We’re excited to announce that our work for Boston Pride for the People has been shortlisted in the Communication Arts Typography Competition’s advertising category. 

The Competition celebrates the best use of typography as the primary visual element in design and advertising, as well as new typeface designs, calligraphy and hand lettering. Winners receive the Award of Excellence, one of the most coveted awards in the industry, and are published in the publication’s Typography Annual.

Read more about the competition.

Abby Peterson, Associate Creative Director

There are plenty of sayings about routine being the enemy of creativity – like that exact quote from Isaac Asimov – but what about the routine you fall into and don’t even realize you’re in? That has to be the worst creative killer of all.

The CP Abroad experience was an incredible way for me to break from my routine and rethink the way I think as a creative.

“One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure.” – William Feather

When I’m traveling, I’m the type of person who wants to make the most out of every second I spend somewhere. I’m making Google Docs with all of my plans, researching restaurants and pinning them to maps, planning excursions I would never attempt to fit into my schedule at home.

I find a parallel with my creative expression – I want to plan and control it, execute exactly what I have in my mind. But when I’m actually doing it, I find myself exploring and am always surprised by where I end up. 

The benefit to the CP Abroad experience, for me, was embracing my type-A planning persona, while also living and working like a normal human being. I completely changed the way I’m used to working at home so that I could maximize my time exploring new places and leaving myself the opportunity to be surprised and spontaneous. 

“Surprised!” Painting by Henri Rousseau, National Gallery of London; Copenhagen; Amsterdam

I took in as much art, architecture and history as I could. I visited 5 countries – Scotland, Ireland, England, the Netherlands and Denmark, each different in their personality and culture.

I went all over Ireland and drank in its history. I drove to Northern Ireland and learned from locals there the fascinating (recent) history of the Belfast troubles. I went west to the Dingle Peninsula and saw great surf, forts from the 6th century and held a baby lamb. I drove from Galway to the harbor and took a ferry to the remote Aran Island Inisheer and hiked along the tops of the Cliffs of Moher. 

I did things I never would have thought about at home – like flying a falcon on the rocky shores of Ireland. Or drive on the left side under a rainbow on narrow country roads. Or get a spontaneous tattoo I based loosely off my favorite branding from my favorite Irish Stout…

International travel has a way of engaging the senses in unique ways, from tasting unfamiliar foods to seeing breathtaking landscapes to hearing different music and foreign languages. I found myself constantly inspired, and reinvigorated creatively.

“A person who does the same things each day will not grow, change, or learn as much as a person who constantly seeks out new experiences.” – Karen Salmansohn

Before I left for Ireland, I often found myself asking, “how did I ever do everything I did in one day before Covid?” I had a routine to provide stability and structure but left myself open to new experiences to continue growing, learning, and finding creative inspiration in life. (I was also younger and didn’t have a dog to take care of, but that’s beside the point…) It’s made me come home with a fresh perspective on my life and my own city – I want to experience it and be inspired every day, in ways I never have been before.

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” – Oscar Wilde

Cliffs of Moher

 

 

 

This year, businesses and individuals alike have embraced artificial intelligence with unprecedented enthusiasm and adoption rates. Generative AI has become more accessible with the rise of programs like ChatGPT, leading to more widescale adoption. 

However, this has also brought forward the inherent tensions that come along with an increasingly AI-driven world. Questions have been raised about the need for regulation around AI in film and television, and similar concerns apply to the ad industry, for both the people doing the creative work and the brands they’re doing it for.

In this month’s Amp spotlight, AdAge polled industry leaders on how this technology can be regulated as we move into an increasingly AI-driven advertising landscape. Chief Strategy Officer, Scott Madden, shares how humans play a pivotal role in evolving AI tools toward greater DE&I. 

Read the full story here.

Image source 

Courtney Marlow, Senior PR, Social Media & Influencer Marketing Manager
Sam Coons, Copywriter
Will Maslach, Paid Social Manager

Members from our Creative, Media, and Social teams spent a day at TikTok immersing themselves in all things content strategy and execution— getting them excited about the breadth of possibilities when it comes to tapping creators and ideating social-first content for the platform. For marketers across industries who are looking to “win” on the platform, here are three key tips to keep in mind. 

Empower Influencers to Do What They Do Best

Whether you are trying to sell clothing, shoes, makeup, food, home decor, financial services, medical resources, etc., influencers have the ability to help humanize the brand and connect with consumers on a more personal level. That said, it’s important to keep in mind that the true “magic” happens when you let influencers do what they do best—create. Think of it as arming them with the “recipe”—including “ingredients” like brand tone, messaging points, key CTAs, etc.—and letting them chef it up in the kitchen. Knowing that we need to strive for less “ad-like” content in order to break through on TikTok, we need to encourage influencers to ideate concepts that bring their personality to the forefront, tap into relatability, and utilize engaging/trending formats to grasp users’ attention. 

Reengineer the Creative Process 

When ideating social-first content, you may naturally start by tossing around outside-of-the-box ideas, taking inspiration from pop culture, creatively incorporating a product, etc.—but oftentimes, the creative process can and should be re-engineered. One aspect of this entails keeping a pulse on what’s trending on TikTok—what are people talking about, adding to their grocery carts, whipping up at home, etc.? Consumer behavior and preferences on the platform can serve as great inspiration and TikTok has made so many features and tools available in their Creative Center to help you stay on top of these trends, plan out new creative, write scripts, and compare your thoughts to other top trending advertisements in their ads library! 

Secondly, you can use your results and engagements to fuel what your next round of content should look like. Creators or brands will often take a deep look through their comments to answer “what do the people want next?” And it WORKS! You can even consider linking one user’s comment in your next video as a way to show users that you pay attention to them, and that their ideas are valid—garnering inspiration from your actual followers/consumers can be a game changer. 

Don’t Underestimate the Power of Integrated Creative Thinking

No matter what area of marketing you specialize in, everyone has every business learning what works on TikTok—because when it comes to reaching younger audiences, TikTok is the barometer for their culture, trends, and needs. Breaking through the noise on the platform is challenging, which is why internal and external collaboration is so key. Before kicking off your next influencer campaign or launching a new social strategy, integrate your creative thinking process and look for ways to evolve. Consider garnering insights by talking to influencers, too—after all, they may know your audience better than you. Overall, let diverse perspectives complement each other and bring stronger creative to the forefront. The industry calls this “integration,” but if we’ve learned one thing from TikTok, it’s that simply talking to each other in an authentic manner will likely lead to a bigger impression than you ever thought possible.

Mary McMahon, Group Strategy Director

“I want to go home to Dublin, but I don’t want to leave Boston.” This was the conundrum of my 5-year-old daughter as our time in Boston on the CP Abroad Program came to a close. After a month of hot American summer, immersing ourselves in everything Boston has to offer, I pretty much felt the same! 

As a company that truly believes in integration, Connelly Partners offers all employees the opportunity to live and work from one of its office locations in Dublin, Boston, or Vancouver. During this time, you work side by side with colleagues from that office, who you usually only ever see on screens. At the same time, you are able to completely immerse yourself in the culture and explore everything these cities have to offer. 

My role at CP has allowed me to visit our Boston office a number of times over the past few years, but this opportunity to spend an extended period of time there made it possible for my family to come along too. I worked from the office in Boston’s South End, which is HUGE and always takes a bit of navigation to find my way around. 

While I work with some Boston clients already and have met many of my colleagues virtually, there’s nothing like meeting in person. I learned how invaluable face-to-face meetings are for building relationships and fostering creativity. While in Boston, I noticed that the stop-start “no you go, no you go” nature of conversations on Zoom was replaced with free-flowing comradery and ideas, leading to even more focused and productive conversations. 

After office hours, I dusted off my old rugby trainers, donned a baseball cap, and joined the company softball team on the field for games. It was a fun way to meet more of my CP Boston colleagues and immerse myself more in the company culture. 

Outside of work, I found that Boston had so much to offer me and my family – every evening, we explored the city and beyond. Some highlights include seeing the Red Sox play at Fenway Park, visiting the New England Aquarium, and even a trip to New York City. The general buzz and energy of the Italian North End we were staying in is an atmosphere that I’ll always remember. And how could I forget the roof deck on the condo?

Connelly Partners’ work for 123.ie has been shortlisted for the 2023 Effie Awards Ireland in the Finance and Insurance category. According to IAPI, this year’s awards have attracted a diverse range of submissions and those shortlisted have demonstrated their ability to leverage creativity and strategic thinking to achieve impactful results for their clients. The awards serve as a platform to recognize the creativity and innovation behind these campaigns as well as their measurable impact on business objectives.

Recipients of the award will be announced on October 20, 2023. 

Check out the full list of nominees. 

Additional coverage:
Business Plus: IAPI Announces Shortlist for Effie Awards Ireland 2023
Marketing.ie: IAPI Announces Effie Awards Shortlist

In an article for Ad World, Steve Connelly shares his thoughts on integration within the advertising industry. He explains that having various skill sets under one roof doesn’t guarantee integration if those skills don’t effectively collaborate. True integration is built on familiarity, relationships, and respect and requires working together as one machine versus a collection of pieces. 

While achieving this level of integration demands time, money, and genuine curiosity, it ultimately leads to better problem-solving, teamwork, and client outcomes. Steve emphasizes that meaningful relationships and collaboration, driven by respect and openness to differing viewpoints, are the essence of effective integration in advertising.

Check out the full article here.

Dana Wantman, Senior Partner & Chief Client and Integration Officer

I missed the opportunity to study abroad in college. It was offered, I was just a bit too lazy, or maybe immature, to take advantage of it – one of my few regrets. You can’t go back in time, but when the opportunity to live and work in Ireland for a month through CP Abroad presented itself, I wasn’t going to miss out again.  

I was lucky enough to be part of creating the Abroad program and I was excited to see how it came to life. Putting the program on paper is much different than really experiencing it. The intention behind the program was a simple one. Create a program that would spark curiosity…live, learn, explore, be inspired, and bring all that back home to share with co-workers and clients.    

So off we went….

We booked short-term housing, sight unseen (for someone with control issues this was a very uncomfortable endeavor), in an area of Dublin called Sandymount, and boy did we nail it – walking distance to the CP Office, the beach, and a great little downtown area where the Pubs outnumbered the grocery stores 4-1. It truly felt like a storybook town.  

One of my favorite parts of this trip was getting to walk to work. Twenty-five minutes of calm and quiet walking through beautiful neighborhoods, with a cappuccino in one hand and an umbrella in the other. I love our office in Dublin – the location is amazing and there’s a great energy. It reminds me of the early days of the CP Boston office when we’d just yell to each other over desks. There’s still great energy in Boston, it’s just different with 80 people as opposed to 40. Getting to work with, meet and just “be” with the team was one of the key motivators behind the CP Abroad program. The team was incredibly welcoming to me and my family. We got great recommendations about what to see, where to eat, how to get around, etc…they made us feel like neighbors, not tourists.

I also had the opportunity to attend an IAPI event (Ireland’s version of the 4A’s). It was a recap of Cannes, and as a community what it would take to have a better showing next year. And rather than people lamenting that the judging was unfair, or that clients were too conservative or didn’t have big enough budgets, it was a discussion around what it would take to be better, to do better work and drive clients’ business… There truly is a close-knit and talented creative community in Ireland. I left feeling excited about what our team could do and how we can inspire the entire organization with the same focus on strategic and creative excellence.

But it wasn’t all work. We did all the touristy stuff too.

• We explored Dublin and the Irish Countryside
• Stayed at a beautiful resort with the most incredible gardens. Truth be told, visiting gardens wasn’t high on my list of priorities, but they were truly spectacular.  
• Played golf in Ireland (bucket list ✔️)
• Walked up the Arc de Triomphe. That’s a lot of steps.
• Shopped along the Champs-Élysees
• River cruised down the Seine
• Went up the Eiffel Tower (only to the second observation deck. Go ahead and judge me, that thing’s high.)
• Got lost in the neighborhoods of Paris. Breathtaking…
• Saw the Tower Bridge, Big Ben, Parliament, Piccadilly Circus
• Toured Kensington and Buckingham Palace
• Took a double-decker bus tour
• Shopped in Harrods
• Toured Stamford Bridge

I can’t look back on this trip without a tremendous amount of gratitude and appreciation.  A total immersion into a different culture, the opportunity to meet countless great people and hear their stories, and work alongside some incredibly talented people…. memories for a lifetime.  

I’m excited to bring those experiences and a renewed cultural curiosity back to Boston. 

We started CP Abroad with a simple premise. Create the kind of connections, experiences and curiosity that would inspire our team and benefit our clients. Mission accomplished.

Clióna Gallagher, Client Services Intern

Dear Future CP Intern,

My name is Clióna Gallagher and I am a final-year marketing student at the Technological University of Dublin. As I approach the end of my internship, I wanted to share some advice that I’ve gathered with anyone who is considering pursuing a career in the marketing and advertising field.

Throughout the course of my degree, my professors have consistently emphasized the importance of acquiring authentic industry experience via internships. They stressed that participating would ensure I gain priceless insights and expertise, equipping me to connect my academic learning with real-world scenarios upon my graduation. Engaging in an internship within the dynamic realm of marketing would enable me to discern the specific sector I aim to pursue in the near future.

During my internship at Connelly Partners, I was fortunate to engage in a diverse array of creative activities while also gaining a comprehensive understanding of the intricate dynamics behind nurturing client relationships. Working between the various sectors of the business allowed me to take a hands-on approach to my internship. Whether it be making my cameo debut in a client’s campaign shoot, or conducting exploratory research for a new pitch, I am confident I maximized the opportunities that were presented to me during my tenure here. Given the fiercely competitive and saturated nature of the marketing and advertising industry, it can be daunting to enter. However, the exposure that one gains from working with agencies such as Connelly Partners instills a profound sense of confidence in both oneself and the chosen career path.

Cheers!

Clióna Gallagher
Client Services Intern
She/Her

Anna Grace, New Business Intern

Dear Future CP Intern,

My name is Anna Grace, a recent graduate from Emerson College with a degree in marketing communications. When I was in college, I received advice from a professor about internships, stressing that they are “the cheapest way to fail successfully.” What I took from that is that you should try out an industry that interests you. After your experience, if you don’t like certain aspects of the industry you can pivot. It took me a couple of pivots to realize what skills I had to offer and how I wanted to build upon them.

Working in new business has allowed me to get a glimpse into what the advertising world looks like and how an agency runs. The pitch process is a lot like speed dating because the client meets with various agencies, who present their ideas and what they can offer. After the winning agency is selected, they work with the client to agree on a scope of work and then the team gets to work strategizing, concepting, and physically creating the campaign.  

Getting one’s foot in the door to the advertising industry is a great opportunity and accomplishment, but it can also be stressful. With Fall internship applications coming up, I wanted to write a letter of encouragement with tips for prospective interns from CP’s Summer interns.

Anna Grace
New Business Intern
She/Her

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Seek Out Human Truths

Jackson graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in English creative writing. He shares his experience of being “thrown into the deep end and working in tandem with other copywriters on projects” that challenged and excited him. As he settled into the internship, his goals and expectations were confirmed; he expresses how he “learned to abandon clichés and puns and instead passionately seek out human truths.” He urges those who are interested in copywriting to, “go online or to your local bookstore and buy old One Show annuals, and while you’re reading them, if you get a rush of dopamine that goes straight from the top of your head to the nerve endings in your fingertips, you’re heading in the right direction.”

Jackson Wald
Copywriting Intern
He/Him

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Form Relationships

Maya is a rising senior at Emerson College, studying visual marketing and design. Their passion for marketing bloomed when they took a commercial marketing class. She built a strong relationship with her professor, which turned into a mentorship. Maya acknowledges her mother’s wise words, “don’t ask, don’t get.” College is a space to grow and challenge your curiosity, “be courageous in class, make an effort to speak up and show up as your best self.” Seeking out a professor, mentor, or friend whose guidance you trust is helpful in the career journey. 

Maya Freeman
Strategy Intern
She/They

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Embrace Learning Opportunities

Emma is a rising senior at Boston University, studying Film, Television and Advertising. Prior to her current role at CP she worked in the paid social department in-house for SONY Music. She emphasizes that internships are a perfect way to learn about an industry that interests you. “Don’t be discouraged if you don’t have experience because an internship in advertising is attainable.” For those currently working in a marketing position or at an agency, there are learning opportunities everywhere. Keep an open mind and embrace every experience as an opportunity to grow. 

Emma Provost
Media Planning
She/Her

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Build A Strong Resume

Oceane is a rising senior at Suffolk University, studying Business Economics, Big Data and Business Analytics. She was most proud of presenting on the “deprecation of 3rd party cookies, which was the starting point and guide to creating a company POV on it” at CP this summer.  

Oceane affirms “having a solid resume is important and recommends working with career advisors to showcase skills that match the job description.” The advertising world intrigues her as she likes the “behind the scenes” aspect and appreciates the effort it takes to market a product or service.

Oceane Balya
Data and Analytics Intern
She/Her

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Take It All In

Jenny is a rising senior studying communications at Lasell University. She’s been drawn to production her entire life, as “it has a little bit of everything. I get to see all of the moving pieces come together to help people and collectively make something special and beneficial.” For those interested in production, it is helpful to have a basic understanding of what goes into a successful shoot, and how to edit videos and photos. Her biggest tip for incoming interns is to “take in as much as possible. You may not find your passion in advertising, but be observant and think outside the box and it just might lead you to what you love.”

Jennifer Frechette
Production Intern
She/Her

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An internship or any experience, whether it’s trying a new restaurant or traveling to a new place really is what you make of it. Remember the hardest part is showing up. Feed your inner creativity, lean on people you trust and question everything with intent.

If you’re someone who values empathy, ambition, integrity and curiosity join Connelly Partners and explore what it’s like to work in the advertising world. 

Best,

Anna