Laurie was a vital player in the NIE ad series.
After I developed the concept, our graphics department did as little as possible with the ad. Quite frankly, the first 3 ads looked horrible, embarrassing even. The series would have died if Laurie had not intervened.
Laurie was the Editor of the largest (and most successful) newspaper Lerner had. Knowing how important this project was to me, Laurie stepped in (unsolicited and unbeknownst to me) and somehow managed to get one of the ads redone in almost breathtaking fashion. From that point on (sometimes with more cajoling from Laurie), the ads looked very good, sometimes even awesome! Laurie truly saved the ad series.
After Laurie's intervention and after the series started gaining momentum, I really wanted to get Laurie to appear in an ad. I knew her readers would love it. I also wanted her in the ad because she really got it and supported it. Laurie loved the printed word, be it newspapers or books.
Laurie's NIE ad sparked a lot of conversation within the office. First, let me state that I love every aspect of the ad. Her quote was a great quote, but some staffers (small brains) did not understand it. Maybe that shows the effectiveness of her quote. It got people talking and thinking. I think the actual quote was one of the best, even topping some literary professionals who appeared in the ad series (all of whom Laurie edited).
Laurie was the only Lerner staffer to appear in the NIE ad series. (Surprisingly, with my ego, I did not put myself in an ad.) I think that is fitting, as Laurie was so instrumental in breathing life into the series. She also had a loyal and rabid following.
Thank you, Laurie, for taking the underachieving NIE ad series and making it into a winner. Thank you for all of your input and work on it. Thank you, too, for agreeing to appear in the series.
Oh and Happy Birthday!
No comments:
Post a Comment