Leonard Joseph, Advertising and Marketing, Baton Rouge, NY, SF & LA

leonard joseph

Poser: one who poses

Poseur: one who's trendy or fashionable in a superficial way

Every client in our history had a marketing objective to address:

product, price, place or promotion.

people (click to enlarge)

Composite of ads

Cut outs from the ad campaign, Print Xplains Everything, to promote newspapers. As it turns out, the campaign was prescient. On May 3, 2019, it was announced in the Baton Rouge, LA Advocate, The Advocate had purchased one of the oldest newspapers in the country, The Times Picayune, and will return it to seven day a week home delivery.

This is a demonstration of the digital model for newspapers failing and returning to the print model which allows for deeper story telling — more informed and empowered readers.

Hike For Katreena

Portrait of Founder Monique Pilie —

After Hurricane Katrina, Monique wanted to help replant trees devastated by the storm. She decided to draw national and regional attention to the problem by hiking the 2,500 miles of the Appalachian trail and raising money along the way for every mile she walked.

Her efforts turned into a national outpouring to fund replanting thousands of trees in the New Orleans area.

Laser Skin Treatment Client

A collection of images: people, interiors, and more. The images were used on the original website, and in office decor.

This was produced for their initial offering which included brochures, direct mail, outdoor, website, identity, logo and point of purchase.

Within 15 minutes of launching their "Nice Skin" billboard, the response paid for the billboard for a month.

The original campaign stressed the product of their product — nice skin as opposed to the what, procedures.

I know doctors like to show procedures and pointy little sharp things. We tend to believe the advertising should be for the patients even if the doctor/client is writing our checks.

Mayor Watkins Campaign Card —

This was for a mailer sent to voters announcing this candidate for her second term. We were told that people put the card on their refrigerators.

People would also stop Mayor Watkins in the street and ask her to autograph the card. She ultimately ran unopposed.

The successful campaign was respectful of voters.

Why can't all campaign materials be this thoughtful?

The copy comes from the fact that during her term in office she had to deal with Hurricane Katrina, four years of very heavy rains and an arson atack on the police department and city hall. The arsonist was inebriated and set those buildings on fire by mistake.

The way all campaign material should look.

The existing council up for reelection had not put much energy into their campaign materials, or even their platforms.

When this card came out, it made all the candidates sit up, take notice and produce serious campaign materials addressing issues of importance to the public.

This candidate did not win her seat, but she changed the outcome of the election for the better.

Bisso Tow Boat President

Throughout much of my career I have had good fortune when on location. You see, loaction work is very unforgiving — lighting conditions, weather and timing.

When I had originally picked this location to stage these shots, there were tugboats everywhere.

When we arrived to make the shots, all the tugboats were out due to the high water of the Mississippi. No pun intended but I had a sinking feeling.

But by the time we had the lighting, exposure and wardrobe worked out, the tugs returned and helped advance the narrative.

journalsim project

To me, newspapers are the brick and mortar of an informed society.

The marketing objective of this campaign, Print Xplains Everything, was to respond to the 3 myths hurting newspapers:

1. People do not read papers.

2. People do not want newspapers.

3. Newspapers kill trees. (Actually newspapers promote the growth of trees and newspapers can be recycled as many as five times.)

The Objectives:

Help newspapers improve their product through deep reporting and improved design.

Keep existing readers by reinforcing their decision to subscribe.

Attract new and younger readers.

Attract advertisers with the loyal and increased readership.

The first leg of the campaign was to picture people calling their friends on their cel phones to tell them about what they just read in the paper, no bragging, no hype. Just reinforcement about Newspapers being the right choice and the offering of newspapers as superior.

Newspaper reporters explain everything.

moving the merch

The City of Covington, Outdoor Campaign

The object of the campaign was to attract visitors to Covington and then encourage them to open a business downtown.

The print, radio and outdoor campaign generated 4,000 visits a day to Covington’s website. The billboards generated publicity that lead to additional television, radio, newspaper and news exposure.

The campaign succeeded in attracting new business and generated a 600% return on the city’s investment. The state of Louisiana gave the city a grant to completed the campaign based on its effectiveness.

This was an excellent example of creativity, and public, private partnerships advancing civilization one block at a time.

zoo-mock-up, antelope©

The desire of most zoos is to connect animals with people and people with animals, but often zoos miss the mark and see themselves as attractions competing with other attractions as if zoos and relationships are just another novelty.

This is about falling in love. When we see those eyes we fall in love and want to visit our loved ones. It’s funny, how little the animals act like animals.

They are as curious about us as we, them. With this approach, we build relationships and want to nurture those relationships and visit again and again.

You can just hear the kids in the car asking their parents to visit the Zoo.

Photographed at the Baton Rouge Zoo, Baton Rouge, LA.