Final Friday marked 20 years of Marketoonist. On October 21, 2002, I revealed my very first advertising cartoon, then known as Model Camp. It was a cartoon on the 8 Sorts of Model Managers.
I had simply began as an Affiliate Advertising Supervisor at Basic Mills, engaged on Yoplait. I emailed this primary cartoon to 35 co-workers from my cubicle on the 4th ground, linking to a publication sign-up.
I imagined this advertising cartoon sequence can be primarily for my co-workers within the workplace. However I quickly began listening to from individuals working in advertising in all kinds of firms all around the world. I realized all of us share comparable tales and experiences on this humorous advertising trade of ours (and enterprise basically).
Advertising is consistently in a state of flux, with an countless stream of shiny new issues to distract us. However the extra issues change, the extra they keep the identical.
Through the years, I’ve beloved this communal feeling that we’re all figuring it out collectively.
I by no means imagined that this cartoon would have lasted 20 years, and definitely not that it could evolve into my profession. I saved drawing as I labored at totally different firms (Basic Mills, Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream (Nestle), Methodology Merchandise, HotelTonight) and elsewhere (Minneapolis, San Francisco, London).
In October 2010, I made the leap to give attention to Marketoonist full-time, rising it right into a customized cartoon studio and giving keynote talks all over the world. This gave me the chance to fulfill a lot of you in individual.
I largely need this cartoon sequence to be a reminder to not take ourselves too critically. And I believe that laughing at a few of the humorous issues in advertising may help us grow to be higher entrepreneurs.
I’m grateful for all of you who’ve been studying this cartoon through the years. Thanks for becoming a member of me on this journey and supporting me alongside the best way.
Later this week, I’ll share an interview with MarketingWeek on a few of what I’ve noticed on this 20-year journey, and the backstories on a few of my favourite cartoons during the last 20 years.
“If advertising saved a diary, this may be it.”
– Ann Handley, Chief Content material Officer of MarketingProfs
Right here’s my first-ever cartoon on this sequence, and some others that come to thoughts:
