On the day he retires from Goodby Silverstein & Partners, co-founder Rich Silverstein joins That’s What I Call Marketing to reflect on 40 years in advertising, the making of ‘Got Milk?’ and what makes an idea last. Rich takes us back to the early days of the agency, when a project for Electronic Arts helped turn a group of creatives who wanted to do things their own way into a business. We get into the thinking behind ‘Got Milk?’, the E*TRADE monkey ad and the lizards, and ask whether work made for a different media era could be even more powerful today. Rich is candid about the role of craft, humour and client confidence, as well as his concern that AI could make it easier to settle for work that is merely good enough.
In this episode, we cover:
– How Rich, Jeff Goodby and Andy Berlin started the agency, and what they took from their time with Hal Riney
– The simple truth behind ‘Got Milk?’ and how its words and distinctive look came together
– Why the best campaigns build a brand over time, rather than end with one commercial
– What it takes to sell an unusual idea when more people want a say in the work
– Rich’s mixed feelings about AI, and how he is using it to develop a musical
– Why he tells young creatives to study the world and the people in it
A useful listen for marketers interested in brand building, creative effectiveness, advertising craft, agency relationships and AI in marketing.
That’s What I Call Marketing is the podcast for marketers who care about brand, B2B, creativity, effectiveness and the future of the profession.
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Find more episodes at: https://www.thatswhaticallmarketing.com
Timestamps
00:00 – Rich Silverstein and 40 years in advertising
10:01 – Hal Riney, Electronic Arts and starting Goodby Silverstein & Partners
14:28 – Bringing design, journalism and craft together
15:25 – Why Rich skips most advertising
16:31 – AI and the danger of “good enough”
21:46 – What editorial design and Rolling Stone taught him
24:05 – Why great work should still hold up years later
24:26 – The story behind ‘Got Milk?’
26:00 – The E*TRADE monkey ad
28:37 – Creative constraints and the need for confident clients
30:36 – The lizards and building a brand over time
33:15 – Using humour to make an idea last
36:32 – Selling ambitious work and working with clients
37:39 – Research, planning and creative collaboration
40:37 – The ideas Rich loved but could not sell
41:59 – 13 Days, his musical project, and using AI to make it
46:47 – Advice for creatives starting an agency today
49:19 – Why the ideas come faster, but selling them remains hard
51:51 – The advertising Rich still admires
52:46 – Mentors, observation and studying the world
Thanks to Tracksuit for partnering with That’s What I Call Marketing. Find out more about its always-on brand tracking platform at https://www.gotracksuit.com.
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