written by Kyle Sergeant
illustrations by Andrew Jonasson & Cryderman
logo designs by Cryderman
How It Started
I
t started my first year of Ad School in Ottawa. I was taking a Digital Marketing class. The assignment was: “Try a digital platform you’re not present on.” I chose Medium.
This was back when you’d write on Medium after being inspired by something someone said while standing next to a whiteboard, send what you wrote to 50+ publications, and gain a sizeable number of views for your story without much self-promotion.
Those were the good old days.
Fast forward to my second last semester of Ad School. I was taking a Freelance Writing class. We were given a semester-long assignment:
Create a blog. And write something each week pertaining to communications on that blog.
“What do I call my blog?” I thought while drinking rye or beer. I can’t remember which.
One of my career aspirations is to be a well-respected thought leader and Account Planner/Strategist in the advertising industry. (That’s the narcissist in me.)
I also love stories.
“Planning + Story” didn’t have as nice of a ring to it as “Story + Planning.” So I searched “Story and Planning” to see if it existed on Medium, saw it didn’t, got the publication, and poured myself another drink.
Next week in class, I showed my blog to my instructor. “What are you going to write about?” he asked. I replied by saying:
“You know, strategy and how it’s needed in communications and advertising so creatives can be, well, creative and do what they do best because, well, they’re inspired but in a strategic way so the communication and advertising is, you know, good.”
“Get more specific,” was my instructor’s reply.
(Truth be told, this was advice I’d already been told by another instructor who believes my writing can be too showy and academic for the sake of it and I ignored his advice. I can be a Creative Baby, at times.)
I wrote every week on Story + Planning. And at the end of the semester, Story + Planning received an “A” grade.
(As did other blogs in the class. It was a talented bunch. I learned a lot from reading their stuff.)
Over the 2014 Christmas Break, I reviewed what I’d written on Story + Planning and realized:
I had a portfolio of what I can offer an agency.
From January to March 2015, every cover letter and resume I sent to agencies in Toronto included links to Story + Planning. In every interview I had, Story + Planning came up.
I wouldn’t be where I am now without this publication.
Where I am now is working in Toronto. And I’m not the only person from my graduating class living and working in the Big Smoke.
Where it is now.
I
have a great buddy. His name is Andrew. Andrew is a copywriter. Copywriting requires a precision in writing that I lack. Copywriters have the talent to say a lot with very little. I’m long winded.
(Remember the instructor I mentioned who gave me advice I ignored? Yeah, he’s a Copywriter.)
Since Ad School, Andrew and I have engaged in heated discussions regarding advertising and branding. Often, these discussions happen over beers.
Back in May, Andrew and I were a few beers deep and having a discussion. The exact topic of discussion is a bit hazy. As mentioned, Andrew and I were a few beers deep.
At the end of the discussion, I said to Andrew:
“Write something and I’ll put it on Story + Planning.”
Andrew wrote something. People read it. Then Andrew wrote something else. People read it. And Story + Planning became a place you could read thoughts from a wannabe Account Planner/Strategist and Copywriter.
Over the summer, when it came to what Andrew and I wrote, we were often inspired by articles we’d send each other and the debates they sparked.
Andrew and I realized we wouldn’t read the variety of things we do without recommendations from each other and other sources.
Some of those sources include e-newsletters. Andrew and I are big fans of being sent and inspired by random bits of information from random people.
Andrew and I thought: “Maybe other people would want to be sent random bits of information from us? We find interesting stuff, right?”
That’s when Andrew came up with the structure for our e-newsletter. And he knew what to call it:
The thing about e-newsletters is there’s a design aspect to them.
While Andrew and I were confident in our ability to use Medium’s layout tools, we started noticing other publications had image-heavy articles we didn’t have on Story + Planning. We thought these image-heavy articles were kickass. We wanted Story + Planning to have that.
Andrew and I thought: What will Creating Uniquity look like and how can we start adding a more visual aspect to Story + Planning?
Our answer: Cryderman.
Matt — aka Cryderman — is a great buddy Andrew and I made during Ad School.
Cryderman comes equipped with a psychology degree and a dedication to evolving his digital design capabilities.
Cryderman has designed and made his own video game. He took over lunch hour at an agency due to the bad ass nature of his video game during Advertising Week in Toronto. And since graduating, Cryderman has sent Andrew and I “things he’s just messing around with” that blow our minds.
Andrew and I were very happy when Cryderman agreed to join us in growing Story + Planning.
And one week after Cryderman agreed to join Story + Planning, the three of us got some great news: We’re getting a custom domain through Medium.
Where it’s going.
S
tory + Planning started as a blog by a guy who wanted to prove he has what it takes to be in the Account Planning/Strategy world.
It grew into a collaboration between evolving Creative and Strategic minds.
Now, Story + Planning is three separate talents coming together, aiming to put their own mark on the Ad World today and well into tomorrow.
What that mark is going to look like is something Andrew, Cryderman, and I have spent a lot of time discussing. And we’ve come up with this:
Story + Planning is the home of progressive opinions on diverse thinking, finding inspiration, sparking creativity, and using it all to make the best damn campaigns for brands.
There’s still lots to think about and write.
We hope you keep reading.
Thanks so much for reading. It would mean a lot if you decided to press the “Recommend” button. Thanks again!
