Welcome to Titanium Bound

When I graduated from the VCU Adcenter in 2000, my student portfolio contained five print campaigns, three one-offs, and my resume. And that was good enough to get me a job at an award-winning agency within two months of graduation.

There’s no way that would cut it today. Not for students looking for their first job. And definitely not for agencies.

There are some great agencies doing some great work in the old standbys: print, TV, radio, and outdoor. Flip through the latest annuals and you’ll still see amazing examples of long copy ads and direct mail pieces.

People thought radio would kill newsprint. And that TV would kill radio. And that the web would kill them all. So I don’t believe in the death of the 30-second spot. (At least not anytime soon.) But I do believe in evolution. And I do believe that the agencies that are going to stand out and thrive are the ones who continue to challenge the definition of what an “advertising agency” is.

As a creative with a copywriter background, I have no idea what kind of agency I’m going to be working for in 10 years. And I have no idea what kind of shop I want to build. Because I have no idea what kind of shops are going to be viable.

This blog is meant to be a receptacle of ideas – the kind that are going to shape the industry. It’s not a place for industry gossip and it’s not a place to post the latest campaigns (unless they’re really Titanium Lion material).

It’s a place to collect the ideas that are challenging, scary and exciting. And to try to figure out where exactly this industry’s going and how we can all have a good time getting there.

Hope you enjoy.

If you’d like to contribute a piece or pitch and idea, please contact me at davisspaulding@gmail.com.

Greg