champions in the pro category since the start in the 1920's. Last sunday Italy came a little bit closer with a 19th victory. With Italian rider Ballan I think we have a good world champion for the next season, a hard working and timid young guy. The pro's gave us some very exciting last laps to top off a week full of cycling pleasure. And what did we learn this week?...

Girls on bikes can be very sexy...

When Columbians become world champion they yell 'PUTA' (or was it just my imagination?)

2008-09-24T07:32:00.000-07:00

The world championships cycling are on their way in Varese, Italy right now. The perfect time for some spectacular racing photos. I love this sport!

2008-09-24T07:20:00.000-07:00

Blog post number 200! Hallelujah, I made it tis far! As we all know 200 is the size of one side of the main square in Krakow, Poland and the sum of dollars given in the classical Monopoly game to a player passing Go. For me it is just a wednesday afternoon, and hey: it's sunny outside! And the picture? Well that's 200 calories worth of kiwi for ya! Enjoy.

2008-09-19T06:49:00.000-07:00

Today I received an email from 'the Windows Live Team'. Nothing special, although every time again I wonder who is in the team and what kind of jerseys they wear. The boys and girls of the WLT wanted to put my attention on the possibility of using a webcam with Windows Live Messenger. Oh dear lord you guys made my week with this incredible news! I would even like to ad 'welcome to 2008'.

Like all of us the 'team' loves good opportunities. When the economy is going down and the newspapers spend an average of 5 pages every day on the loss of 'buying power' you have to hop on the train. And that's what the 'team' did with a (uhum) very smart selling proposition: share more, SAVE more with FREE video calls. Wow! Didn't we all already know this since 10 years and is this really what will get extra Live Messenger users? I doubt it...

2008-09-17T07:09:00.000-07:00

Since my last post was about looking under skirts (was it?) it might be the right time to show you this website. A very 'nice' interactive experience from Rfsu, a Swedish producer of everything related to sex that your dirty mind can think of. Have fun 'shaving that pussy'!

If this doesn't create extra traffic on my blog, I don't know what does...pussy pussy....shaved pussy...

2008-09-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

Small people get all the fun: the smallest guy in the world meets the woman with the longest legs. He Ping Ping and Swetlana Pankratowa were flown in from Mongolia and Russia to London for the release of the newest Guinness Book of Records. I bet at least one person enjoyed the sightseeing...

2008-09-16T02:21:00.000-07:00

A big high five goes out to Jan Bakelants, my former team mate, for winning the Tour de l'Avenir last sunday. This stage race through France is the young version of the real Tour. Jan is only the third Belgian to take victory since the race started in 1961. Our last countryman who won was Johan Bruyneel, who is now well known for leading Lance Armstrong to his consecutive wins in the Tour de France.

I remember Jan coming to his first races with a dirty bike and a lot to learn. But already then it was obvious that this guy had what it takes. I met Jan at one of the training camps from 'de Vlaamse Wielerschool', a friendly and somewhat silent guy but always in for some fun (I remember something with oranges and the wall in his hotel room...).

At that point he didn't have a team yet, so I introduced him to my team director at that time. He joined us a couple of weeks later and apparently only got better ever since. I wish him all the best for the upcoming world championships and the rest of his career. It always makes me happy to see people around me being good in what they do. It doesn't matter if it is winning a Cannes advertising award, taking victory in a prestigious stage race or just making really good food. It always works inspirational...

2008-09-16T00:22:00.001-07:00

A very interesting short piece at The School Of Life today on the importance of excess in our lives. Thought provoking.

2008-09-12T00:44:00.000-07:00

What the bleep!? Being an asshole ad man is one thing, being a racist ad man is another thing.

2008-09-09T07:12:00.000-07:00

In the spirit of the American elections this insightful bumper sticker.

2008-09-09T01:50:00.000-07:00

I always try to look at Michael Moore's movies with a critical eye. This time around I just don't think it's necessary. A new documentary about touring 60 cities in the United States with the goal to convince young people to vote for the democrats in November. The movie will be up for free download at this website. I've put up this trailer because of one important piece starting around 35 seconds into the clip and ending with some lost religious (republican) souls after a brilliant rhetorical question (1.08min). I have to say he hit it spot on there. Joy to the world!

2008-09-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

My friend Sebastiaan has always been a hero to many, but now he has reached absolute god-status by appearing on the blog of Flanders' most popular magazine, Humo. Sebastiaan's wildest dreams came true when Humo called him a "jack-ass type" and a "lefgozer" after trying to get in for free at a big festival. Respect Seba!

ps: One of his hobbies is to go out with a blonde wig, get on a photo with a 'Guido' and post it here.

via: Eekhoornchaos

2008-09-01T00:50:00.000-07:00

I like to think of myself as being respectful towards other cultures, but burying five women alive in the name of tradition (=religion) is taking it a couple of steps too far. Even for the average dead row guest this would be a monstrous way to go. These Pakistani women (three of them were still teenagers) just wanted to choose their own husband and that's 'of course' unacceptable. So it is pretty obvious that you deserve to be shot in the right place. And that, while you are still breathing, you get thrown in a hole and covered with earth. Suffocation, a beautiful way to die... Even in ancient Egypt they were more humane. When the pharaoh died everything that belonged to him was taken to the afterlife. Buried alive, including the people who served him. At least they had the idea of just going to a new and maybe better place. These women in Pakistan, they just got their lives taken away for asking the same rights as a man. So now you tell me what kind of god would think this is the way to go?

2008-08-31T10:20:00.000-07:00

Since I will probably never win olympic gold (the last time I competed in cycling was over three years ago) my new goal is to BECOME olympic gold. Then I can finally rest on the lips of Olga Kaniskina. For my birthday i want gold spray paint mom!

2008-08-29T05:46:00.000-07:00

Doomsday was almost upon everyone who owns Apple Inc. stock when Bloomberg reported Steve Jobs' dead earlier this week. Luckily this was a mistake. When updating Steve's obituary, the article was mistakenly uploaded to Bloomberg's newspage. Must have been a weird experience for Steve.

2008-08-25T06:42:00.001-07:00

This states my opinion that whoever we become in life, we always need that little child inside of us.

2008-08-25T00:21:00.000-07:00

I wonder if this could be a business model on its own: an ad agency that only works out smart responses on 'consumer generated content'. Searching the net for opportunities. I would call it response advertising. The guys at Wieden+Kennedy were kind enough to give us this brilliant example for their client EA sports (video games). Some guy posted a video on youtube showing a bug in EA's latest golf game. Instead of getting all programmers together to make sure this would never happen again. W+K turned this opportunity into gold.

2008-08-24T11:14:00.000-07:00

Today Ikea was giving out catalogues on the sunny streets of Copenhagen. I already received two of them at home and didn't bother to make that a higher number when asked if I wanted an extra one. What was Ikea thinking? The only way to escape their catalogues anyway is to flee to North Korea or live under a maxi sized carton box. So again: What was Ikea thinking? They already had it right but now you have to push it? The whole magic is in getting the ultimate home catalogue on the doorstep of, well...your home. Some people are living a whole year towards the morning they find the fresh cut Ikea pages behind the door. It is some kind of a christmas experience. Santas just don't come in blue and yellow shirts Ikea!

2008-08-20T01:13:00.001-07:00

A beautiful piece of advertising for United Airlines that really grasps the feelings and emotions of a big part of their customers. In the comments below the video (on youtube) people even admit they cried when they saw this commercial for the first time. A mother who's daughter went away for college and a guy who called his girlfriend a 1000 miles away with tears in his eyes. I guess the emotion is the message. Sometimes Madison Avenue beats Hollywood.

2008-08-19T06:16:00.000-07:00

Now the last three of my Belgian friends left Copenhagen on saturday, I had more than half a soccer team camping out in my apartment, I found the time again to go to the gym. While getting my cardio workout to new heights I got reminded of a post I wanted to write a couple of weeks ago about a Danish trend. Totally ridiculous. As some of you might know I am a big fan of flip-flops...freedom in the form of a shoe, hallelujah. But now the Danes took it a step too far. Pushing weights and the limits of ridicule at the same time. Buff guys and other followers entering the gym floor on flipflops working out like it is the most normal thing in the world. Where did the notion of sports and exercise go? Fashion show, bring the beach to the gym! Good business idea would be to fill the floors with sand and some palm trees. Nike and the others put all these years of effort into working out the perfect shoe for your feet. The marketeers were really concerned about your "steppers", they deserved the best attention. But you? You don't give a damn do you?

2008-08-15T02:11:00.001-07:00

Little thought after my last post:

Making ads for sports brands must be one of the most rewarding jobs. All the ingredients are there: emotion, emotion and emotion. What attracts people to sports is the same as what attracts people to a brand. Touch them deep inside, touch them as human beings. Be genuine, fail sometimes and get up again. Emotions are everything.

2008-08-15T02:04:00.001-07:00

I've waited a little bit until the big craze was over to post this video. Working in advertising this gives me cold chills. Having your spot aired for the biggest sport event in this world. Knowing it has been watched by millions of people who all get a little emotional about it. You delivered and you are proud. I guess this feels like winning that gold medal you've worked for your whole life.

2008-08-12T06:12:00.000-07:00

Is it me or is there really no point in this TimesOnline university guide banner? Sick Boy and Begbie, those are our options for college? Someone please enlighten me!

2008-08-11T01:08:00.001-07:00

bohemian love - i blame coco (stings daughter)
Better quality than below.

2008-08-09T05:47:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I found myself at Marc O'Polo's Copenhagen fashion week party. Loads of "industry" people, free fancy drinks and music in the wonderful settings of the Statens Museum for Kunst. Almost bumped in to the singer from Aqua (don't pretend you don't remember Barbie Girl), got a cute smile from the for me at that time unknown Lykke May and of course Nik and Jay were there among some apparently famous Danish designers.

Paris Hilton had just left town so I'm sure many people were disappointed they missed their chance to shake hands with the marketing wonder of the 21st century. At least one drunken guy got lucky the day before and kept bragging about the magical handshake moment he had with her. Almost to the point that I wanted to give him a handshake moment on the face. But oh well, the party continued.

All of the celebrity madness passed me by a bit because the point about famous people is that they are pretty normal if you don't know they are famous. So I passed Barbie Girl on my way to the bathroom and got that smile from Lykke when I was talking to someone else. Only later my friend pointed out who these people were and what their talents are.

But then the magic happened, a girl with a guitar took the stage without even introducing herself. Some reggae tunes came out of the speakers, the introduction to the song. 5 seconds, 10 seconds and then the most sexy voice I've ever heard... My new love's name is Coco, and she is Sting's daughter. I am still recovering...

2008-08-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

Skittles: Feet
by hourigan

Another absurd Skittles commercial... My love for randomness will never die. I'm sorry mom and dad! Please don't blame yourself.

2008-08-04T04:32:00.001-07:00

While replying to an email concerning the quality of beer in Copenhagen it all became clear what it means to have a strong brand. My new definition: A strong brand is a brand that does not get corrected by the spelling tool on your computer while your strongest competitor receives the obviously deserved red marking.

ps: Tuborg is part of the Carlsberg Group

2008-08-04T00:45:00.000-07:00

In a perfect world...

2008-08-01T03:55:00.001-07:00

Gazet van Antwerpen always has the most interesting articles! Quality!

2008-08-01T03:01:00.001-07:00

In the series: "this is why I never got into...". This is why I never got into the construction business.

2008-08-01T02:58:00.000-07:00

In the series: "this is why I never got into...". This Is why I never got into science.

2008-08-01T00:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, while riding my bike home from work in the warm Copenhagen sun, I came to realize why I like this city so much. I could even start a little army with the CPH lovers that I know. So what is the reason? It might sound a little contradictory but Copenhagen is not the cutest city, not the biggest party city (maybe the drunkest city though), not the hottest city, they don't have the most culture, nor the nicest people. The city of H.C. Andersen does not have the best location or the best food,... No Copenhagen is not the number one in any of these. The city has no real speciality that would attract millions of people.

But then where lays the power? In the above, in the fact that CPH is not the best in anything but scores incredibly high on everything. It makes Copenhagen a great place to live. Nobody who has lived here is surprised that year after year Copenhagen is the absolute top in world happiness rankings and "most livable city" lists. Still, Copenhagen is a hidden gem to many exactly because of the fact that it isn't the number one in anything. If CPH would be a person, he/she would probably be a true generalist with many interests. I like those kind of people...

picture: via

2008-07-31T04:18:00.000-07:00

I have always liked these kind of visual tricks. Using the surroundings to get a feeling/message across. They might not be of great importance in the general context of a campaign, but at least they give the creative teams some play time. Eventually it will be picked up by advertising blogs all around the world, and maybe if it's really good it can go mainstream. Apart from that I think it just looks cool in your portfolio. Don't know if Oreo's is going to sell more cookies because of this. Maybe 5 packs extra in this particular mall?

2008-07-31T02:19:00.000-07:00

Now this one really hits the spot. The only way how to reach the top in everything you do. There might be something called "talent" involved too, but that one comes second. This is Michael Jordan by the way.

2008-07-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

A lot of So You Think You Can Dance videos going around on the internet these days. Good for some hilarious but sometimes painful situations. Just don't do this in da club.

2008-07-30T04:41:00.000-07:00

Is this a stunt of our Belgian royal family to keep our country together? H.R.H. Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium in the top ten of Vanity Fair's International Best-Dressed List. Good marketing trick Albert!

2008-07-29T04:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I received a ghost email, from nobody with no words and no subject...FREAKY!

2008-07-28T11:01:00.000-07:00

"What a beautiful sunday" After waiting three weeks finally a Belgian victory in the Tour de France. On the last day, on the most royal sprint avenue in the world: Les Champs Elysees. Cold chills all over my arms and back even after watching it a third time. Thank you Quickstep and Gert Steegmans!

"Hold on Gert, Hold on Gert! There is the finish, there is the finish! He gets it!"

2008-07-28T06:45:00.000-07:00

Fingers crossed this is a fake Guinness commercial. But apart from that... Brilliant!

2008-07-28T05:09:00.001-07:00

Often people who have never visited New York think it is a modern and contemporary city. Well, they are wrong! NYC is a city full of historical landmarks and remains of long lost times. There might be a lot of bling on eye level and above, but maybe you should dig a little deeper. The sewer system, unknown ancient gas pipes they hit by accident and last but not least the subway. "It's old school dude!" The metro cars indeed look "charmingly" old, but what about those dark pipes they travel in? And now comes the news...they are all over 70 years old! I would call that history on the go. But times change, and even the NYC subway has to. So a nice surprise is waiting the New Yorkers: the brand new T Train! The first new subway line in 70 years. Have fun with it!

2008-07-27T10:36:00.000-07:00

As a strategic planner in advertising it is my job to look through all the clutter and keep things simple and relevant. This might sound easy, but clients don't always go along the same route. You defining their baby in a ridiculously simple way, without all the cute things they would like to hear, does not always make you the most popular guy in the meeting room. "Guys, wonderful ideas,...but it's just f#cking cookie!"

via: CandyBlog

2008-07-27T04:00:00.000-07:00

My buddy Moenen is subletting his East Village apartment (jup, that's in Manhattan, New York). He will be away from the city from August 10 on until the end of September and possibly even until January 1st. Short term or long term, it doesn't matter. Could be a good alternative for an expensive downtown hotel. So if you are interested surf your ass off to this place. Tell him I sent you and you'll get a starter pack of beer in the fridge. A refreshing start of your stay in the Big Apple.

ps: the bike is included

2008-07-25T08:41:00.000-07:00

Just today I posted a blog on Belgian music and of course something like that never comes on its own. Apparently showbizzzzz's most notorious blog PerezHilton posted a picture and the song of our very own Kate Ryan. She is actually from my area, de Kempen, and she is actually a pretty damn good singer despite her very poppy "repertoire" (saw her on a summer festival the other day). I have to admit, she really gave this old French song the summer feeling that we all need right now. So you go girl, get us on the map!

2008-07-25T05:04:00.000-07:00

I always get really excited when I hear Belgian songs on foreign radio stations. This time: Soulsister, The Way To Your Heart in Copenhagen. It seems to me that the Belgian music scene was doing really good back in the 80's and 90's. Last summer in Slovenia there was Vaya Con Dios, in New York there was Soulwax in the spring of 2007 and now there is Soulsister. In a couple of months there will be a gig of Vaya Con Dios here in Denmark and on the second of October Deus is performing in Copenhagen. Good I brought the Belgian flag...

2008-07-21T11:03:00.000-07:00

It's a small world after all. My second night in Copenhagen, I walk with two of my friends from Tivoli to Radhus Pladsen. Suddenly I hear a spicy Flemish (Belgian Dutch) accent behind me. Belgians! Jef just left the country and they were already missing him? I look back and find myself face to face with a former high school classmate. He was on his way to Sweden with some friends. Hope I gave him some good Scandinavian travel tips. Small world.

2008-07-20T06:03:00.001-07:00

Signs of Danish hospitality and a girl called Angiee

2008-07-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

That one sentence in the newspaper today:
"In Iran boys can get the death penalty from the age of 15...girls from the age of 9."

...can't find words

2008-06-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

More Belgian gold in Cannes with a campaign for "Music for Life". Work from the guys at Mortierbrigade. My personal opinion: Genius!

2008-06-19T00:38:00.000-07:00

Belgian ad agency Duval Guillaume wins a Gold Lion in Cannes for "a blind call".

2008-06-18T14:53:00.000-07:00

Cold chills went over my back when I saw this happening this afternoon in the Tour of Switzerland. Pro cyclist Frank Schleck gets catapulted over the edge into the deep. The voices of our two Belgian commentators filled with emotions: "This could put a black drape over the Tour of Switzerland." I guess it's part of the job.

2008-06-18T06:23:00.000-07:00

Infamous moment for Dutch soccer international Rafael Van der Vaart at the European championships the other day. From now on he will always be known as Rafael Van der Fart.

2008-06-16T09:18:00.000-07:00

Of all the scary movies I've seen in my life, the one I saw the other day must have been the most gruesome of all. Why, you ask? Because it was real. Jesus Camp, a documentary about almost 25% of the American population. Christian fundamentalists: over 80 million Americans who can vote the once so well respected country of innovation and prosperity back to the middle ages. Christians who teach their children that Darwin was completely wrong. That there is only one truth and that's the holy word written in the Bible. It reminded me of David S. Landes' hypothesis in The Wealth and Poverty of Nations on how the once so powerful and technologically superior Chinese and Arabic empires got lost in their own truth. Believing that they had reached a point of absolute truth dictated by a superior being or by the feeling of being a superior nation. From this point of view all science is a direct attack on the truth and thus an enemy of their superior position. The Chinese as well as the Arabic empires put a complete stop on science and innovation. Giving away their edge and not being able to gain it back for centuries to come. Is this what you want America?

2008-06-15T15:16:00.000-07:00

Just got an email from the Colombian rain forest. My former Hamburg landlord is working there for Doctors Without Borders, healing little kids and old ladies. It made me realize that all my blog posts about the Iphone or cool ad campaigns are such bullshit, so "freakin" unimportant. People, that's what's important!

2008-06-14T06:41:00.000-07:00

News from the land of Rene Magritte:

The Belgian army is almost out of bullets. Calculated per soldier, there are only four bullets left. Yes, 4! The story goes that during practice in the woods our soldiers have to yell "bangbang" instead of really firing their gun. So dear Dutch neighbours please take your chance to make fun of us. But then again imagine a worldwide shortage of bullets...

2008-06-12T07:35:00.000-07:00

The new Iphone. I have to admit I need this new Apple gadget one day or another. A lot has been written about this pocket size piece of design and technology the past week. Or what did you expect? Innovation and Apple Inc. have been walking hand in hand for a while now in the sunrise. The 3G Iphone has found itself a place on the Apple innovation map. Also on my map. But for me there is one simple innovation that will always be on top: turning around the Apple logo on the back of their Macbooks. It might be cool to see a logo directed to you the second before you open your laptop, but after that it is a complete waste. People who see you working/playing have to look at an upside down logo? My old Dell still has this flaw. Eventually even Dell took note and now we are are living in a much happier world with logos that are orientated at the right direction. Joy to the world!

2008-06-10T02:38:00.000-07:00

Work from "the French dudes" (my flat mates and colleagues in New York). Mathieu and Romain gathered over a million views for their Mentos spoof video. Good job! LaVirale has a hit!

2008-06-05T11:59:00.000-07:00

For all my friends and younger cousins who are studying for their final exams or working on amazing graduation projects right now.

2008-05-19T04:12:00.000-07:00

Massacre in my backyard.

2008-05-15T01:26:00.000-07:00

Nice one from Brussels Airlines. They've been using our top Belgian tennis player Justine Henin for a while now in all their communication. Until the time came, yesterday, that she decided to put an end to her amazing career. No problem for the marketing guys, they created some kind of top topical for this event. The banner on the BA website reads: "More time for travel... more chances to sit next to you" "Justine Henin, frequent flyer, now only for pleasure." Or how to turn a loss into something positive.

2008-05-11T12:53:00.001-07:00

For those of you who speak Dutch (or pretend to speak Dutch when they are drunk) and those who want to know the real deal about the most hyped subject of the new century: "climate change".

2008-04-17T01:02:00.000-07:00

Update to last post:in Dutch or English.

2008-04-15T10:15:00.000-07:00

Now author Tim Ferriss is also in love with the world's happiest country.

2008-04-13T13:56:00.000-07:00

Bring out the tissues! I stole this from Claudia Schiepers' blog for the simple reason that it gave me a cold chill. But on another account this shows exactly in what kind of time we live. A time of real things, real stories. Authenticity. In the 90's there were hundreds of talent shows where you just imitated a big celebrity, now the real people are the celebrities and do their own thing. Often television makers take advantage of "the weak" but at moments like these they take the chance to show something that will stick on you forever. Congrats to the real people! The time of "super" people is over, no more superstars and supermodels. The only ones we still know today....well, they are so 90's.