Marketing Wins SuperBowlXLIX‬: Why This Year's Ads Were Among Best Ever

The "dead" boy from the Nationwide Super Bowl ad

Marketing won this Super Bowl by leaps and bounds. The murmurings over the last 16 hours have proven that my profession is on it's game.

The vast majority of commoners have complained that this was "the worst year of ads, ever."

"There were some funny ones but overall, bleh."

"Not impressed at all."

That sampling of comments was pulled directly from my personal Facebook feed last night. Yet, social media was a buzz talking about all the "bad ads." Guys, that's a win.

I was proud of my marketing brethren last night. The overall tone and vibe from this year's crop of Super Bowl ads was on the money. From Nationwide's "Make Safe Happen," to Coke's "Make It Happy" and the various brands odes to "dad," marketers were clearly taking a cue from the overall vibe on our planet today.

We need to stop being mean to one another.

We need to recognize the contributions of some unspoken, but vital players in life.

We need to have conversations on tough topics at inconvenient times.

Nothing good is every accomplished without great relations between humans.

The very cornerstone of my work and clearly, something major brands paying insane dollars to communicate with us understand.  These are not the materialistic 1980s nor the Wall Street glorifying 1990s - we are in an era of owning what's going on. Be it race relations in America or religious intolerance here and abroad, people are looking at every thing differently, more thoughtfully. And if they are not, then, they should be and big brands told the world so last night.

We own what planet we pass on to our children. If we are responsible enough to keep them alive, thanks Nationwide.

We have the choice to continue the patterns we see on the internet. Or we can be the positive images of change we want, thanks Coca-Cola.

We can make sure both parents are idolized and break the self-fulfilling prophecy that honoring one somehow diminishes the other. It's OK to love, esteem and honor dad as much as mom, thanks Toyota, Nissan and who ever I missed that made a point to showcase dad last night.

It's OK to be silly sometimes. Thanks Skittles.

Owing and pursuing your dream matters. Thanks GoDaddy and American Family Insurance for honoring dreamers and entrepreneurs.

We have an obligation to use technological advances to benefit every body. Thank you, Microsoft for the reminder.

The tone and overall vibe last night was very different than its been in recent years but it is a reflection of what's going on in the world today. Gone was the gratuitous and over the top celebrity hocking. Celebrities were used sparingly but powerfully. More every day people like you and me were part of this year's ads. We were not forced to feel like we were not pretty nor handsome enough to be part of this world party. We were challenged to not just sit and absorb messages, we were shocked into speaking about topics that we often ignore. We were jolted from the comfort of our parties and celebrations to see that we have a responsibility as citizens of this planet. We were told it's not gonna happen without us, we must participate.  I woke up proud to be part of a community that was daring enough to tell us stories we needed to hear. Kudos to brands for having the courage not to just hock products to us but to attempt to make our world a better place through powerful and expensive messages.

And thanks to the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks for an exciting game in between my favorite marketing event of every year.

The Unlikely Entrepreneur: A Tale of My Relationship With My Talents

Talent is a natural born or acquired ability &  you need to use yours

As I look back at my 18 month journey to entrepreneurship, the one thing that just jumps out at me is the fact that I am an unlikely entrepreneur.

At the beginning of this whole deal my goal was not to have my own business. Nor was it to "stick it to the man". Or make tons of money.

It was simply to use my talents fully, every day.

That's it.

I had a good paying progressive marketing career that started in non-profit, moved to agencies and entertainment properties finally working in corporate entities. I was happy. Making more money with each move and meeting great talented people all along the way. No intentions of ever working for myself. My family is made up of hardworking people who work for others. That's what I'd looked forward to as well. I'd envisioned a VP of Marketing title at some huge place some day. Then about 4 years ago, something happened...

I noticed that I was not doing what I was good, no,  make that BEST at on the regular. It was weird. I was in my highest paying job to date and being severely under utilized. Now it coincided with a huge strain in my personal life so I welcomed the opportunity to channel some of the energy I'd normally be exerting at work to my more pressing,  home life. However, coming out of that crisis, I was miserable vocationally speaking. And I'd engaged an executive/life coach, Rachel Weinstein just before all the personal turmoil hit and it was the best investment ever. During our time together it was clear that while I did not know exactly what I needed to be doing, I needed to be using my talents more.

So I started doing just that.

First, pitching myself to facilitate a parks and recreation workshop for women who want to tap into their passion.

Next, was running for and winning public office in the municipality where I live.

There were so many things I started doing. And each month,  I got a little closer. Until last fall, I actually ended up exactly where I started. In marketing.

Funny - I describe myself as a Wife. Mother. Marketer. Public Servant. In that order.

So it should have been no surprise to me that marketing myself as an independent marketer would be a success. Yet there I was wandering around for months trying to figure out exactly what my company should be doing.

The lesson of this tale...

Identify your talents and then commit yourself to engaging them daily.

Period.

Got a job and "they" aren't using your talents? So. Then YOU need to commit yourself to developing and utilizing your God given or acquired talents,  every day.

Who knows where that journey will take you?

Open For Business, Finally

This has got to be the longest grand opening ever but here goes....

Relationships Matter Now, LLC is open for business.

I know, I've been dabbling, teasing and even doing independent projects, collecting clients here and there for the last 2 years. But as of Feb 16, 2012 - Relationships Matter Now, LLC is taking up 100% of all my vocational energy.

It has been exhilarating and scary time. Because I hung out the shingle so long ago and have morphed and evolved what RMN is many times - here goes a little Q & A for those of you who have been around awhile.

What is Relationships Matter Now, LLC?

We are a boutique marketing consultant firm that specializes in bringing new products or services to market. This was a very easy decision. When I looked at my entire career, with the exception of my time at Sears (and there was some application there albeit really stretching), I've always been the pioneer marketer. The one who comes up with the plan and process to bring something new to market. To reach folks and lure them in for the trial.

Every single position I held in a company was a newly created position or one that I created from another role within the company. It made all the sense in the world for my venture to start by partnering with clients to bring something new to market.

We also serve as a strategic business partner for several clients providing overall business strategy consulting as well as marketing strategy, marketing planning and execution. I say we, because I have a solid team of other consultants across the US pitching in on most of the engagements we currently have.

Because relationships are our greatest asset, we have partners is various industries and use them to advance the business of our partners as well as our own.

Wasn't Relationships Matter Now, LLC gonna do something with relationships or relational wellness?

My,  do you have a great memory! Yes - two years ago at exactly this time - Relationships Matter Now was in the running for a Pepsi Refresh Everything Project grant to start bringing relational wellness programming to the forefront. We came thisclose to actually winning a grant but never did.

To answer the question - why yes, we were and are doing "something with relationships".  Relationships Matter Now is committed to leading the conversation on how relationships really work versus how we think they should work. We facilitate workshops and have led strategy sessions for clients who want to help their employees leverage relationships to boost profitability.

Helping folks strengthen their own Chain of Relationships - starting with self,  is still at the core of our values. However, partnering with clients to build and grow thriving relationships with their target customers is also a core value and competency of our firm.

RelationshipsMatterNow.com still has a goal to be the "WebMD" of relationships and serve as a hub for all things relationship. We are in the strategic planning stages of just how and when we march toward that goal. Stay tuned. The site will be morphing to match our current trajectory soon.

What makes Relationships Matter Now, LLC any different from anyone else out there selling marketing services?

Honestly, it's our relationships.

Starting with our relationships with our self. We know what we can do and cannot do. We operate from a place of complete integrity and are transparent with our partners thus encouraging reciprocal transparency.

And as a result of our strong relationships with self, our relationships with others are solid. The people and firms we choose to partner with are all connected to us personally. And yes, that does matter. When you operate from a place of working with people who share vision and values - not necessarily styles, you can never go wrong. There is never a need to convince. Ever. There is mutual respect for our talents and what everyone brings to the table and makes our partnerships more important that the project itself.

Will this blog change after this announcement?

Not at all. We are still committed to exploring and interacting with folks about all kinds of relationship topics. Now, the idea is to become more disciplined in posting. We'll see how that goes. This is the first week of one job focus and we're off to a great start.


So there's a glimpse of what's to come.  Thanks for being a huge part of this journey and stay tuned to see where we go.

We are about to change the world.

One relationship at a time.