Coffee With a Purpose

San Franciscans love their coffee. We’re willing to wait in lines 20 people deep. We’ll wait 15 minutes for our (painfully slow) pour-over. We care about how our coffee beans are sourced, roasted and sold. We likely know our baristas by name, and paying $6 for a cup of joe is completely justifiable.

CultureTom GearyJuly 21, 2015#, ad, advertising, advocate, agency, alternative, Bay Area, best, city, clean, coffee, compost, content, creative, cup, department, distinct, documentary, eco, energy, environment, guerilla, Instagram, local, marketing, media, mugs, organic, passion, recycle, reusable, San Francisco, school of thought, SFE, social, top, Twitter, unique, United States, video, waste, writing

Turns Out You Can Buy Love

Recently School of Thought conducted a test of what is unquestionably the easiest way to get Twitter followers. Simply buy them.

Advertising, CultureTom GearyFebruary 28, 2014ad, advertising, age, agency, Bay Area, best, business, buy, campaign, coverage, documentary, easy, followers, growth, local, marketing, professional, San Francisco, scale, sell, social, tech, top, Twitter, web

Meet Our New Client

Some people decide to adopt a new pet. We went a step further recently and decided to adopt a whole menagerie. One new pro-bono client is Animal Care and Control, the San Francisco city agency that rescues and finds homes for a veritable Noah’s Ark of animals.

Advertising, NewsTom GearyNovember 14, 2013ACC, ad, adopt, agency, awareness, best, business, cat, city, coverage, dog, donation, growth, kitten, level, local, marketing, meeting, professional, puppy, San Francisco, scale, school of thought, small, top, visit

Wine Disruptors

Making US wines an appealing choice to Millennials, people who live, breathe and drink a variety of brands, is perhaps the biggest change that the industry will experience. Finding meaningful ways for brands to stand out and connect with their audience will be a core ingredient for success.

CultureRachel NewellApril 1, 2013advertising, agency, Americans, audience, Bay Area, branding, business, California, company, consumers, content, coverage, creative, documentary, ForageSF, generation, growth, industry, local, love, marketing, Millennial, news, professional, San Francisco, scale, school of thought, small, social, strategy, tech, top best, unique, video, wine, young

The Measurement Myth: Humanizing Social Impact

In advertising, creativity is measured to “ensure” the right message hits the right audience. Many times this analysis paralysis is the quickest way to hinder creative expression and innovation.

Diversity, AdvertisingRachel NewellMarch 17, 2013agency, audience, awareness, Bay Area, best, business, campaign, company, connection, difference, ethnography, evaluation, growth, human, impact, initiative, Jack London, market, media, message, myth, potential, product, professional, research, results, San Francisco, scale, small, social, study, top

Get Me 30 Rock!

There’s a lot of bad advertising out there. But I was blessed to be able to find my pick for the worst ad for all of 2011 right across the street from our offices. What good fortune!

Advertising, CultureTom GearyFebruary 19, 201230 Rock, advertising, agency, arts, Bay Area, best, board, business, channel, charity, comedy, coverage, documentary, evening, experience, film, funded, funny, good, growth, industry, local, marketing, news, note, professional, San Francisco, school of thought, sciences, series, show, skills, small, tech, Tina Fey, top, watch

The census should be this interesting (Hmmmm).

Trade shows are a fact of life. I can’t count the number I’ve attended. No matter the industry, it seems like a virtual certainty that booth traffic is never quite as high as anybody would like.

Advertising, CultureTom GearyJanuary 14, 2012active, arts, attendees, Black Swan, business, campaign, communication, contact, coverage, documentary, economist, engagement, exhibit, growth, hurricane, industry, information, local, market, marketing, press, professional, San Francisco, scale, school of thought, solution, sponsorship, thought, video

Oh, do we have thoughts