When I was nine, my annoying older brother had a birthday party and my mom came up with a great activity for us: building kites. All the kids paired up and got the basic kite building ingredients:
- two sticks
- a garbage bag
- a ball of string
- duct tape
The briefing: Build a kite and make it fly. The team that would make the most successful kite would win. As luck would have it, my teammate was the gorgeous Cornelia Benjamins, the girl I had secretly been in love with since Kindergarten. So this was my Big Chance. More…

Who hasn’t jumped around on Kris Kross’s world hit “Jump” that profusely dominated the Billboard Hot 100 in 1992? This American rap duo comprised “Mac Daddy” Kelly and Chris “Daddy Mac” Smith. Though sadly, Mac Daddy died of an overdose recently, Kris Kross can teach us something. I am not talking about the duo’s musical qualities. We’ll leave that up to music sites; Amsterdam Ad Blog is about advertising. From a marketing point of view the phenomenon Kriss Kross is brilliant as well. What can the corporate world learn from them? More…

This month, the European finale of ‘Best YET’ will be organized: a newspaper ad competition for young advertising creatives. The lure: the creative team which develops the most creative and impactful newspaper ad, will be send to the Cannes Lions. In my opinion, the existence of the Best YET competition proves that the newspaper industry still regards advertising in a traditional way: as space to be sold in between the editorial pages, with ‘reach’ being the not-so-unique-selling-point. More…

I wasn’t going to write about the Koningslied, I really wasn’t. But apart from making me want to stab myself in the ear with a rusty screwdriver, it also made me think about something in our industry that’s been bothering me more and more lately. Before I go on, let me give the international readers a bit of context: the Koningslied – or King’s Song – is the official song composed for the upcoming investiture of King Willem Alexander. It was released last week and to say it was badly received would be like saying Muammar Gaddafi wasn’t very popular anymore at the end of his rule. More…

Hunks come, hunks go. The heydays of clean-shaven pretty boys with six-packs are vanishing points. In Adland the smooth like mayonnaise pool boys from heaven are getting extinct. Nowadays Admen are rough & tough in a different way; The bearder, the better! (This is unfortunate for guys like me as the only hairs on my face are a few little antennas from birthmarks. Real Asian style.) The new men are unshaven, a bit chubby and tattooed all-over. They are raw and pure. They are the ManMen! Grrrrrr. The ManMen don’t just get a haircut. No way, ManMen get their beard groomed! And that’s not to be taken lightly. Barbershops are serious business and they arise around Amsterdam as tanning studios in the nineties. More…

I am a great fan of little big details. And my favourite little big detail is witty copy. Not distant advertising slogans, but copy that makes me feel the brand truly speaks to me and is getting up close and personal. I want to hold a very warm plea for brands to get more outspoken and intimate in communicating with their consumers. Why? Well, I am a great believer that as a brand you have to make every touch-point with a consumer remarkable. If you know how to make a positive difference in the moments of truth within the consumer journey you will create genuine excitement for your brand. And excited people they talk and share. And I genuinely think copy –let’s name it ‘spoken-copy’ to get the difference with advertising copy clear – is an important, but easy tool that brands have at their disposal to make this difference. And the good news is: it can be implemented everywhere. More…

Next Saturday afternoon, we will walk onto a theatre stage as speakers of the OFFSET creative conference in Dublin. Under the blinding glare of spotlights and 2,000 alien faces, we will present and discuss our work. Needless to say, we’re shitting bricks.

We’ve lectured before but never to such a large audience. Our mission is relatively straightforward: we hope that our Mum and Dad, who will attend, will finally understand what we do. However, there’s a few problems. Public speaking is not our profession – and our parents are more accustomed to the razzmatazz of a West End show at this venue. Treading the boards with head-worn microphones and gesturing at a projected slideshow presentation are activities so unrelated to our daily routine. As much as we’d wish, we’re not rock-stars, politicians, stand-up comedians or even priests. More…

I recently read an article in Dutch newspaper Volkskrant that mentioned the idea of taking the saliva of all registered dogs. Through their DNA the authorities can trace back the abandoned turds that soil the streets. And once you’ve found the dog, you can also fine his owner. Brilliant idea, I thought. Unfortunately ‘CSI dogshit’ – as it was funnily described by Volkskrant – has a privacy problem. According to the Dutch Law that protects your personal data (“Wet Bescherming Persoonsgegevens”), one is not allowed to link a dog’s saliva to you personally. This implies the dog is a physical extension of us, human beings, and practically means that the dog’s master can’t be forced to let his dog been swabbed for saliva. Strange but true. More…

When I was eight, I once wet my bed on purpose, to impress a girl. It didn’t work. I thought it would be a good idea to fake a nightmare during a sleepover. So, lying on a matrass on the floor next to her bed, I waited impatiently until it was very late, and she – her name was ‘Kaatje’ – was asleep. Then, I turned to my side, whipped out my shrimp, relaxed and let it all go. Of course, I didn’t pee in the middle of the bed, because then I would have to sleep in ‘the wet spot’. Instead, I aimed a little to one side, so I could turn over and stay sort of dry. More…

The bad news for this blog, and most people reading it, is that advertising is dead. It was dead last year, but this year it’s even more dead, and that’s the deadest it’s been since Jesus said ‘buy my book.’ Such was the consensus of pundits at this year’s SXSW Interactive, held in Austin, Texas this year for the 26^th time.

The annual digital media and technology orgy is the place where geeks gather to hero worship Nicola Tesla, where people with Twitter followings that most of us can only dream of come to swap notes, and where young dot.com entrepreneurs with 8 and 9 figure net worths (on paper, at least) descend from the Valley of Silicon to grace us with their presence – replete with aww-inspiring sound bytes like “If I had $500M in the bank, I’d still want to write software.” Send the change my way, Matt Mullenweg. More…

Although the city of Amsterdam still bravely clings on to the brand-image as ultimate party-city, we’ve recently dropped down one whopping point on the Lonely Planet Top 10 Best City list; #2. Just before the awesome city of Hyderabad (?). As much as this fact gives me a very welcome reason to write this column, it does hurt. I’ve always hugely liked our leading brand-image because it makes me look real badass to foreigners. Also, it attracts that awesome kind of people that don’t give a shit about wearing pants. But most of all: Amsterdam has always had the ambition and potential to put our cute little country on the overwhelmingly huge map. More…

I am currently reading ‘Identity,’ quite an inspiring book by Belgian psychologist Paul Verhaeghe. According to Verhaeghe, our human identity is not something very intimate that exists somewhere deep down inside, waiting to be discovered. What we become largely depends on our experiences: “Identity is a construction of ideas written upon us by our surroundings. The mirror that our environment puts in front of us, determines who we become.” This doesn’t mean we are mere puppets on a string, but it does mean our identity is being shaped by what we choose to internalize from our environment, and what not. An interesting point of view that applies to brand identities as well. More…

Inspiration is a vital key aspect if you work in the creative industry. But it’s an ongoing struggle to be inspired on every single day, at any given time. Same for me. Some days I have so many ideas that it feels like I could fill a TED talk, while the next day I can feel like an uninspired couch potato with as much work activity as movie bear Ted. However, one short quote – often attributed to author/journalist Ernest Hemingway, but nobody knows the actual source – always helps me to get inspired for a creative process: “Write drunk; edit sober.” More…

This morning was a morning like any other. I woke up, went for a run and checked my email over breakfast. My inbox contained a couple of messages from clients, newsletters I’ve subscribed to but never read and an amazing two-for-the-price-of-one deal on genuine Vi@9ra. I replied to the client mails, deleted the newsletters before opening them and passed on the generous love life enhancing offer by flagging it as the junk mail it was. The rest of the morning I worked on a campaign for a fashion brand while writing this column in the background. Pretty much your typical February morning in the life of a freelance writer. Except I did all the above in my shorts and t-shirt on a sunny roof terrace overlooking Table Mountain. More…

The Amsterdam of popular consciousness is a cuddle of brown cafes and cute canal houses, or to put it as bluntly as one American tourist I overheard – ‘Oh look honey, it’s just like Disneyland.’ But in case you hadn’t noticed, the Dutch capital is finally beginning to punch above its weight when it comes to the hallmarks of a modern urban metropolis. Enriched with greater diversity, the city’s entrepreneurial and startup spirit is palpable, free enterprise reigns, and the entertainment and design culture is ever stronger. More…

Did you ever hear about the rebound guy? He is the one you get involved with, first thing after a bad relationship. He admires you, he seduces you, makes you feel important (again). In short: he makes you feel good. It’s often quite obvious what he is doing. But why should you care? You need him. And he pleases you – that simple. I think brands and agencies should employ a ‘Rebound Guy’. Honestly, we have more than one opportunity to mess things up. But does it really matter? It is in the rebound of a mistake that you can make yourself count. More…

Queen Beatrix announced her abdication rather unexpectedly on Monday evening, leaving the velvet hot-seat to Crown-Prince Willem-Alexander. The news has inspired one huge ‘KA-CHING!’ from Dutch retailers. As we write, many have already switched into commemorative merchandise overdrive. Long live the bling!

Expect a deluge of seriously tacky memorabilia. Kitsch mugs, t-shirts, tea towels, metal tins, flags, fridge-magnets and anything else that can be adorned with Willem-Alexander’s head, or his crown jewels. More…

And yet again it’s column writing time. To me, creating something stupendously creative – like directing a commercial or writing this column – is sort of like giving birth, metaphorically speaking. Not that I would know what it feels like to squeeze an 8 pound mini-me out of my V for Vagina. I am completely uterusless. And unless science makes a gargantic leap and we’re going to live in a technocratic hermaphrodite society anytime soon, I’ll probably never own one. Plus, unlike Forrest Gump’s mother who probably did empty a gazillion boxes of chocolate, I don’t have any children. So basically, I don’t know what the hell I’m writing about. I’m a horrible metaphoricist. But for this column’s sake, let’s stick with the idea. More…

When I was ten, my parents bought me a VMX bike. No typo there. A VMX. A ‘Velamos’ MX. That’s right, the original VMX, fire engine red, with foam protectors and everything. My parents’ story: this is THE Velamos MX freestyle off road bicycle, on which BMX based all their designs. In truth, the bike was just a bike, which – when you squinted – slightly resembled a BMX, but it was heavy, had large wheels and it was basically impossible to do any cool tricks on it. (This, by the way, was a good thing, given the fact that I was fairly challenged in the motor skills department.) More…

As a vain woman I have been feeling really offended by some of the ads that target my vagina as – an unwilling – prospect. The vajayjay has become big business on TV the past years. To be fair: Advertising has always been notorious for telling women that their bodies are unclean. But recently the vagina has blossomed into a real prime-time matter.

Has it ever occurred to the advertisers that women might find this sort of ads for feminine hygiene products to be dreadfully embarrassing and annoying? More…