Jerry . Specialist Writer

Jerry . Specialist Writer

Senior
Specialties - Website, Activation, Poetry, Digital, Interactive.

I only ever wanted to be a farmer or a soldier.  I also published my first poem as an eleven-year old.  To me, verbal lyricism fitted perfectly with either option. So the warning signs were there early on.

Well into my solid stint as a Royal Marines Officer, my most frequent response to an order was ‘Why?’.  Advertising therefore was a natural choice. My first gig was as a junior writer at Saatchi in London. It was heaven. Endless hours, shit pay, rubbing shoulders with the gods and goddesses of the London ad scene learning how to extract every atom of creative potential from a brief.

But that was in England. I bloody hated that place. So after three years and a Diploma in Communications and Advertising done part-time, I boarded a plane for NZ.  I spent a few years kicking around agencies here before finding myself on a plane to Chicago and Ogilvy & Mather Direct. I’d crossed the divide between advertising and direct marketing, and it wasn’t so scary.  It was still about ideas that carried a brand story and sparked a response from an audience.  That’s even more apt now. We may have many more channels to play with.  But this simply provides more opportunities to engage people – to make them part of the story. Technology is a magic, ever-evolving thing. But it should only ever be servant to a great strategy and clever, effective idea!

I’ve been Creative Director and Executive Creative Director at agencies in NZ, Australia and Asia. I was also a founding partner of indie shop Radical Alice.  I’ve got a couple of large boxes full of awards, from RSVPs to Echoes and Caples stashed in the garage.  Now I’m living the life of a creative soldier of fortune.  I create website and social media content plans and generate the actual copy. I’m working through application interfaces the same way.  I’m editing a magazine in NZ and writing for one in the UK. I’ve written and produced TVCs, still love writing print ads. I’m also launching a tee shirt range in the US and producing a movie/TV series. Oh, and the third volume of poetry is going to print as well.

I’m incurably, obsessively curious. And I like to make brand interactions fun for everyone. Boring is banned!

At A Glance
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