J.R. Watkins

Website

If you have the good fortune to stumble onto the 404 error page on the J.R. Watkins site, you'll see Joseph Ray Watkins himself saying, "Well, that's a fine how-do-you-do." I wrote that, but I did not think of it. I ganked that from Rosemary Furtak, who used to be head librarian at the Walker Art Center.

I learned a ton working on this website. First, that writing with a voice is a lot like acting. I inhabited a character every time I wrote a word; and every word was subject to scrutiny. It had to sound old-timey, but it couldn't be alienating to a 21st-century audience.

Second, I learned that clients love it when you come up with interesting ways to pimp their stuff, like tricks and tips or whatever. But if they don't have the tips and tricks up their own sleeves, you've got to conjure some of your own. And then legal might not let you tell people to use a product in an unconventional way unless it's been tested a billion times. So always have a plan B.

Or, as Rosemary would say, "Better know your onions, or you'll be in the ketchup."

Agency: OLSON

Credits:
Senior Writer: Hillary Churchill
Copywriter: Kelly Burkart
UX Designer: Callie Myers
Designers: Joe LaPorte, Corey Price
Creative Director: Nicolas Will
CCO: Dennis Ryan