A Quick Grammar Break: Brought to you by The Oatmeal.

It’s no secret that Post Haste is written, for the most part, by copywriters.

So, it should come as no surprise that the brains behind Post Haste are really into punctuation and words and things like that.

That being said, if you’re a copywriter, or if you’re into words, or if you have an excellent sense of humor that doesn’t mind a little randomness, you should be checking out the cartoon charts at The Oatmeal, especially the ones about grammar.

Need to learn how to use a semi-colon? An apostrophe? Want to know the 10 words you should stop misspelling? Done x3.

15 things you need to know about coffee? Also done.

It’s worth checking out, if only because you’ll actually learn something and you’ll have some funny things to post in your cubicle.

That’s all. Carry on with your work week.

The OFFICIAL 2009 Gingerbread Man (Or Woman) Decorating Contest

The Great Gingerbread Cookie Decorate-off is over, and with a bevy of bejeweled bakery goods scattered amongst our break room tables, we have made our difficult but oh-so-satisfying decision.

But first, the cookies. Be warned – there are a lot of images after the jump.
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David Feherty’s Veterans’ Hunt

David Feherty, former PGA Tour golfer and current CBS Sports analyst, loves the United States. And, he loves the troops that help defend it.

While this may come as a surprise – after all, he is Irish – it only takes a look at his feverish progress at becoming a United States citizen (and his adoption of Dallas as his official hometown) to understand a passion as foreign to the ex-pat lifestyle as grasping American football.

He simply loves this country.

It’s this love – and his undying support for the country’s military personnel – that prompts Feherty to reach out to injured and disabled troops year after year with a once-in-a-lifetime pheasant hunting trip in South Dakota.

Our own Kirby Schultz was fortunate enough to tag along and document this year’s trip, and it was nothing short of monumental. Sure, there was emotion. But there was also a feeling of accomplishment.

And, there was a hidden agenda – one that strikes at the heart of what a disabled veteran goes through: offering a slice of normalcy to someone who now lives life differently, all in the name of defending freedom.

The goal wasn’t to treat veterans with kid gloves. On the contrary – Feherty wants to treat these veterans like real people, offering the roughness of hunting without holding back, challenging the vets to work hard, just as they did before, just as they’ve always done, giving them a reason to feel strong again.

The trip is designed for fun. It was created to give back to vets who laid their lives on the line – and left a little behind in the process. But it’s also a way to dispel any feelings of hopelessness. To put control back in a disabled veteran’s court.

To feel human. To feel free. Which, at the center of it all, is one of the things our country strives to offer every day.

No wonder Feherty has adopted this place as home.

So, there’s this thing called Facebook…

As a service to you, the loyal reader, the devoted fan of Post Haste and the people behind it, The HenkinSchultz Facebook Page is now open.

You’ll find all of the usual stuff you’ve come to expect from a Facebook page - blog posts, videos, sample radio spots, awesome pictures, hilarity from Corey the copywriter, witty comments from the legions behind the big white building, etc.

I guess, while we’re at it, we should remind you that we’re constantly Twittering, too. We have been for a while, actually: @henkinschultz. And, for even more awesomeness, we’re compiling all of our video spots in one easy to access location on YouTube.

So become a fan. We’ll be here, waiting to Facebook-it-up.

Cinco de Mayo and a Side of Beans

You know, if it was always just great ideas and fantastic design around here at HenkinSchultz, our brainmeat would turn to mush. Seriously. Mush. It would be eerily similar to those awesome Hulu commercials (shown here, somewhat ironically, on YouTube).

So, whenever we can, we turn to the concept of overeating to help assuage our throbbing minds.

Yeah potlucks!

So, in honor of the Mexican army that overcame a much larger French army back in the mid-1800’s, assuring a victory that countless Americans without any connection to Mexico celebrate each year on May 5th as “Cinco de Mayo,” we ate heartily in the spirit of Mexican cooking.

I’m still trying to digest all of those beans. (Ohh… the beans…)

(click to see Joe larger)

Happy day after Cinco de Mayo! (Seis de Mayo?)

Bearduary, the Finale

We do a lot of weird things at work.

We participate in contests that border on the ridiculous. Like the recent Bearduary contest, which spanned January and February, awarding a $50 prize to the charity of the person who grows the most inspired beard.

We judge these contests through an e-mail vote, using pictures taken by one of the participants. The contact sheets:

(The votes were counted, by the way, by another participant.)

(Not that I’m bitter over losing. I still have my beard! I’m still honoring the commitment! No one understands my plight!)

Seriously, though. It was Erik’s idea, so he gets to count. And we have a transcript of votes – 93% turnout – so everything was legit. I garnered some sympathy votes, but it was Craig’s to lose. And he didn’t. He won, in fact. So I guess it was Craig’s to win, too.

Total Votes:
Craig: 8
Chris and Joey: tied for 6
Corey (Your fearless author): 3
Erik: 2
Jason and Don: Zero. Come on. Take this seriously next time.

Obligatory Pie Graph:

We announce the award. The winner, instead of choosing a charity, donates the money to a pizza fund. Joe matches it. And a pizza party is born.

Of course, I sit at home, sick, while everyone else snacks on pizza. But, if I was there, I’d be living it up too. And that, my friends, is why working in the agency world can be pretty sweet.

You have beard growing contests that results in an online vote and a pizza party.

Naturally.

Congrats, Craig. I mean, whatever.

Change, the Presidential Way

After nearly two years of tough campaigning and bitter competition, we were lucky enough - as a nation of free citizens - to watch a smooth transition of power from one leader to another.

And regardless of whether you are for or against the party in charge, you have to admit that, above all things, this smooth and peaceful transition is one of the things that makes our country so great.

For all that it symbolized, the passing of power from one president to the next wasn’t just a new job description. It’s a changing of ideals, of direction and of ideological standards.

In other words, it was the changing of a brand.

At noon, EST, just as Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States, a transformation happened at www.WhiteHouse.gov. The official Web site of President Bush became the official Web site of President Obama.

We’re not just talking about information here, either. WhiteHouse.gov was reshaped to reflect the brand that Obama built over two years of campaigning. It includes the font most closely associated with him. It includes a White House blog. It is laid out in the same manner as his campaign site. It’s unmistakable: Barack Obama is President.

Coordination of this level takes a careful eye and a powerful Web presence. But, in this advanced technological world, it’s necessary. The first place people go for information is the Web, and the last thing you want to do is disappoint them with out of sync data and an aging visual presence.

Take this as an example. When your company makes an update to its brand. When your agency is working on a new campaign. When you’re unveiling a new logo, or a new direction, or a new leadership structure.

Look at every angle. And coordinate it so that, when the deed is done, there is no question about the past. It’s only the future. It’s brand management at its simplest – and best.

When you’re making change, take care to make it smooth, peaceful and complete. After all – it’s the American Way.

-

(Of course, even the government can screw something up. The first post on the White House blog promises communication, transparency and participation. “We’d like to hear from you!” it says.

And, unfortunately, it does not allow comments.)

Happy Election Day

It’s election day.

This means a lot of things. For those of us who are able, we have the privilege of voting. To make our voice heard. So go out and do it, for Pete’s sake. Seriously. What are you waiting for - tomorrow?

Also, it means we can gain a little respite from the barrage of political ads that have battered us into submission. I mean, you know, it gets to the point when you simply don’t care who wins, as long as you can get away from the yard signs and negative campaigning and endless e-mails about giving cash to already rich campaigns.

But before we say goodbye to all of the political advertising, let’s take a look at some historically negative campaigns.

For instance, the vicious hate-mongering that Stephen Douglas riled up against future President Abraham Lincoln.

Or what about the fear that George Washington placed into our hearts. At 3 a.m., we’d all want him leading our country.

(A major thanks to two of the best ad blogging minds in the adblogosphere: Make the Logo Bigger and Where’s My Jetpack? In fact, I’ll be the first to make the endorsement: MTLB/WMJ 2012.)

Happy Election day, everyone.

Saying what you mean. Showing what you say.

It’s simple.

In marketing, you want to say what you mean.

And visually, you want to back up what you say with images that correspond.

Any disconnect will be noticed. Pounced upon. Seen as weakness, as an disingenuous attempt at trust.

Say what you mean. Show what you say. Mean what you show.

These are all common things to keep in mind when designing and writing and developing a concept in all aspects of marketing. But really, I’m using these common sense ideas as an excuse to play this great YouTube clip: A’Ha’s “Take On Me,” as if the song was written to match the video.

It all makes so much more sense now. Take me on.

Batter Blaster!

No more mess! No more time-wasting mixing! IT’S PANCAKE BATTER IN A CAN!

WATCH THE VIDEO NOW.

“Make better breakfast faster! BATTER BLASTER!”

Who says we’ve run out of things to invent?

(Unfortunately, it is not available in South Dakota yet.)

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About HenkinSchultz

HenkinSchultz is an agency. An advertising and marketing and branding and design and production agency. All of those things, and then some.

But, underneath all that, we're really a bunch of thinkers. As in, we think about stuff, both pertinent and not, with and without boundaries, as if our lives depended on it. And this right here, Post Haste, is where we write about it.

Visit us at http://www.henkinschultz.com.

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New Post Haste-ness: HenkinSchultz: Official Google Advertising Professionals ( http://tinyurl.com/yzyu2vw )

Recent Posts

• HenkinSchultz: Official Google Advertising Professionals
• Where Is the Line? (On Advertorials and Front Page Ads)
• Being a Realtor on the Web
• On Deadlines
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• Twitter as a commitment
• A Quick Grammar Break: Brought to you by The Oatmeal.
• A Creative Legend In Our Midst
• Mini’s Trash is Advertising’s Treasure
• On How NOT to Request Attention on the Internet

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