Steve Lance

Emmy Award–winning advertising guru

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Biography

Steve is a multiple Emmy Award winner and co-author of THE LITTLE BLUE BOOK OF ADVERTISING with his partner, Jeff Woll.

As Creative Director of NBC, he established the first copy testing and focus group testing for the network. His tag lines developed with Richie Kahn (“NBC Us” and “NBC Proud As …

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Steve is a multiple Emmy Award winner and co-author of THE LITTLE BLUE BOOK OF ADVERTISING with his partner, Jeff Woll.

As Creative Director of NBC, he established the first copy testing and focus group testing for the network. His tag lines developed with Richie Kahn (“NBC Us” and “NBC Proud As A Peacock”) remain the most memorable lines created for any network as measured by Burke scores, and his work for the premiere of NBC SportsWorld won One Show and Andy Awards.

After working three years in Los Angeles as a television series writer, Steve returned to New York as Creative Director of the entertainment division of Della Femina, Travisano & Partners. His commercials for SportsChannel won One Show and Andy Awards and his work for WBZ-TV won an Emmy Award for Best Station News Campaign. He was asked by NBC’s Community Affairs Division to create a new public service campaign. He conceived the format for “The More You Know,” and wrote the first 17 spots for the campaign.

Steve established Unconventional Wisdom in 1989 with his partner Norman Siegel, serving the marketing, advertising and communications needs of such clients as The Discovery Channel (“Explore Your World”), TLC (“Adventures For Your Mind”), Animal Planet (“All Animals All The Time”), Discovery Communications, Inc., Food TV, The Travel Channel, The Hallmark Channel (“Where Great Stories Come To Life”), National Geographic Channel (“Start Exploring”), PBS, Hyperion Solutions, Yankelovich Partners, Burson-Marsteller, Citizen Watch, and Crest Toothpaste.

His work for client Burson-Marsteller includes a Platinum Aurora Award for the rebranding of Accenture and a Gold Telly Award for the Government of Hong Kong. He was also the ghostwriter of the Wall Street Journal bestseller “It’s Your Money” for Christos M. Cotsakos, PhD, Chairman of E*TRADE Financial. Currently, Unconventional Wisdom is deep into development of Web 2.0 – providing digital content for clients across a broad range of platforms.

Steve works for Habitat For Humanity and is Chairman of the Board of Directors of ShareTheCaregiving, Inc. He hosts a radio and Internet talk show “Talking Pictures” with his brother, screenwriter Paul Lance and is working on his next book, “Advertising 2.Oh! – Blogging, vLogging and Slogging Your Way Through The New Media Jungle” with co-author Paul Kurnit.

 
Speaking Topics
  • Marketers Are from Mars, Creatives from Venus, and How to Solve Your Earthly Problems

    How come all the great advertising you like isn’t yours? Is it the fault of your company? Your agency? Your suppliers? Or does the answer lie in the processes that go into making great ads? Are your marketers “creative meddlers?” Are your creatives “strategy ignorant?” Steve Lance leads a lively discussion about the language disconnect between creatives and marketers. Marketers will learn why they can’t live with creatives (and certainly can’t take them to lunch). Creatives will learn why they’ve never wanted to take a marketer out for a beer. There’s always been tension between marketers and creatives. That tension is one of the secrets to creating great advertising. The key is to harness those forces for good – instead of engaging in a battle neither side can win. Steve takes you on an entertaining exploration of the creative process. Who knows? It might just transform your relationship with everyone in your organization.

  • Advertising 2.0h! – Vlogging, Blogging & Slogging Your Way Through the New Media Jungle

    Texaco Star Hour. Hallmark Hall of Fame. In the early days of television, advertisers owned the content and the networks were just the delivery system. Today, it’s GEICO, BK and Nike. With the arrival of broadband penetration and user-created content, we’re heading back to the future. “In 5 years, every major advertiser will have their own network.” That’s a quote from media guru Gene DeWitt – and he may be off by three years! That “network” will be a complex mix of Web sites, communities, virtual worlds, PDAs, cell phones, blogging & more. So what’s the right play in that media environment? How can national, regional and local advertisers participate in this universe of consumer talkback and empowerment across the Internet, PDA’s, and community sites like MySpace and MOLI? Steve Lance discusses the changing nature of advertiser communication – and the role that agencies, suppliers and vendors will play in this brave, new world.

Featured Book

Featured book's cover THE LITTLE BLUE BOOK OF ADVERTISING "Filled with those 'Why didn't I think of that?' truths that make it a must-read for everyone working in advertising." —Jerry Della Femina, co-founder of Della Femina Travisano & Partners Advertising Agency Buy Books now!
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