Too good

OK, so let me set this up. The Emerson AAF team came to Textron to present on Tuesday. Also here conducting an education/working session with our department was Shel Holtz, a social media guru among marketers. He got to see the presentation as well and posted the following on it on his blog today:

I have seen the future. Advertisers and marketers should be afraid. Very afraid.
I spent today with a client. It was an interactive session with members of the company’s communications team, but during the last couple hours, the group watched a presentation by students from Emerson College, finalists in this year’s National Student Advertising Competitionsponsored by the American Advertising Federation.. (The professor guiding the team, Douglas Quintal, is married to one of the company’s communicators attending the weeklong summit.)

The presentation I saw—one of several trial runs before the students head to the finals in Atlanta on June 8 and 9—was one of the best I’ve seen in years. These kids—who have already made it through several rounds of competition—put on a 20-minute pitch that rivals the best I’ve seen from polished professionals with years of experience. From their personal delivery to their presentation support materials, to the written plan, their work could compete—and win—against any agency out there.

All of which is beside the point. The point is their organic understanding of the way social media and traditional communication have integrated. They’re not gushing enthusiasts proclaiming social media this and social media that. Social media is just part of their lives and they understand the way they—and the target demographic established for them by the competition rules—use these tools as day-to-day vehicles for communication.

Because their competition can still benefit from knowledge about their pitch, I won’t go into any details, but I hope somebody is videotaping it. What I can say is that AOL, the sponsor of this year’s competition, issued the equivalent of an RFP to which all student teams had to respond. Teams were required to propose a campaign to promote an AOL brand.

And these kids nailed it. Sure, there were some quibbles and ideas for improvement here and there, but they nailed it. If I could package these students up and bring them with me, I’d put them in front of every communication leadership team I meet and say, “See? This is what I’m talking about.”

Some agencies will be very lucky to hire these kids. A smart one would hire them as a team, but I doubt there are any quite that smart.

There are two possible outcomes of the competition next week. The Emerson team could win, and I suspect they have an excellent chance. Or, they could lose, which has even more significant implications. If they lose, it means the Emerson team isn’t a fluke, a rare combination of raw talent guided by a savvy professor. It means there are a lot of advertising and marketing students poised to assume positions in agencies and companies where they can bring their organic understanding of the new media world to bear. They can work on campaigns based on their innate understanding of new communication models.

For all those communicators putting off learning about social media, hesitating, resisting, this is very bad news. You could quickly become expendable as agencies populate their ranks with those who (and I really do hate using this phrase) “get it.”

I was only barely aware of the National Student Advertising Competition before today. Now I’ll be awaiting word of the outcome with tremendous anticipation.

Go Emerson.

I am so proud. And thank you to everyone on this year's team for making my equity as an Emerson grad and former AAF presenter go through the friggin' roof.

Now, a lot of people have inquired into my personal emotional and mental health through the whole "OMG they won districts." situation. The answer is simple: bittersweet, as much as that is a cliche (and total cop-out!). Watching 40 people get exactly what you wanted more than you've ever wanted anything and didn't get, is an emotional quandary I don't recommend exposing yourself to. That said, when the 40 people are people you love and respect and absolutely want to see succeed as much as yourself, it becomes sweet again. Am I jealous that we didn't get as far as this year's team? Of course! I love to show off! But do I know in my heart of hearts that I helped pave the way for this team's success? Absolutely, and it is like giving a gift that is difficult to give, but feels right and good. I also know that this year's team has some sort of mojo or just "got it" in a way that we didn't. You can say "It all depends on the judges!" as much as you want, but there is no denying that there is something special about the team this year.

My experience with last year's AAF was perhaps more intimate and emotional than anyone else and contributes to my deep connection with the program and the students. I wouldn't change the experience I had for anything and I doubt any of my team members would either. It was something completely unique to us; it's not as much exciting to remember as it is difficult.

Either way, I have no reason to be jealous of this year's team. As my VP told me "You're the one with the job!". ...Touche.

<3

PS- Don't you just hate text heavy blogs that talk about emotions? Me too. I promise to post something nonsensical again soon.