In partnership with BASIC’s founder and VP of Creative, the copy team came together to create Applied®, a thought leadership forum designed to appeal to CMOs.
After having discussions with the other writers to zero in on topics, I took the lead on writing the first piece of the series, focusing on psychological safety. Since mental health and balance are more important than ever in the days of Zoom, this piece examines how to give teams the headspace they need to do their best work.
The intro is extracted. Read the full article here.
As my first project at Google, I led the writing and storytelling for the Pixel 4 launch—the flagship phone on the mobility vertical.
The Challenge
With a myriad of stakeholders involved in the approval process, it was crucial to ensure that the content didn’t become too product-centric or watered down. Throughout the summer and into the fall, I advocated for a playful, human tone that always appeals to emotional benefits.
The Results
After launching on October 15th, the page became the focal point of the fall launch. It was showcased during the launch event and passed around by senior clients as an example of continued innovation of the Google Store.
Additionally, it was recognized as a Site of the Day on November 23rd, just in time for the big holiday push.
As my first project for AKQA on the Jordan Brand, we had an exciting brief: make an Instagram-worthy experience at the new Toronto store to launch the new Jordan XXX shoe for All-Star Weekend.
Our solution was to create an interactive in-store experience, putting you through a series of offensive and defensive drills, ultimately giving you a score that compares you to the G.O.A.T himself--much like a video game. I helped with the naming, while also creating the in-game messaging and drills, which were designed to be as authentic as possible.
Athletes like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and more came by, as well as countless fans, sneakerheads, and serious hoopers. The experience was so successful that Jordan rolled it out to flagship stores in Paris, Shanghai, and other global locations.
As a longtime fan of cult films and crate-digging music, I had the idea to bring these passions together for a singular event. Working with the Roxie Theatre, the legendary theatre in San Francisco’s Mission District, I launched the concept of Analog Time Machine.
The premise was simple. Before showtime, we’d feature a curated DJ set with songs inspired by the 70’s NYC film The Warriors. The soundtrack was a mix of punk, funk and proto hip-hop to get people in the mindset of the movie.
To go along with the music, we also collaborated with Local Brewing to feature two brews that thematically tied in with the film—Chasing Haze and Honey Punches of Oates. As a finishing touch, we greeted fans with a booth when they walked in where they could get temporary tattoos, bandanas, and a limited poster print (a collab I did with my creative director at the time. Thanks James!).
The timing was fortuitous, as the film called The Warriors coincided with the playoff run of the Golden State Warriors. It also happened to be the 40th anniversary of the film. As a result, the outpouring was unreal, and we landed press shout outs in SF Weekly, SF Station, and more.
The media mentions and word of mouth helped us nearly sell out the 250 seat theatre for our first event, and we’re planning our next one for late fall/winter.
While a gap year between high school and college is a well-established tradition in Europe, it has only recently been more accepted here. The data is powerful. 60% of students who take a gap year before starting university say the experience helped them find their major, and ease the transition to the “real world.”
A good friend from my college days started his own gap year program, called Parachute, in partnership with Vanderbilt University.
To help establish the tone of voice and overall branding, he approached me to establish the identity. From the tagline—”Your life, launched”—to the overall feel of Parachute, I helped shape the content for the landing page and overarching copy vision.
Working with a team of junior writers, I put together simple decks to onboard them with principles and pro tips to guide their writing. From there, I acted as editor to ensure overall consistency.
My friend the founder loved how the launch turned out, and I’ll continue to assist the team as they evolve the brand.
The story of Audi Sport needed to be told. Compared to the M series of BMW or Mercedes' AMG, Audi's high-octane models didn't have the same recognition or status. To change this, I worked with Audi of America to properly instill the racing spirit that fuels their street-ready supercars.
Audi of America continues to break sales record each month, with a 12% increase in February followed by a 7.4% growth rate in March.
We were tasked with creating two videos for the Live In Levi’s campaign: one for the women's range of denim, and one for the men's taper fit. These would be featured on Instagram, in Levi's stores, and in third-party locations like Macy's.
The female-focused piece was meant to address a problem. For many women, shopping for jeans is often not fun. To counter this, the video shows women of different body types discussing their struggles, which leads to them discovering the right style for them--and a photo shoot to show the empowering results.
On the men's side, we worked with Josh Peskowitz, former director of Men's Fashion at Bloomingdales, to show how a slimmer cut of denim could seamlessly fit into the everyday guy's wardrobe. Instead of scripting it, I wrote a series of question to evoke Josh's distinct swagger.
Across both videos, I contributed to the creative concepts and various storytelling elements, while also assisting with music selection. Additionally, I’ve included a range of LIL social media content that I helped create.
Traumatic head injuries can occur from anywhere. A bad tackle on the field, a car accident, and infinite other causes can lead to lasting effects. In some cases, this trauma can lead to Pseudobulbar affect, a neurological disorder that causes uncontrollable crying and/or laughing that happens suddenly—and frequently.
To raise awareness for this rare condition, I worked with a PR firm and NFL hall-of-fame running back Barry Sanders to create a short film. From brainstorming the overarching concept, writing the script and all its iterations, and directing Barry through his voiceover, I contributed to the entirety of the production. After filming, the Tackle PBA campaign continued with a media tour and various public appearances.
A one-off freelance project for a client working with New Balance Golf, this creative was used for in-store signage at Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Since New Balance made their name by offering running shoes in multiple widths, I extended this key selling point to the world of golf shoes. Fairways are traditionally narrow and hard to hit, so I nodded to the difficulty of the game in a playful way to set the shoes apart—and create a memorable message.
After the 2016 election, the creative directors at AKQA tasked us with coming up with proactive pro-bono ideas to help a cause. They could be political, apolitical, or somewhere in between.
My idea was to use an automated Twitter bot to combat online hate, particularly in the LGBT space which was being unduly victimized in a post-Trump landscape. The bot would scrub for unequivocally damaging words, and then retaliate with a message that lets the digital bigots know that their words just raised money for the people they’re trying to slander.
After several false starts, I reached out to the Harvey Milk Foundation, a local SF non-profit that had worked with Levi’s — one of our clients — and was a natural fit for the idea. I connected with their PR team, pitched it to their VP of communications, and his enthusiasm was instantly palpable.
While the idea hit a logistical snag, I still have passion for it, and wanted to share.
As a lifelong lover of beats and rhymes, I leapt at the chance to write about the indie rap group Main Attrakiionz in The Village Voice. The group hails from Oakland, which is my home in the Bay, and they were about to head east to headline at Webster Hall in Manhattan. That’s where I came in.
I pitched the story, set up the interview at a local record store, and incorporated nuggets from that discussion into a full-length piece. When I sat down with Squadda B — the lead MC and producer — I didn’t realize it would be the start of a friendship that continues to this day.
In the punchy world of ad copy, it’s not often that you can stretch out like this. Long-form is my true love, and I hope my passion for these Oaktown rap savants shines through.
