This past St. Patrick’s Day, Kelly Services was is invited to ring the bell at the Nasdaq. It’s obviously a big honor, worthy of far more celebration than a green, plastic hat and a few shots of Jamison. The event reminds the company, and the market for that matter, that Kelly is a Fortune 500 company and a global leader in workforce services.

So how does Kelly honor this New York event? They tapped Division of Labor, one of many ad agencies in San Francisco, but arguably one of the few who could concept, design and produce a execution for an iconic video billboard, in just 10 days.  That’s right. We were tasked with creating a digital video execution for the Times Square facing side of New York City’s landmark NASDAQ building. This is a fantastic location in terms of eyeballs. But here’s the catch: It’s a design nightmare because there are 26 windows smattered throughout billboard.  

We looked into how other digital marketing agencies and branding agencies dealt with the problem. And for the most part, they just ignored the windows, which then breaks up the type and makes the images look pretty crappy.

Our solution: We recommended the windows be used as an asset to organically tell the Kelly story. For a temporary staffing agency, this meant seizing upon the adage: “Every time a door closes, a window opens.” In this way, the windows become the focal point of the ad. It’s also in keeping with Kelly’s positioning that no job is permanent.

Full disclosure: Our first idea involved filming on green screen so it looked like people were climbing out the windows of the building.  We all thought this was pretty clever until someone suggested it might conjure up images of 9/11. And, well, as marketing strategies go, that’s a Bozo No-No.

In the end, we pulled off a powerful visual presentation that achieved the same goals without controversy. And while solid, strategic creative is the bedrock of any brand strategy, it takes a wealth a talent to bring it all to fruition.  And there’s no doubt that without our producer, Julie Costanzo, plus Ned Brown, and Elisa Morse at Native Content and the fabulous VFX artist, Justin Leibow we couldn’t have pulled it all together so flawlessly.

In the end, Kelly’s story was told in a more memorable way through an execution designed specifically for this iconic piece of media. Did it require more effort on our part? For sure. But well worth it in the end. Congratulations Kelly Services.

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The small agency blog is produced by Division of Labor; a top advertising agency and digital marketing agency in San Francisco specializing in brand marketing and digital advertising campaigns. Clients include Ford, Dropbox, Roku and San Jose Sharks. We offer the services you’d expect from an integrated, digital marketing agency, but we also offer hourly, brand consulting services for startups, smaller companies and brands that want to start doing something, but aren’t ready to get into a big integrated campaign or media spend. We can help with brand strategy, brand voice, early stage asset development and other communications to get things up and running without breaking the bank. Click here for a free consultation.