Into the Library with Terri Meyer
Terri Meyer - the Terri in New York agency Terri & Sandy - announced in May her retirement from advertising.
It was a landmark moment for the agency - it was co-founded in 2010 by Terri and long-time creative partner, Sandy Greenberg. Terri and Sandy have been co-creating work since 1994 when they both worked at J. Walter Thompson. Peyton Sutton, EVP of client partnership at Curiosity, was appointed Terri & Sandy's first ever president to coincide with Terri's retirement.
Terri got her start in 1980 as an art director on Budweiser, Southwestern Bell and Mars at D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, St Louis. It was there that she met Sandy, a copywriter, and began one of the longest-standing creative partnerships in the industry.
In 1993, Terri and Sandy were recruited to become creative directors at J. Walter Thompson New York by James Patterson, the ad executive who became one of the world’s bestselling authors. At the time, less than 1% of creative directors were women.
Next, FCB offered Terri and Sandy the opportunity to become ECDs on Nabisco cookies and snacks, before in 2010, after years of prodding from clients, colleagues, and friends, Terri and Sandy decided to venture out on their own.
They started their agency on Terri’s dining room table and penned their mantra, 'If you don’t have a seat at the table, build your own table'.
To celebrate Terri's creative legacy, LBB's Addison Capper took a trip down memory lane, gathering anecdotes and insight behind the most important work from her career.
Kodak - Snow Angel - 1994
This was my partner Sandy Greenberg’s and my first assignment at J. Walter Thompson. An Olympic commercial to run during the Olympics. And the job was just given to us, no other team. A rarity indeed. We felt like we were two kids let loose in a candy store. Linda Kaplan and Hal Friedman were our GCDs and, of course, Jim Patterson was our CCO. It was a dream job from beginning to end. Greg Walker was the best client, ever. We presented the spot; they loved it and off we went to shoot it. Thom Higgins, our director, did such a great job that we decided to name the little boy after him. This was the first time that we got a spot written up by Bob Garfield in AdAge. He said, “All in all, it was a dramatic and moving Winter Olympics. But perhaps no athlete engendered viewer emotion as poignantly, and repeatedly, as Tommy Higgins. Night after night, Tommy captivated America with his virtuoso performance." I still have little Tommy’s hat to this day.
Ad Council - Safe Storage of Handguns and The Justice Department - 2000
Sandy and I have always cherished the opportunity to create work for the Ad Council. But this proved to be a difficult assignment. We started by immersing ourselves in research. Coincidentally, this was our first encounter with Tracy Chapman, who is now head of strategy at Terri & Sandy. Back then, she was a member of the ‘Mind and Mood’ research team at FCB. To better understand the mindset and behaviours of gun owners, we went into their homes and asked them how they stored their handguns. It was a very charged topic, and many accused us of wanting to take away their firearms. We knew we had to find a way to persuade them without provoking their anger. We reviewed countless articles of children being killed and killing loved ones with unlocked guns. The statistics were staggering and inarguable. But how could we dramatise this in a way that was motivating? We came up with the idea to tell these true stories through the voices of children and their art. We researched how children used art to help get through the trauma. When we went back to show the work to gun owners after production, they thought that the NRA (National Rifle Association) had funded the campaign. That was the highest compliment imaginable. (Along with our Emmy nomination.)
Oreo - Train - 2008
Let’s go back to 2008. The Beijing Olympics were poised to captivate the world. We landed the plum assignment to develop a spot that would launch the night of the opening ceremony. We presented the ‘Train’ spot and the clients loved it. Like many of the best OREO spots, it dramatises a special connection forged over the twist, lick, dunk of an OREO. It also conveys the international appeal of this beloved, iconic brand. The spot was named the number two Olympics commercial by the Wall Street Journal. And yet OREO was not an official Olympic sponsor. Huge win!
Planters - Perfume - 2008
The stress and pressure of creating the first Super Bowl spot for Planters took years off our lives, especially when the mandate came down from Kraft senior management that anything less than a top 10 finish in USA Today’s Ad Meter would be considered a failure. Chris Baldwin, then president of Nabisco, was our true unsung hero - he stood by us and supported us throughout the arduous process. Brian Buckley became Sandy’s favourite director of all time. And Chris Franklin, our long-standing beloved editor, brought his usual genius to the project and came up with the idea of using the Frankie Valli song ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’. Not-so-fun fact: because Jersey Boys was huge on Broadway at the time, Frankie was very protective of his brand and wouldn’t give us approval to use his song unless he liked the finished spot. Thankfully, he loved it (which was good since we didn’t have a backup). And the best news? We were number nine on the Ad Meter. And I’ll always love the shot of the woman adjusting her wedgie at the end…
Disney - Be a Champion - 2016
We got the call from our dear friend and long-term colleague Marty Muller, SVP, global creative at Disney Parks, asking us if we wanted to pitch the Disney Princess business. The ask? Reinvent the Disney Princess franchise to become more relevant for a new generation of moms and girls. Of course we said, “Yessss!” Being a woman-owned agency, we are staunchly committed to helping women flourish and thrive, so this was a dream job. Soon, ‘Dream Big, Princess’ was born. One of the highlights of our careers was presenting the work to Bob Iger, CEO of Disney. He was incredibly smart and charming. And he approved the campaign in that very meeting. One of the great things about Disney is that when they get behind something, they really get behind it. The campaign ran in 40 countries and inspired girls to ‘dream big’ all across the globe. It doesn’t get any more meaningful than that.
Avon - Boss Life - 2016
When Avon came to us, they had a difficult problem. Their sales representatives, the life blood of their business, were ageing out. They needed a whole new generation to sell Avon. The great news? Millennials were the new entrepreneurs. They wanted to work on their own terms, make their own hours - essentially be their own boss. ‘This is Boss Life’ redefined the Avon opportunity for a whole new generation. The campaign was incredibly successful in attracting millennial women to the Avon opportunity. Most importantly, the existing team of representatives felt a new sense of pride. We won the business with this campaign and produced it in less than six weeks. Thankfully we did survive.
Gold Bond - Euphemisms - 2021
When a really good idea presents itself, you often need a great client by your side to make it come to life. Helene Pamon, who at the time headed up skincare at Sanofi, was (and is) precisely that. Gold Bond Powder had been struggling to connect with younger men. Our diagnosis? The brand just wasn’t speaking their language. So, inspired by a bit of social listening, we developed a digital video that explained to guys where and why they needed the dryness and freshness that only Gold Bond Powder can provide. And we did it by using all the colourful phrases and euphemisms young men use to describe the feeling of being a bit damp, and, um, un-fresh down there. Our team came up with this proactive idea in which men throughout history discuss their ‘perspiring orbs’ in a series of increasingly hilarious euphemisms. Some of my favourites are: ‘swamp schlong’, ‘between-the-thighs, slip and slide meatballs’, and ‘man meat feeling the heat’. Funnily enough, the video was conceived and primarily written by a woman, Rebecca Baldwin. And it was ultimately greenlighted by another woman, the courageous Helene Pamon.
Freshpet - I’m a Dog Mom - 2024
Freshpet was our agency’s first client. They came to us as a mere pup, created the fresh pet food category and, 13 years later, are the number one fresh dog food in America. Our long-running advertising campaign, ‘It’s not dog food, it’s food food’, highlights our superior, fresh ingredients and consumers love it. We decided it was time to celebrate the pet parents who were making the choice to feed their fur babies fresh food. Enter Freshpet super-fan Meghan Trainor. We developed a music-based campaign, presented it to the singer and she couldn’t have loved it more. After reviewing the work, Meghan was keen to write her own song. ‘I’m a dog mom’ was born. We filmed a music video featuring the popstar and her four dogs. I don’t think I have ever been so happy to see a rough cut in my career. The song is sooo contagious. As a dog mom myself, I couldn’t stop singing it. Woof!
