Apparently it’s not “humane” to microchip overscheduled executives like we do our cherished pets, but today’s in-demand business environment requires instant access and direct communication. Build a better boss and the world will beat a path to your door.

Michael Shirley channeled his inner MacGyver to design the perfect homing device for the busy executive who has everything including Restless Legs Syndrome: The BossTracker5000.

Euro RSCG Chicago’s Chief Creative Officer Jason Peterson is a hard guy to catch at his desk, you see. So Shirley, who is Group Creative Director at Euro Chi, created the gizmo so he (and anyone else interested) would be instantly notified with a snappy tweet and a fresh photo each time Peterson plops down in his office chair.

To see it in action visit http://twitter.com/bosstracker5000

How it works:

The unit is triggered by a reed-switch sensor that monitors magnetic proximity. The signal is sent through a board to a processing sketch, which tells the computer to snap a webcam photo of Peterson and upload it to Twitpic with a saying chosen from a pool of prewritten zingers. The Twitpic post is immediately loaded to the BossTracker5000′s Twitter feed. Voila! A chair that tweets.

“Crouching tiger, sitting Jason.”

“Sit happens.”

“I’m in my office if you’d like to play Monopoly. And by play Monopoly, I mean do my expense reports.”

“I’m back, and business is takin’ care of me.”

“I heard the ice cream truck!”

An example of a “I’m gone” post:

The build of the device:

The BossTracker5000 device installed on his chair (it’s not a bomb):

The BossTracker5000 is live! See it in action at http://twitter.com/bosstracker5000

Outside the snow is falling and shoppers are packed along Michigan Ave. in downtown Chicago.

But at 36 E. Grand, our workshop is still buzzing. 2011 was very good to Euro CHI and it was because of you.

Please listen to our holiday playlist at mistletun.es while you toss back a well-deserved nog and start dreaming about next year.

Cheers,

The entire Euro CHI team

Ad Age recently reported on our newest new business win, PlayStation Network.

“Norm Yustin, president at EuroRSCG Chicago had this to say in a statement: “PlayStation’s engagement future lies in the gamification of marketing, encouraging consumers to play the brand as they would their favorite releases. In doing so, PlayStation learns more about its gamers and engages them with just the right message at the right time — and, as their familiarity grows, gamers participate more deeply with the brand and experience greater rewards.”

Read more here.

The Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) announced the winners of the 2011 WOMMY Awards at the 6th annual WOMMA Summit conference in Las Vegas on November 17. The WOMMYs celebrate the people, agencies, and brands behind the most innovative and effective word of mouth marketing campaigns implemented within the past year.

Euro RSCG Chicago and MotiveQuest took home the Gold for the Measurement Award for ” How Sprint Learned That Customer Love Could Cure Their Ills.” The award is for best strategic thinking to measure the impact/success of word of mouth marketing.

“We’ve been waiting and waiting for this one. And finally it launched Monday. This would be the new national brand campaign from Euro RSCG/Chicago for the homey Cracker Barrel restaurant chain.

Called “Handcrafted by Cracker Barrel,” the ad campaign, which includes television, radio, online and a music promotion component, is intended as a major refresh of the familiar restaurant’s image, which already is well-known to hundreds of thousands of hungry families in the nation’s heartland.”

Read the rest of the article here.

]]> http://www.eurorscgchicago.com/News/reel-chicago-cracker-barrel-spots-herald-new-euro-rscg-creative-era/feed 0 http://www.eurorscgchicago.com/News/chicago-tribune-ron-bess-quintessential-chicago-ad-man http://www.eurorscgchicago.com/News/chicago-tribune-ron-bess-quintessential-chicago-ad-man#comments Fri, 04 Nov 2011 19:03:21 +0000 euroadmin http://www.eurorscgchicago.com/?post_type=News&p=2377

The Chicago Tribune has just published a new executive profile of our own Ron Bess, President of Euro RSCG North America, and CEO of Euro Chicago. The article chronicles Ron’s phenomenal four decades in the Chicago advertising world, from his groundbreaking work with McDonald’s and Gatorade to his leadership here at Euro CHI to his role as “unequivocally the Chicago advertising community’s biggest booster.”

Here’s a sample:

“Bess jumped at the opportunity to return to his roots in 2004, taking the helm of the foundering Chicago office of Euro RSCG, which is owned by Paris-based holding company Havas. With traditional advertising down to less than 20 percent of revenue at the former Tatham-Laird & Kudner, Bess meshed the agency’s strength, its direct marketing business, with new digital and creative initiatives, fostering a unified approach across all advertising platforms and a successful turnaround…

“Ron definitely played a major role in our decision to stay with Euro and add more business to their agency,” said Bob O’Leary, head of global marketing for Citigroup. “He’s a very strong leader; he’s a very smart, strategic thinker.”

The unified approach has helped Euro Chicago grow revenue in four of the past five years in what has been a challenging stretch for the industry at large. The agency has added more than 50 people this year, bringing the total to 336 employees at its spacious Grand Avenue offices, said Bess.”

Read the rest of the profile here and check out our own bio of Ron.

Lang joined Euro from Translation’s Chicago office, where – as senior account director – she led the team that successfully changed perception of State Farm Insurance. The team’s work ignited a viral pop-cultural response in the social space and drove product growth and new policies. Before that, with GSP Marketing in Chicago, Lang worked on brands that included Naturalizer and Sears. She has extensive experience uniting internal, partner agency and client teams in the integrated development of multifaceted campaigns.

Beam Global brands on which Lang will work include Sauza Tequila, Hornitos Tequila, Tres Generaciones Tequila, EFFEN Vodka, and Pucker Vodka.

“Liz’s background in all aspects of integrated work, as well as her strategic insight and creative passion, make her a fantastic addition to our Euro team,” said Deirdre Egan, managing director of Euro Chicago. “She is quickly establishing herself as a great client partner.”

Deirdre Egan

Lang will report to Egan, who recently was promoted to managing director from senior vice president, group account director. In this role, Egan oversees the team working on direct and digital efforts for Citibank, as well as business for several Beam Global spirits brands: Sauza Tequila, Hornitos Tequila, Tres Generaciones Tequila, EFFEN Vodka, Pucker Vodka and Canadian Club Whisky. Other well-known brands Egan has managed during her 22-year career include Kraft, True Value retail stores, Charles Schwab, Moen faucets, Mohawk flooring and Holiday Inn Hotels.

“Deirdre is a terrific addition to the management team,” said Joy Schwartz, president of Euro RSCG Chicago. “She is a strong, strategic team lead in all that she does, paying careful attention to the details while also ensuring that all of the pieces fit together every time.”

View our work for new Beam brand Pucker Vodka.

Local Chicago artist Ray Noland, aka CRO, has won national acclaim for his iconic street art. His work has been featured everywhere from West Side underpasses to the collections of both the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian. Before his new show “LET THEM EAT CRO” takes over our offices in October, let’s take a look back
at some of his greatest hits.

Pork & Politics: Preview from CRO on Vimeo.

My work is simply about visually documenting and recording pop, social and political issues of my time … I comment on the American dream and the subsequent gap between it and reality. – CRO

People like mystique. They don’t want a regular guy. They want a persona. – Chicago Tribune interview

Creative agency EURO RSCG CHICAGO will open its downtown offices this October for a unique artistic partnership.
As part of Chicago Artists Month, rising Chicago artist Ray Noland, aka CRO, will be displaying his newest work in the agency’s lobby.

Open to the public and titled “LET THEM EAT CRO,” the politically charged exhibit will literally take over EURO, expanding beyond the lobby’s gallery into full-scale wraps of the agency’s 2-story windows visible from the street. Building on his iconic street art, including 2008’s “Go Tell Mama” art campaign, 2009’s “Run, Blago, Run” stencil campaign, and his celebrated covers for the Chicago Reader, CRO’s latest work is a no-holds-barred, non-partisan indictment of the broken political system.

With his trademark humor, CRO lashes out at both parties and the celebrity-obsessed media preventing real change. “Ray represents the young and wise voice of modern street art and graffiti in Chicago,” says Jason Peterson, Chief Creative Officer of EURO. “He’s at the forefront of contemporary art in America and we’re humbled to be working with him on this.”

Ray Noland will be available for interviews, will have pieces and prints available for purchase throughout the show, and is starting a Kickstarter.com donation page. He plans to put proceeds toward taking “LET THEM EAT CRO” on a national tour later this fall.

OCT. 6: SHOW OPENS AT EURO CHICAGO’S 36 EAST GRAND OFFICES

OCT. 7, 6-9PM OPENING NIGHT PARTY: MEET & GREET WITH ARTIST

OCT. 8 & 9, 10-4PM: OPENING WEEKEND; EXHIBIT OPENS TO PUBLIC

OCT. 10-28: SHOW OPEN FROM 9AM-5:30PM MONDAY-FRIDAY

Check out a review of our new book, “The Creative Business Idea Book: Ten Years of Breakthrough Thinking”, which is available now.

“The straightforwardly-written, colorfully-laid-out (love the phosphorescent salmon cover!) book has no specific author. Rather it looks to have been smartly pieced together by a group of executives within the Euro RSCG Worldwide network.”

“Less pompous than “Lovemarks” and less obtuse than “HumanKind,” this Euro RSCG book is, at its core, a very varied and (for the most part) sexy compendium of case histories of Euro RSCG brand-building work for clients around the world.”