sometimes the best advertising ideas come from expressions or phrases that are already part of the cultural vernacular.we ve all heard people make offhanded comments like be right back ... unless i win the lottery or see you all tomorrow ... unless i win the lottery . the internet is filled with tweets invoking this sentiment stuck with this lemon of a car ... unless ... won t be taking that vacation ... unless ... we thought why not take the line and make it proprietary to the dc lottery and put all that social energy to work for the brand exquisitely evil coinciding with the opening of the james bond blockbuster movie skyfall the international spy museum opened a two year exhibit featuring the evil villains james bond has faced over the years.to generate interest in the exhibit we used villains and their nefarious plots in a multimedia advertising campaign . exquisitely evil 50 years of bond villains is the only exhibit of its kind in the united states . to date it has seen over 1 000 000 visitors and generated over 14 000 000 in revenue . encouraging american genius the corcoran gallery of art in washington dc is well known for its fine collection of classic and modern art . the building itself is an historic landmark . what most people don t know is that housed inside the beaux arts style gallery is the corcoran school of art a surprisingly avant garde community of artists and designers who challenge the status quo . this was something of a secret.to help jump start recruiting for the corcoran school of art we needed to project an image that not only honored their classical grounding but also signaled the irreverent streak that makes them somewhat iconoclastic.so we created a film that celebrated the wow factor of student work as well as a logo that demonstrated how the corcoran was reinventing itself . everything counts are there any easy marketing problems anymore no.it doesn t work that way.how can one compete there s only one way.to be maniacally focused on every opportunity every message each and every touch point every prickly inquiry every damn conference report every freaking strategy plan and program.everything.the past is littered with marketers who follow every shiny new object that surfaces.the truth is it isn t about following . it s about having the confidence the strength the experience the knowledge and guts to lead.that comes from doing the little things as well as you do the big things.in fact it comes from looking after everything . everything counts.everything . that s what we do . freedom isn t free philosophically the washington examiner is a right of center conservative magazine in the politically charged dc region . their masthead includes a facsimile of the american seal . they wanted to stimulate online readership with a campaign that would not only distinguish them from their competitors but also be true to their belief in the traditional values of this country . we gave them a battle cry that both conservatives and liberals could relate to and they as a brand could support freedom isn t free . the multimedia campaign included tv print radio ooh mobile billboards and a significant online component using interactive web banners that took readers to the latest headlines a twitter feed and a chance to win a free ipad . truth truth initiative is an organization dedicated to achieving a culture where all youth and young adults reject tobacco . they speak seek and spread the truth about tobacco through education tobacco control research and policy studies community activism and engagement . they came to mdb for a holiday email video consistent with their mission . awe to unexpected after a year of depicting national treasures romantically in advertising we shifted to highlighting the unique unconventional and unexpected local culture as well . dc has always been a magnet for people who want to buck the system and change the world . this mindset profoundly influences the local food scene entertainment and culture like nowhere else in the world . need a lottery intervention many things that happen in life each day are beyond our control . a flat tire . a leaky coffee cup . the rudeness of others . annoying little things happen all the time.this observation served as the basis for a wonderful advertising campaign for the dc lottery one that distinguished them immediately from two adjacent lotteries in the region who outspend them virginia and maryland . for those who are victims of the small pieces of bad luck that rain upon the human race we offered a bright spot in an otherwise not so bright moment a lottery intervention . in short order the phrase i need a lottery intervention resonated with consumers and became part of the vernacular . winning the lottery you have a lottery ticket in your pocket . you think about whether you might win . you imagine the feeling . you anticipate the moment when you see the numbers and realize they are winning numbers . your heart beats faster . tears of joy come to corners of your eyes.it is this moment the moment between anticipation and reality that we captured in this campaign for the dc lottery . welcome to the department of national insecurity in a radio campaign that highlighted the fact that it s fun to play the dc lottery we created the department of national insecurity . created as a foil it portrayed a fictitious organization that monitored the not so much fun things happening around the world . try not to laugh when you listen . dc cool in a radical departure from advertising the traditional aspects of the nation s capital we focused on a virtually unknown side of dc the cool side . to reflect this we partnered with internationally famous photographer jim krantz to capture the unexpected side of dc s local culture in classic captivating black and white.as a result forbes magazine placed dc at the top of its list of america s coolest cities in 2014 and it was a banner year for tourism to cap city . fun is calling as part of the dc lottery logo the letter o is replaced by a cherry blossom one of the well known symbols in washington dc thanks to the annual cherry blossom festival.since playing the lottery is fun and it s always there to provide fun when the desire to play occurs we decided to have some fun with the logo and animate the cherry blossom to a laughing smiley face . and we wondered what it would be like if someone working in an office happened to get a phone call from that same smiley face on break from its position in the logo to pop out of that person s phone . in other words what would happen if fun really did call from the dc lottery of heroes and heartbreak heroes is the brainchild of the late philanthropist dc power broker and parking lot magnate leonard b. bud doggett jr. bud wanted to create an organization that looked after the families of those firefighters and police officers who fall in the line of duty . as part of getting the message out he commissioned mdb to create a short powerful film that would eventually be screened in every precinct fire department and federal law enforcement agency in the nation s capital . heroes is an acronym for honor every responsible officer s eternal sacrifice . if your feet hurt the american podiatric medical association came to mdb to help raise the profile of podiatrists . we felt they needed an image that displayed a sense of understanding about human nature . ads reflected the myriad problems that ail the human foot were observational in nature and projected wit and humor . real spies . real stories . the international spy museum is run by real spies former members of the cia fbi nsa mi5 & kgb . in the interest of creating intrigue it seemed only natural to use those real spies in the advertising . our efforts included out of home magazine newspaper and digital assets and resulted in a 7.03 % year over year sales increase . real lottery winners a comprehensive research study of the dc lottery region and its players revealed that the more consumers see evidence that people actually win prizes of all sizes playing the dc lottery the more likely they would be to play.so we told stories of real people who have won various amounts of money from the dc lottery . and we told those stories in ways that were charming and humorous which made their personal experiences playing the lottery even more rewarding . get a room in an effort to stimulate hotel bookings during february a month that is typically not big for tourism in the nation s capital destination dc has a month long promotion called date nights dc . it s a time when people can get significantly lower prices on hotel rooms than during the summer months.the goal was to encourage couples to get a room . because february is also the month for valentine s day it only seemed appropriate that the advertising was romantic in nature.as for results organic google traffic to datenightsdc washington.org rose 97 % year over year mobile facebook time on datenightsdc washington.org rose 393 % yoy 28 romantic spots slideshow traffic rose 9.802 % yoy link to 100 date ideas resulted in 1 089 clicks via facebook people with purpose american university called on mdb to help develop and execute a strategic marketing and advertising plan with an emphasis on improving graduate recruitment enrollment . the assignment focused on the development of an immediate effort to improve local media visibility with the intent of boosting fall graduate enrollments . the longer term initiative was to help develop a unified presence and voice through strategic analysis and study of our market to eliminate the stratification of our messages . successful outcomes included agreement on key message templates to unify our image increased visibility developing a collective identity and enrolling more students . somebody samaritan inns helps homeless people with substance abuse problems rehabilitate and become contributing members of society . they exist entirely on donations from companies and individuals.we created an emotionally compelling video to help with fund raising that pointed out a simple and troubling fact every homeless person we see is somebody . wish upon a star lots of people win the dc lottery . they win at home watching numbers come up on tv . they win on street corners when they remember an instant ticket they forgot to scratch is still in a pants pocket . they win on the spot at a lottery agent . and sometimes as you can see here they win while outside on a warm summer evening lying on a blanket looking up at the sky and a shooting star goes by . nursing moms lansinoh is a leading manufacturer of products for moms who breastfeed their babies . founded in 1984 by a breastfeeding mother their goal is to do everything they can to make the nursing experience rewarding for mothers . they came to mdb for an advertising campaign that would distinguish their brand as an authority in an increasingly competitive marketplace . what do you see national geographic is famous for documenting even the most remote corners of the world and embracing some oftentimes controversial issues.such was the case when they promoted a book called lost history in which many of the inventions attributed to western civilization were actually invented my muslims.to promote this book post 9 11 we chose the controversial image of a muslim woman wearing a burka . knowing that different people see different things when they look at such a picture we