Martin Baker

An introduction.

2

I started my career at Disney Studios in Los Angeles writing for Goofy.

(Something in my aptitude test told them I was perfect for this)

My first goof.

3

I was lured to Saatchi & Saatchi.

(It all started with a cruise*)

* My first big assignment was to help pitch a cruise line that didn’t have a ship yet. It was Crystal Cruises. Believe it or not, what won the pitch wasn’t the foot-long strategy and spec creative. It was a ornately-framed photograph of the principals dressed in revolutionary war garb standing on the deck of a galleon. Photoshop and a deferential nod to ego won the day.

Like No Vacation on Earth.

4

Sound, Fury & the F Word.

My accounts were Pioneer Electronics and Yamaha Motorcycles.*

True story. My assignment was to introduce the FZR Series -- which was touted as the fast street legal bike.

The problem? I couldn’t use the word FAST. So, I wrote this headline:

We want to tell you how awesome the new FZR is but we can’t use the F word.

The copy contained F#*% instead of fast. The legal team was not happy. So, no go.

5

I won six Camrys.

I was promoted to Senior Writer on Toyota.

(In an agency-wide competition my AD and I won sixof the 8 spots created. I bought rounds that night.)

6

A closer look.

My approach to the Camry was to to look at the micro to build the macro. The car was in the details. Safety was one of those details.

The first line I wrote was “When it came to safety we didn’t ask what it cost, we asked what it could save.”

It took three casting sessions to find a young girl that didn’t look like every young girl in a commercial. I think I found her.

7

Martin Meets Martin.

I moved from Los Angeles to Richmond for love. I love The Martin Agency. And I love my fiancee who worked at The Martin Agency. Two for two. I worked on Marriott Hotels (I wrote the first web site ever for Marriott). I wrote over 100 radio and TV commercials for Alltel. And I worked on FMC (Which makes bug and weed killers). I even had Dr. Ruth talk about sex and weeds. Dr. Ruth to Marty. “Just one take Marty? Right?” I said, “Let’s not be premature Dr. Ruth.” Then, I bought her a muffin.

8

The Bowling. The Bank...

AMF Bowling wanted to kick it up a notch and create a series of high-end clubs called 300. I wrote and concepted the TV, Radio, Print and Website. It was a labor of love. First Clearing is part of Wachovia and I wrote the website in two days because they needed to be up and running for a conference. I am currently shooting a video in St. Louis that will be re-purposed for web streaming.

9

The Donald.

Genworth is a big company no one knows. They were once GE Capital. But thanks to an IPO, they became Genworth. They had multiple agencies working for them an I was brought in to develop the ultimate product placement. The finale of the Apprentice with Donald Trump. This is when the show was at its peak.

I wrote a webcast/video in secrecy (Per contract with Mark Burnett) that was streamed world-wide the week before the finale. I also wrote phone messages for Donald to leave on each employees phone mail.

It was a hit. And Donald didn’t change word. I think that’s a good thing.

10

And lately...

I have been working with clearspring. It’s the digital equivalent of a billion carrier pigeons. You provide the content, we can distribute it to dozens of social networks or embed it in your blog. Very cool.

11

Keep America Beautiful (for kids and teachers)

12

Velcro, Epcot and Disney

This was a speed trial. I was called on Monday and the site had to up and running in less than a week including approvals by Disney and Velcro. The fun idea stuck. I can’t wait to get a second crack at it with a lot more fun and lot less copy.

13

United Methodist Family Services

This wasn’t an assignment, it was a labor of love. Kids at risk. Fractured families. And hope disguisedas an organization called UMFS. It is as genuine and authentic branding as I have ever done.

14

New obsessions.

3-D After Effects/stills integration Paths not pages for click throughs.

15

The future of web interactionLifestream.

My take: It’s a battleground for mindshare and timeshare.Twitter begat micro-blogging. Emotional need for connecting but it’s with machine as interface. LinkedIn, Plurk: life on on a time line. Friendfeed. Plaxo. Jott. I want Sandy (Very cool assistant). It’s about connecting, identity, viral & buzz. It’s about silent hawking. (Selling by not selling.) As my colleague at Red Bull says, “it’s spontaneous planning.” It’s all exciting and it’s happening now. Let’s do virtual lunch.

innotivity@gmail.com