John Pohlman of Lawrence & Schiller on Building Category Experience and Changing Its Agency Structure [POV]

John Pohlman is the executive creative director of Lawrence & Schiller, a full-service agency located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. L&S is one of the largest agencies in the area.

Tell us a little about yourself.

Basically, I’m the creative coach of the agency – I coach and consult with all of the creative directors on all of our account teams. Before becoming the executive creative director here, I was the creative director for the entire agency, the director of broadcast production, and a writer/producer. I started here in 1986 as a copywriter after stints at a couple of local TV stations.

What differentiates Lawrence & Schiller from other marketing advertising firms?

The biggest difference is our structure. The 70-person staff of Lawrence & Schiller is divided into four free-standing account teams – each with their own creative directors, writers, art directors, account execs, research specialists, media buyers, financial specialists, and dedicated workspace. They each act as independent small agencies, and my job is to coach and consult each of the teams as they develop campaigns and work on creative assignments for their assigned roster of clients.

This structure allows for increased category expertise, more effective information flow, stronger relationships, and better work for our clients. Which brings us to the second biggest difference – our longevity with client relationships. We have many, many clients who have been with us 10, 20, or even 30 years. It’s a testament to doing great work that delivers results and continually working to outthink and outdo our competition.

One of your agency’s category specialties is travel and tourism, which has been going through a transformation because of digital technology. How has the rise of mobile specifically altered this industry?

Mobile traffic to our top tourism clients has grown by double digits each of the past three years. For example, 35 percent to 37 percent of the visits so far this year to TravelSD.com, Deadwood.com and VisitCuster.com have come from mobile devices and tablets.

The rise of mobile impacts everything from what elements of the visitor experience are shared and how the message is formatted to when and where marketing messages are delivered.

Why do you think agencies need to spend more time developing deep category expertise?

Because clients don’t want to waste time and money while their agency learns the ins and outs of their industry. As an agency, it’s very attractive to take the investment you’ve made gaining expertise in an industry, and extend it across multiple client relationships.

At the same time, I think agencies that only go deep in one industry are at a disadvantage. Lawrence & Schiller has years of experience marketing to multiple industries beyond travel and tourism – quick service restaurants, communications, healthcare, banking, public safety, retail, and higher education.

What has been the biggest challenge as the agency has grown?

Like every agency, our biggest challenge is anticipating and adapting to continual change. Years ago, we had to build deep in-house production capabilities to get work done. Today we’re able to access an outstanding group of vendor partners to keep our work best of category.

As mentioned before, we completely restructured our agency a few years ago to increase our ability to be category experts, service our clients, and do great work. And now, with the rise of the Internet, social media, and digital marketing, we’re continually bringing on additional expertise and refining our processes so we can continue to be effective for our clients.

Change is constant, and a great deal of our time is spent anticipating what happens next.

What is one of your favorite campaigns your agency has worked on?

I’ll give you two. The first debuted a few months ago when Taco John’s teamed up with PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay division for the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Burrito. Lawrence & Schiller was able to develop and execute the creative marketing strategy for the Mexican quick service restaurant chain. It was an incredible opportunity to create everything from TV and video with Chester Cheetah to a mobile app. Social media, point-of-purchase materials, radio, T-shirts worn by crew members: We were able to do it all. L&S even wrapped two Suburbans and launched a College Road Tour that used street teams and social media to introduce the Flamin’ Hot Cheetos Burrito to students on 20 campuses across seven states.

http://youtu.be/iKjQqgOP8ls

The second campaign is one we created for the South Dakota Office of Highway Safety four years ago. “Save It for L8R” put a human face on the risks of texting and driving. It was very effective when it debuted on TV as a public service announcement. But what really amazes me is the way it continues to attract attention and spark emotional reactions. With zero paid support, the spot has organically generated nearly 300,000 views and hundreds of comments.

http://youtu.be/yl2xhfVUu0Y

What advertising trend do you find most interesting and why?

Adverting built around content is what blows my hair back. Events and media so interesting and impactful that it blurs the line between entertainment and advertising – Red Bull is a great example that has been doing it consistently well for a while now.

Must-Read Book:

“Juicing the Orange” by Pat Fallon. Required reading for anyone in the ad industry - a great introduction to insights-based creative.

Favorite Ad:

Any spot from the Mayhem campaign for Allstate Insurance. Laugh-out-loud funny built around spot-on insights that reset the bar for our entire industry. Can’t count how many times I’ve seen those commercials replayed again and again on the DVR during football games on Sunday.
Connect with John on LinkedIn or Twitter @JohnPohlman.