What we can learn from Minnesota and Minnesota-based Strategic Planners. Presented at Planning Barcamp #2 in Hamburg, Germany.

1. Midwest is Best
What we can learn from Minnesota and Minnesota-based
Strategic Planners.
Planning Barcamp 02 | Hamburg, Germany | July 27th, 2010
Jeremy Abbett | jeremy.abbett.net | jeremy@abbett.net | twitter: jeremytai | Hamburg, Germany

2. United States of America?

3. Minnesota
Midwest

6. Minnesota Fame

7. 1. Status Quo
A look at advertising’s current situation
2. Minnesota Nice
Land of 10,000 Lakes
3. Midwest is Best
Strategic Planning’s Midwest Triumvirate

8. Status Quo
A review of advertising’s current situation (and my own)

11. The New Scarcity
ou rces
res
attention

14. The New Scarcity
ou rces
res
attention

16. 5,380 Followers
25,880 Likes

18. Truth
(and my own)

19. Digital Director
strategy
insights insights
for mass for niche
classic empathy digital
(and my own)

21. Status Quo
Our world is radically changing

22. Minnesota Nice
Land of 10,000 Lakes

24. Contemporary Art Culture

26. Consumer Culture

29. Bicycle Culture

30. Car Culture

31. Lake Culture

33. Minnesota Nice

37. Minnesota Nice
People that are courteous, mild-mannered and reserved

38. Midwest is Best
Strategic Planning’s Midwest Triumvirate

39. Adrian Ho Aki Spicer Paul Isakson
Zeus Jones Fallon Thinkers & Makers
Partner & CFO Director of Digital Strategy Partner

40. How do you feel being based in the
Midwest has influenced your thinking
in communications and advertising?

41. “ In Minneapolis, removed from
everything that could possibly be
cool and avant garde you are
forced to think at a more human,
fundamental level.”
Adrian Ho
Zeus Jones

42. “ Minnesota keeps me grounded in
realities of everyday America, and
as a "digital" strategist it keeps
me honest about what people may
want from our brands.”
Aki Spicer
Fallon

43. “ What I believe living here gives you
is a sense of appreciation for
others and a healthy amount of
humility that comes from the area's
blue collar and agrarian roots.”
Paul Isakson
Thinkers & Makers

44. Does an agencies culture have more
influence than the culture within a city
or are they inseparable?

45. “ I think they are inseparable - look
at any agency that has offices in
different countries - they all take
the flavour of the country and mix
it with the values of the agency.”
Adrian Ho
Zeus Jones

46. “ They're definitely capable of being
completely separate. Because we
spend so much time at work and
with people from work even when
we're out of the office, I think the
agency's culture has more
influence over their work than the
city's. ”
Paul Isakson
Thinkers & Makers

47. What three words of advice do you
have for up-and-coming strategists?

48. “Think for yourself.”
Adrian Ho
Zeus Jones

49. “Explore. Listen. Imagine.”
Paul Isakson
Thinkers & Makers

50. Adrian Ho Aki Spicer Paul Isakson
Zeus Jones Fallon Thinkers & Makers
Partner & CFO Director of Digital Strategy Partner
www.zeusjones.com www.fallon.com www.thinkersandmakers.com
www.zeusjones.com/blog www.fallon.com/fallon-blog/ paulisakson.typepad.com
twitter.com/adrianho twitter.com/akispicer twitter.com/paulisakson
slideshare.com/zeusjones slideshare.com/akispicer slideshare.com/paulisakson

51. Midwest is Best
The values that embody Minnesota Nice are those that a Strategic
Planner needs in today’s ever-changing marketing landscape.

52. 1. Status Quo
We need to keep up with the changes in culture
2. Minnesota Nice
Your Take-away
Create strategies where brands act courteous, mild-
mannered and reserved / friends not consumers
3. Midwest is Best
Be where the people are not the trends

53. Yah, you betcha!
Jeremy Tai Abbett
twitter.com/jeremytai
slideshare.net/jeremytai
www.truthdaredoubledare.com

54. Credits
Photos: Thank you:
02. http://www.aaronfoster.com A big thank you to Adrian Ho, Aki Spicer and
04. http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharynmorrow
Paul Isakson for taking the time out to answer
05. http://www.minnesotahistorycenter.org
07. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai the questions about strategic thinking and living
12. http://www.flickr.com/photos/bazzadarambler in Minnesota. Vielen Dank to Michaela Jausen
13. http://www.flickr.com/photos/bunny for asking me to speak at the Planning Barcamp
15. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai #02. And a huge thank you to Franziska, Ellis
16. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai
17. http://www.halfconversation.com
and Niilo as well as my family for making three
18. http://twitter.com/jeremytai/status/15123070581 weeks in Minnesota as memorable as when I
23. http://www.minnesotahistorycenter.org was growing up there.
24. http://www.flickr.com/photos/minneapolisorg
25. http://www.flickr.com/photos/minneapolisorg/
26. http://www.flickr.com/photos/seanmolin
27. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbenson2
28. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai
29. http://www.flickr.com/photos/huggerindustries
30. http://www.flickr.com/photos/threadedthoughts
30. http://www.flickr.com/photos/piratejohnny
30. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rkimberly/
30. http://www.flickr.com/photos/shaynakatherine
31. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai Jeremy Tai Abbett
32. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai http://jeremy.abbett.net
33. http://books.google.com/books?id=BUP6lBSdlrwC
34. http://mubi.com/topics/6722?page=3
35. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garrison_Keillor
36. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Wobegon
52. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai
53. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeremytai