Thread by @marcodel_valle

2 months ago, I challenged myself to post one human insight every day. But can I take it further? Can I do a full-ass strategy, every single day for 30 days?

This month, I’m challenging myself to #30DaysOfLiveActionStrategy!

(inspired by @juliancole and @markpollard!)

THREAD:

@juliancole @markpollard Because I won’t get the full benefit of time, I’ve put in some rules to help me out:

1. I get to choose the brands and audiences I work on
2. Minimal research, though I'll try when time allows
3. The words won't be perfect, but the ideas are the focus

@juliancole @markpollard I'd love any and all feedback (but please be nice! I cry very easily haha)

@caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer and everyone who commented on my last challenge - would love to get your thoughts!

@juliancole @markpollard @caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer Day 1. Selling Britney Spears music to CEOS

Just wanted to kick off this challenge with something dumb and fun! I'm a big Britney stan, but can I get more "respectable" people to stan her too?

@juliancole @markpollard @caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer Day 2. Selling Filipino food to Westerners

Filipino food is dear to my heart, and I've always been sad that it isn't as popular as other Asian cuisines. For this strat, I wanted to embrace its moderate flavours, as well as its home-made, less-commercialised nature!

@juliancole @markpollard @caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer Day 3. Selling Cricket Crackers to Bodybuilders

I've always been fascinated by edible insects, but I've always felt iffy about brands trying to make them seem cute and pretty. I wanted to see what would happen if I tried owning their creepiness and using it as an advantage!

@juliancole @markpollard @caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer Day 4. Selling "Fancy Plants Bristol" to new plant parents

Fancy Plants is known for its unique and expensive range of houseplants. But to reach beginners, (a larger market than plant experts), I figured that their expertise, not their stock, would truly make the difference!

@juliancole @markpollard @caff @ThomasMiskin @beccamagnus @jamey_bainer Day 5. Selling Huel to non-users

Huel's a food-substitute that's huge in the UK, but as a food lover I've never really been tempted to switch. In this strategy I tried to take a different spin on it - not my favourite piece so far, but there we are haha

Day 6. Selling Insect Hotels to Suburban Mums

Love insects. Finally got a chance to write a strategy about them. ❤️

Day 7. Selling VX Bristol to non-vegans

VX Bristol is one of my favourite vegan restaurants in Bristol - as a non-vegan myself, I wanted to take its subversiveness and embrace it.

The strategy statement here is a bit airy-fairy, but overall it does feel true to the brand!

Day 8. Selling “The Financial Diet” to new viewers

TFD is one of my favorite Youtube channels - it’s only fair that I repay it with a slot in this strategy challenge!

Day 9. Selling Yoga to Bodybuilders

Yoga and bodybuilding feel like such opposite poles, so I really enjoyed finding a way to bring them together in this strat!

Day 10. Selling Post-its to office workers

Doing two today cause I missed out yesterday 😂 This strat does feel a bit *safe* - may try a different version sometime soon!

Day 11. Selling Command Hooks to new grads

As a renter, I'm obsessed with command hooks - I quite enjoyed using them in this (admittedly very pun-heavy) strategy!

Day 12. Getting K-Pop Fans to stop Online Piracy

This is a bit of a throwback to a uni IMC competition where we won first prize! It's been 5 years since then, but the strat still stands, and it was the start of my love for marketing and advertising! @riannemae_

@riannemae_ Day 13. Selling Post-its to Office Workers: The Sequel The Remix Part 2 Electric Boogaloo!

I did quite enjoy the first time I did this, but couldn't help trying out a different route - a bit less intuitive than the first version, but also a bit edgier!

Day 14. Selling The Albatross Cafe to Office Workers

Love this café, thought it’d be nice to craft a little strat for it - unfortunately I’ve put in the wrong image for this post, but there we are haha

Day 15. Selling D&D to Video Gamers

I've been obsessed with D&D for the past few months - but it's the recent launch of Pokemon Sword and Shield (and the ensuing complaints about it) that inspired this strategy!

30 Days of Live-Action Strategy - we're halfway there!!!!
It's been a wild ride so far, but I've learned a lot - especially grateful for all the feedback!

I've compiled a g-sheet here if you'd like to feedback on any of the past strategies: bit.ly/2NRJ9zG

Strat friends - I'd love to hear your thoughts! If you wanna suggest any future topics, (or even work on one together 😯) hit me up!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 16. Selling the blobfish to conservationists

Now I know the blobfish doesn't look like this in its natural habitat, but I couldn't resist that face 😂 Can't wait for the day I see it in a WWF campaign

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 17. Selling Rescue dogs to new families

Feeling the full Lady & The Tramp fantasy for this one haha

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 18. Selling Easyhotel to New Travellers

Inspired by a very memorable past visit 😂 - enjoyed playing around with the "empty/full" wordplay here

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 19. Selling Cards Against Humanity to new players

(Missed a day yesterday, so doing two today haha) this one took inspiration from one of the entries from the #30DaysofInsights challenge I did in September!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 20. Selling Skydiving to Newlyweds (PART 1)

For this two-part exercise, I wanted to take the same product, and see if I could spin it to work for two different audiences. Not sure if I succeeded, but it was really fun to play around with the wording here!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 21. Selling Skydiving to Newlyweds (PART 2)

For this two-part exercise, I wanted to take the same product, and see if I could spin it to work for two different audiences. Not sure if I succeeded, but it was really fun to play around with the wording here!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 22. Selling the O'ahu Tree Snail to Conservationists

Inspired by a gorgeous (and emotional) piece in the Atlantic theatlantic.com/magazine/archi…

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 23. Selling 'Sharp Teeth Presents' to Theatre Lovers

Sharp Teeth Presents was a local monthly show that showcased different local performers every month. Sad it's gone, but I loved it while it lasted!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 24. Selling Werewolf Movies to Hollywood

Tried something different here - pitching a genre instead of a brand, entertainment instead of products. Really tough, but it was fun having a go at it!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 25. Selling Drag Race UK to American Drag Race viewers

Quick note: "spilling the tea" is a drag/queer term that means exposing the truth and mixing things up! Also apologies for spoiling the top 3 in this image 😂

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 26. Selling Spa Days to Moms at Christmas time

Hugely hectic week - so catching up on the last few entries before November ends!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 27. Selling Lady Gaga: Jazz & Piano to Lady Gaga Fans

Quick Note: "Jazz & Piano" is one of Gaga's Las Vegas residency shows. It's running alongside the far more
spectacle-filled Engima (which I tried to work into the strategy statement as a bit of wordplay)

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 28. Selling Tigers to Conservationists

I know tigers are an easier sell than blobfish or tree snails - but it was fun to try reframing a more high-profile animal! It's also cool to see how I've (hopefully) evolved across the three conservation pieces I've done! 🐅

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 29. Getting Grindr users to be less judgmental

Bit of a more niche topic here - but definitely an issue that affects the community, and one that was fun to tackle 😂

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre Day 30. Selling the Durian to Westerners

And that's a wrap! Wanted to take it back home with this one - the Durian's a local delicacy in Davao, and other SE Asian countries.

Full recap of what I've learned tomorrow - for now it's time to take a rest cause I am finally done! 😂

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre And it's done! It's been a crazy, tiring, fun ride, but I've finally completed my #30DaysofLiveStrategyChallenge!

What I've learned, (and still need to improve on), below: ↓ THREAD ↓

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre 1. This project's how tough it is to truly make writing simple! Simplicity takes time - it’s easy to dash off a quick sentence, much harder to rewrite a thought and make it as concise as possible. Definitely gotta work on phrasing things sharper!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre 2. The value of cohesiveness - making sure each part of the strategy feels like a beat in the same story, rather than individual parts!

@Amelia_Torode calls this “breadcrumbs” - sewing in clues to the proposition throughout the strategy, so it feels natural when it comes out

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre @Amelia_Torode 3. Vulnerability - it's hard to put yourself out there, especially with a project like this where the work's rough by nature! But it's been an exercise in being open to feedback, and I've learned so much from the community in the process!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre @Amelia_Torode 4. Strategy is an exercise, and as with any exercise, being consistent > being perfect, practice > performance

But in a job we're often expected to be on performance mode all the time, it was nice to have a low-stakes space to practice and learn!

@markpollard @juliancole @ThomasMiskin @tomroach @beccamagnus @MaryErgul @caff @jamey_bainer @robistyping @jdaykin @hklefevre @Amelia_Torode And there we are - I'm so glad I took this on, and I'm really excited for the next challenge, but for now... I'll be taking a break😂