“WHEN DID WE STOP MAKING ADS?!
NOW WE ONLY MAKE DECKS!!!”
It’s a common lament among Gen X ad agency curmudgeons, but that’s only because it’s true. But hey – if we’re gonna fill the whole cloud with Keynotes and Powerpoints and Google Slides, we might as well get good at it. Because good decks make for sharper, smarter, better presentations. Which might, in the fullness of time, allow us to make more ads again.
In that spirit, periodically I will open this section of the site to commissions. Yes, that’s an actual offer to make a deck for you, when my schedule allows. You provide the content and desired outcome, I provide (up to) 99 Google Slides in a style and cadence of my choosing. I’ll do your investor pitch deck, your director’s treatment, your general capabilities dog-n-pony show – any topic is fair game. Flat-fee structure, including one (1) round of changes. Price: $4000, out-the-door.
COMMISSIONS ARE CURRENTLY
CLOSED.
But please, do check back soon. Or feel free to email me about availability.
Work Product Samples
Below are a few examples of recent slide decks that I solely created. These are not speculative, so due to the nature of the material two have been truncated down to their intro sections in order to protect privileged/proprietary content, but I feel there’s enough in each to give you a sense of how I like to structure a decks and the presentation it will support. Click each thumbnail to open the deck in Google Slides.
Client: A large pharmaceutical company
Product: A drug to treat a terrifying disease that disproportionately affects black people
Background: This presentation was intended to inspire our client to build credibility with its intended audience by entrusting the entire campaign to artists and content creators who actually suffer from sickle cell anemia. The deck has been truncated to the introductory slides only. Agency and client involvement in the campaign would have been to provide scheduling, financial and production support only: The idea was to engage the black community by amplifying the voices and stories of those with direct experience with the effects of the disease and the very real systemic biases faced by those who suffer it.
Client: San Diego County Fair
Product: New business pitch deck
Background: Recently my team was asked to pitch the advertising business for the event. The ask was mostly involved with media planning and buying, but creatives were asked to provide a point-of-view on how the agency would create messaging that could adapt to the the Fair’s predetermined annual theme: Let’s go retro. We didn’t win, which is too bad because it might’ve been pretty fun. I’ve truncated this deck to redact proprietary information. For my part, I think what’s here communicates that our team understood, liked, and would’ve enthusiastically embraced the theme…and had some fun in the process.
Client: Riester Agency
Product: Riester Passion Class
Background: In the slower moments during the pandemic, Riester created “Passion Class” as a way for employees not only to stay connected, but to sharpen their skills in the area of making engaging, effective presentations via Zoom. My passion class was about my record collection. The deck is available in its entirety above, and I went back and added detailed speaker notes so you can follow the presentation I gave. On the day, I hooked up my turntable up to my laptop via a cheap digital interface and played back many of the records I mentioned in the deck.