Significant changes may make this the most significant “AdFed – the Show” year yet.
I went to my very first AdFed “the Show” with my older brother in late 1980s. And obviously, I’ve been to many more since then. There are a few things I’ve learned that are undeniable truths; 1. If you change anything about the Show, it irritates people, 2. If you don’t change anything, about the Show, it irritates people.
And it all makes sense. It’s the chance to display the work we’ve been personally laboring over the past year and uncertainty, that’s a little added pressure.
Since you can’t please everyone, there are some significant changes to the Show this year we should highlight that will make it a bigger, better, more inclusive event. Because as much as things have changed, they haven’t changed enough.
- The Show needs to change with the changing landscape of the Minneapolis Advertising community. 30 years ago, digital didn’t exist. In-house creative has never really been recognized. And B2B, although it has grown dramatically, while it has been technically recognized it is often ignored. This year in addition to “Best of Show” and “Best of Student Work” there will be specific recognition for “Best of B2B” and “Best of Digital” and “Best of In-House” to really highlight these growing areas. In addition, we’ve recruited (or are in the process of recruiting) judges with backgrounds specific to these mediums to judge these entries.
- The Show needs to be a celebration of the work more than a competition. And while the party is important, it cannot overshadow the reason we are all there – to honor the work of the local community. This year digital work will be displayed on iPads (digital work should be viewed in the medium it was intended for). But print and other entries will go back to the gallery set-up of years past in addition to the reel.
- It can’t all be about entries, awards, cocktails and snacks. As with last year, part of the Show will be a non-profit promotion for the BrandLab. And it won’t be people bumping you up for cash but a series of activities and games that will go directly to help this program fostering talent in minority communities. It’s a great program.
And there is one thing to note about the Show that has changed that, oddly enough, few people noticed: the dates changed. That’s because the event was moved to align with the national award show – the Addys. The competition used to be in the late fall and now it’s in the early Spring.
There are advantages to this – namely all winning entries move from the local competition automatically go to the district and then the Nationals. Because of this move, the Minneapolis community has dominated the district in the past three years and been represented at the National competition like never before. It was an expensive move. A painful one. But the right one.
“The Show” is a recognition, a competition – yes. But it’s also a class reunion. A time to take stock of the community we live and work in and make connections again. To really see why some people call it MinneAdpolis.
Changes have happened and there will be more as the Show evolves into the future to better emulate the local advertising community and honor its practitioners, and feedback is always welcome.
A special thanks to all of the volunteers, the sponsors, the agency-of-record, Red Circle, and most of all the people planning to enter and attend.
Submit entries here before January 29th.
Get tickets for The Show on March 11th.
Written by: Steve Wallace
The post The Show 2016 – Ads in Wonderland appeared first on AdFed.
