Vote for the 2009 Colorado Agency of the Year

Self-promotion forces me to nominate Motive. Motive’s work allows me to feel justified in doing so.

Starts with a T and ends with an A.

Is this an ad agency only award?

Suckle, dammit.

I second the Sukle nomination.

The1stMovement of course! Authentic and kick-ass creative? Check. Retaining Clients and Winning New Business? Check. Strength of Billings? 100% increase in revenue in 2009! Check.

Can we vote on potential? Battalion it is, then.

The Fashion Prince sez: TDA, for goodness sake.

I loves me some TDA almost as much as my bff Katie Holmes.

Gotta go with Mr. Reinhard on this one. Motive.

hi. is this the poll where we find out where egotist readers work?

tda was runner up nationally for ad agency of the year for the western half of the US in AD Age. i think they get the nod for Denver.

Your mom.

Not Le e Re edy.

Lee Reedy.

TDA’s Firstbank work puts them at the #1 spot.

# 2 I’d say is Cactus
# 3 is Sukle, I guess.

# infinity is CPB.

Gotta second The1stMovement. Lots of wins over there these days.

i would say tda, they have some very great work. but, if i am plugging, i would have to say creative 303 is doing a good job at getting their foot in the door. as far as new start ups go.

Sukle, hands down. Most consistently innnovative work in the area. Game. Set. Match.

TDA for creative output. Factory Labs for strength of billing and retaining/winning new business.

tda

TDA, easy.

AMG, hands down. The Ford Fiesta Movement has been touted by every major media source, blogger or otherwise as the largest social media experiment of 2009. Print ads and tv are all well and good, but AMG helped redefine how brands successfully market to today’s digitally savvy consumer.

I agree, AMG (Action Marketing Group) deserves the nod.

never heard of AMG, but i just saw the denver 50 book. tda owned it.

Screw the AMG. Rob Schuham is the single biggest bullshitting asshole to ever walk the planet.

TDA: Not bad, but let’s go with someone new this year.

Hi Rob Schuham here. Asshole I’m perfectly fine with. Bullshitter I take a little umbrage with. Email is robs@actionpartners.com for personal attacks, or an enlivened discussion. If you have a spine.

Moxie Sozo’s getting my vote, at least for Small Agency of the Year:

• Their billings are up 25% over last year and they’ve continued hiring
• They haven’t lost an account – but picked up seven
• Despite flying severely under the radar around these parts, their work continues to get recognition – especially abroad

Go, MOXIE!

The Suri Countdown is classic.

http://thesuricountdown.com/

My vote is for the guys who created that. And for popperonies.

AMG, for the Fiesta Movement alone.

I am going to throw my vote for Moxie as well as EBD

Rad Writer: Really? If their billing is up 25% – why did they let go over half of the team earlier in the year? (interns don’t count either.)

They haven’t lost an account? I think we put that rumor to bed on Leif’s interview – it’s all bullshit, and you’ve been eating huge spoonfuls.

“recognized work” – sure, but it’s mostly (ok like 90%) spec work. do your research.

Checked out that Amelie website, and that work is bad. No rumor here. Just dog butt bad work.

hello.

This is Leif from Moxie Sozo.

The Egotist has done a wonderful job — very few cities in the world have a site similar to the Denver Egotist. We are lucky to have a forum that allows all of us to discuss, debate and support the Boulder/Denver ad scene. But along with the ability to promote the region, comes the ability to sling mud and degrade it.

In ten years of business, we’ve had dozens of great employees at Moxie Sozo. We’ve also had one or two bad apples. Those bad apples ruined the office environment for the rest of us until they left or were fired. Because the Denver Egotist allows people to post anonymously, it is much harder to get rid of the bad apples on this site.

I like that people can post anonymously, but when someone says something that is patently false – it hurts all of us.

Earlier this evening: “Rad Writer: Really? If their billing is up 25% – why did they let go over half of the team earlier in the year? (interns don’t count either.) They haven’t lost an account? I think we put that rumor to bed on Leif’s interview – it’s all bullshit, and you’ve been eating huge spoonfuls. “recognized work” – sure, but it’s mostly (ok like 90%) spec work. do your research. — A Great Façade”

The truth is: 1) We let ONE designer go last spring. She promptly found another job. 2) We have never lost an account. –– We’ve let accounts go that were problematic, but we have never been fired. Period.

There are many great agencies in the Boulder/Denver area. I have a lot of respect for many of them. TDA started over 20 years ago. Thomas Dooley maxed out every credit card he had, and made it happen. The guys over at Cypher 13 are in their studio 24/7; they are making it happen. I bumped into the Quick Left team at lunch today. Unassuming and absolutely brilliant; they are making it happen. The list could go on for paragraphs. Cactus. Cultivator. Factory. LeeReedy. Sukle. At the end of the day, ALL OF US ARE TRYING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN.

A few weeks ago, we were up against Cultivator for the Moots (bicycle) account. Cultivator won. But do you know what? Cultivator is a great f*cking agency. They earned it, and they’ll do an amazing job on the Moots account. Do you want to know something else? —- In a year, when the account is up for review – we’ll be waiting.

So, let’s have some friendly competition. I’m happy for Cultivator and all of the other agencies that are doing well. Most of the clients we work with are in other parts of the country – they could work with anyone, but they chose to work with a Colorado agency. Why? Because Colorado attracts some of the best talent in the country.

Instead of slinging lies or negativity, let’s exhalt the accomplishments of the many great firms that Boulder and Denver have to offer.

Thank you.

Now, time to go wash all of this hair product out of my hair. —————-

Happy Holidays,
Leif

Thank you for that post Leif and a big Amen to healthy competition and positivity. More of both please.

Leif’s comment was the most gracious thing I’ve seen anyone write on here in a long time.

For class alone, Moxie gets my vote.

MOTIVE. a standout.

“imo” AMG got the ford fiesta strategy from an emailed pitch which their fresh former employee made independently to a prospective new employer after working for AMG — before Twitter even bought summize — an email pitching a verbatim social media “amazing race” themed, twitterfall chronicled, vehicle branded team scavenger hunt style spectacle, with streaming live events, geo, affiliate, and local hooks. which email the prospective employer forwarded to AMG. who then refused a positive reference for that employee, and they didn’t get that job. ford fiesta, however, was pitched almost a year later. i grew up in detroit. and the campaign helps detroit. so that i am truly happy about. by now you guessed i am the former employee. but i am unemployed. AMG wanted a “working severance” where benefits ended yet i would work through a severance period, and no cobra. i fought that. positive reference, offered selectively to those employers they apparently didn’t want for work for themselves, vanished. two years later my extended extended extended unemployment benefits were disputed due to them. i took a personality test before working there, was chosen by some expert they hired as the one they needed, and never had a performance review.
“imo” AMG is kind of belly up to the bar on the poor man’s dime.
also — i need a digital strategy project managment ia ra type job. no one even understood what i was talking about when i pitched that idea, two years before it’s time. I am real good.

Is Egotist going to pick someone? How does this work?

Ok, I think I figured out who you are…and you didn’t even work for AMG. You worked for a different company but in the same offices. Ford wasn’t even a client yet when you were there all those years ago. My understanding was that you were merely a producer and did not do any thinking or strategy. Further, if you actually understood the Fiesta Movement it’s not what you attempted to paraphrase it as. Do your homework before firing off missiles like that. And why don’t you use the networks available here on Egotist in order to gain employment instead of taking erroneous and disparaging swipes at an agency you didn’t work for, nor had any input on strategy or insights.

Who is AMG, I didn’t see them in the book. I googled AMG and got a granite company.

AMG is Action Marketing Group in Boulder, a non-traditional experiential and buzz marketing agency. Clients include Ford, Pepsi, Izze, Adidas, BRP (Can-Am, Ski-Doo etc), Yahoo!, Comcast and others. We operate in North America, Europe, Infinity and beyond. We’re very under the radar in CO. www.actionmarketing.com

Thank you. The more places the better for all of us.

There should be a poll application or something…

Does it really matter who the tallest midget is? Spend less time on this pathetic site and more time on your work and maybe being the best in Denver will mean something someday.

Who Cares?!?!: You obviously cared enough to read it, and THEN comment. silly boy, Trix are for kids.

Factory – CA, One Show, National Clients
TDA – CA, Kellys, Smaller Clients
Cactus – Constant Growth

I second Voting’s choices except I’m going TDA #1, Factory #2.

TDA killed it this year w/ FirstBank. They did well in award shows (Denver 50 anyone?) and continued their creative output beautifully.

Factory also did well. They were recognized by the One Show and CA interactive this year. And that new site, wow. Not quite on the level of TDA, but terrific nonetheless.

Nice work.

I just saw tda’s bunny spot in the new one show annual. It is awesome.

tda all the way.

what did factory get into the one show annual? I didn’t see them, just tda.

ok. I´m writing this after seeing the new soap packaging that Moxie Sozo just did for a company out of Boston. All I can say is: OH MY GOD these guys are good. How refreshing to see work that was done by hand!

A One Show nod is great. Tda most certainly should get props, but since this particular award is an award for marketing in 2009, it would be great to see an agency who uses experiential, social or contemporary medias get the nod. Not to mention a local agency with a client roster, which expands outside of the 5,280 elevation mark.

Hey Rob Schuman. Stop posting under so many alaises. You are looking waaaaaayyy to eager to win the ´pretty girl´contest. Dude. It is the Egotist. Relax on the AMG stuff.

Factory? Have you seen their new site? That train wreck alone should get them banned from future “Best Of” competitions.

Why isn’t CPB mentioned here? Are they not included because they are out of the Denver agency league?

How can TDA win any competition having the inability to hang on to clients? They burn thru clients once a week – so yes, nice print work, but clients can work with them longer than a lunar cycle. Thats not Agency of the Year to me.

That was a stupid comment (your first one).

Oh, you like that site? Any other city and it would be junk.

Motive! Mo-Mo-Mo-Motive! (And, no, I am not dating someone that works there and totally biased.)

Leif – I like the positive comment and voluntary insight into some of the inner-workings at your firm. Keep it up.

From a creative standpoint – TDA.

However, they don’t even come close to meeting the other two requirements.

Thus, I vote Cactus.

TDA FTW.

TDA and not just cause I work there.

Stupid comment #2.

TDA. Hands down

Not TDA. Not Cactus. Not Sukle. Not Factory.

CPB. Easy.

There is nothing local about CPB. They are alien to the region. The indigenous ad firms could maybe intern for CPB. Still, Denver is improving and I vote SUKLE.

Toolbox Creative. period.

Moxie Sozo, HANDS DOWN. Family first ;0)

Local campaign of the year would probably be the First Bank campaign. But agency of the year? CPB for sure. Emerging agency of the year? You could argue Motive or 1stMovement.

Sorry to bust some bubbles but Action Marketing Group is the best i have seen. The Fiesta Movement is one of the most solid ideas I have seen in a long time. People love the Fiesta, the agents were in the community, both online and off. This is better than anything Colorado has seen. PERIOD. You would be foolish to pick someone else.

Tda . They are the agency people outside of Co. people actually talk about.

1 – Authenticity, creativity and consistency of output.
2 – Success in retaining clients and winning new business.
3 – Strength of billings.

Now who do you think, not who you want.

TDA is like that hot girl that everyone wants. Then you get with her and realize there’s no personality, substance or anything redeemable to go with it. Which would explain why they haven’t had an account for more than a year (maybe two). On top of that, they lost Chobani, Pizza Inn and several pitches this year. Hard to vote them #1 after losing two key accounts in just one year. The 1stbank work is the only thing that seems to keep them going.

Maybe they could win creative campaign of the year, but definitely not agency. They lack the other essential components.

You never got with the hot girl.

I’m a little late to the party, but I place my vote for Moxie – the new Leap products are just fuckin’ fantastic and Leif’s last comment is the honest stuff we all need.

Gage,
Let me guess, your vote is for TDA.

Now I want to play with youuUUuuUUu.

I vote for no one.

2009 was a pretty boring year. TDA seems to be the front runner but I’ve gotta say: same old shit from them. Just more clever print ads and nothing else. It’s not the 90s anymore.

Cactus? More of the same. Decent work but nothing standout.

Same goes for Factory, Sukle and the other usual suspects.

I don’t see why FL2 or 1stmovement should even be considered for this.

Moxie Sozo did some great design work, but that’s not enough to be called agency of the year.

If CPB “counted” it’d be them. Since people say they don’t, I vote for no one.

Did anyone actually answer any of the questions posed? Actually, can anyone? What a joke. This blog thrives on talking bad about eachother, not any actual facts. Helping Denver suck less? You guys look like a bunch of fools. Good work, Denver.

I too have to vote for the family. Moxie is killing it like usual. Maybe I’m just bias but they are the clear winner. Great work Charles, Nate, Teri and the rest of the crew. Oh, and of course you too Leif. But as you always say Moxie’s success is due to your amazing employees past and present.

open denver 50 book. the pricks at tda finally entered and they owned it. let’s be fair. objective out of town judges, all agencies entered, (cp b just whopper but..) and tda dominated with tons of first bank but lots and lots of other national clients also. this years poll is excessively petty and makes us all look a bit silly.

Entering and paying for entries does not make you the city’s best. “killing it” or “owning it”? It’s not hard to enter and win a contest. It’s easy in fact. Then, there’s the spec vs real work argument. First Bank was real. Most of the TDA stuff you see outside of Denver is real. If the results of this pissing contest follow the three guidelines, I’d lean more towards a Sukle. Integrity, solid work, hard work. Retaining clients. Not sure about anybody’s billings. But my vote would be for one of the solid, proven over time agencies. Not a start-up where the jury is still out. Not the hype and shameless self-promotion of a few. Not who’s sent the wildest Christmas card or was seen in the most “paid” pages of any award book. Give it to the agency that just does great work over time. A proven track record. And if that honor goes to somebody that’s been around for more than year, or had this honor before, then so be it. Greatness isn’t born overnight. To be the best isn’t something you earn overnight. It takes practice and passion. It takes a great team. That team will help lead. Lead their agency, this city and the industry.

TDA had some good work in the 50 but I’ve gotta call them out for that climbing ad that had “sport” “hobby” “other” listed. That’s not just a ripoff, but a direct ripoff of a fishing campaign done some 10 years ago by Carmichael Lynch.

I also learned that TDA does a LOT of print, but not much else.

That being said, i’d still give them the nod as agency of the year, but I think some changes are due to the little Boulder shop.

One agency that isn’t the greatest noisemakers that deserves a nod may be Cultivator. They continue to churn out nice work, but don’t really enter the shows. Moreover, they’ve won some new accounts with Bruton (sp?), Kettle Chips and Moots. Good stuff. And congrats to everyone else who has success rolling into what should be a great 2010.

Factory Design Labs

The only agency besides CPB to get into CA ad annual (an enormous accomplishment) was Sukle.

They get my vote.

So, how can an agency that lost at least 4 big accounts (Memorex, Pizza Inn, Chobani, Celestial) be even considered for agency of the year.

They do some funny print and outdoor for 1st Bank, which is the only account that keeps their lights on, but beyond that there is no infrastructure there to provide any client strategy or relationship building to keep clients after the first few months. C’mon, get real, vote for an agency that does great work and keeps clients.

TDA is a sham. Been there and done that. Not trying to be a hater on here, but they talk a big game and under-deliver. They can’t keep an account to save their lives.

I agree with the other people’s opinions about TDA.

When I moved here a few years ago, I thought they were THE agency to be at. Amazing creative. Great clients. Award show success.

But over time, I’ve realized that they do little more than spec work. Who knows what’s real on their site or if what they submitted to Denver 50 was legitimately run creative. Maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. Either way, after all I’ve learned about them — I’m not impressed. And on top of that, I’ve seen they do nothing but print and the occasional 30 second spot. I’ve read about them winning clients, only to lose them in less than a year — more than once. That makes it incredibly difficult to vote agency of year.

As for my vote – Sukle. They retain clients beautifully. They seem to be consistent in growth. And above all, the creative is always interesting, compelling and strategic.

Haters gon’ hate.

Since this an agency of the year poll and the criteria has been laid out. I vote Integer. They held onto Coors and added Miller. Are they the most creative agency? No. But they still do some good work. In a down economy they held. They fought off a pitch that could have been devastating to this market. They do a different kind of work than TDA, Factory, Cactus and Sukle but this should not diminish the acomplishment of keeping jobs here.

I heard that Factory won another huge account in a pitch earlier this year. I don’t know what that account is, but their success at winning and retaining clients as well as some nice interactive and print work (plus some award show presence) is reason to vote them agency of the year.

Let us know what the new client is!

I worked at TDA a couple of years ago and I can tell you first-hand that their single priority is doing work that will get them noticed. No concern for clients business issues or strategy, it’s all about doing self-serving, funny work – which is so 1990. And the client list on their site is total BS.

The reason they can’t hold on to any long-term business is that clients like some of the design work they did ten years ago, but quickly realize that their new work isn’t rooted in any kind of strategy and instead they find out they’ve hired a group of self-entitled twenty-something account managers with no other agency experience and the creative teams are largely made up of unpaid interns right out of CU, who only want to build a book and move to LA. Clients sniff this scene out fast.

Not a hater, but just saying.

So who IS the tallest midget? When do the results get announced?

Factory has done some great work, but their CEO Scott Mellin treats his people like shit.

Most people hate working there but have to since of the work they get to do.

-Emily

TDA does great, creative work. However, only about 10% of that great creative work runs. Look at their site. So many of those images look like comps that were shown to the client but never actually produced. IE: Nearly every billboard. A handful of print and just about every “unconventional” piece. Just about everything but the TV.

It’s nice work but if other agencies put their comp work on their website, they’d probably look like rockstars too.

However, the 10% that does run gives them reason to be voted #1, they just have a long way to go.

Also not a hater, but just saying.

CPB for sure… Get real.

AMG is an event marketing group, not an agency. It doesn't belong in this category. There is no subtlety or brain power there, only cheerleading ability.

I vote Sukle - loved going to work and felt good when I left (after the day was over, not when the internship ended...that was sad)
Their creative work is amazing & clever and the Account people rock!

Motive. Did you know that they were hybrid? Seems to me with the sustained popularity of such vehicles and the advent of super-rad blue humanoid virtual hybrids (Did I mention that I have considered nixing myself just so that I could return as the superior race? Na'vi, that is. That's not really true I was just making fun of the subjects of this CNN story, especially Mike: http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Movies/01/11/avatar.movie.blues/index.html) that it is evolutionary folly to go any other direction. But seriously, hybrid is the new black. Go Motive.

P.S. A little bird told me that their new Qdoba Craft 2 campaign, specifically the online M.A.S.H.-style game, has increased Qdoba sales something like 3% since its just over a week ago. Helloooo, criteria 2 and 3. Check and check.

I agree with Emily's comment above (about Factory Labs) and will elaborate. Based on what I've seen, their work is more about sizzle with less focus and emphasis on doing the "right" things for their clients. In other words, they wouldn't know a strategic imperative or brand pillar if it bit them on the ass.

Making your agency a "cool brand" is a novel idea, but in this economy marketers want to work with results oriented agencies who can provide compelling case studies demonstrating their success, especially on the digital side of the business. The only needle moving over there is Scott Mellin's dick when a new intern comes into his office. What a loser, he should be hawking time shares at Vail or selling used Bimmers.

OMG, I almost wet my pants reading PB+J's post above. I worked for FL for a little while and their CEO was such a skeeze. There are some talented people at the agency though.