Manifesto

Back in the day of long martini lunches, advertising agencies were famous for creating leading American brands with their Fortune 500 clients. Big commercial production budgets fueled by even bigger egos gave birth to one award-winning-wanna-be spot after another. Everyone in the business dreamt of fame—even if only for :30 seconds. It was the life great TV sitcoms and dramas were made of. Then something happened to alter reality forever. Unfortunately, many agencies were so busy making rent on their Madison, Michigan and Main Street properties that they didn’t see the warning signs.

It’s as if the world-wide-web came like a thief in the night, silently rewriting the playbook on how brand messaging would be delivered—and more importantly—consumed, by people. Audiences

had taken control of what messages they saw, when, and for how long. TIVO sales shot through the roof. Viewers and readers of content became the authors of it. Blackberries and iPhones both expanded—and contracted—marketers' ability to deliver a message. In the on-demand age, consumers are in the driver’s seat. And not only do they impact delivery medium—they adopt or alienate a brand based upon its responsiveness to their input.

Advertising agencies began to acquire and reposition themselves in response to the new order. "Full-thought" marketing firms attempted to mitigate the reality that making a buck producing the next big idea wasn’t as lucrative as it had once been. "Insights" and "consulting" emerged as the services du-jour. But having

them didn't imply an agency's ability to apply them better—or at a greater value equation. Agencies scrambled to identify alliances and ready-acquisitions in the digital space, and began bolting them onto their existing menu of services. Unfortunately, bolt-ons don't yield changed belief systems. Old dog. New tricks. Pig. Lipstick. Enough said.

Digital shops were among the boutique specialists who emerged early with wired talent ready to prosper in the interactive age. They began eating around the edges of established agency-client relationships, where the AOR wasn't credible.

Also nipping at the heels of these late adopting agencies were a new breed of boutique branding

shop—keenly focused on avant-garde ideas. Independently, these boutiques were equipped to deliver a better product with better service at a better value. And their kind increased.

Enter present day, middle USA. Operating as a small digital boutique in the food-trade space is iMarlin. "i" representing interactive expertise to its clients and prospects. The little shop that could. If only.

If only it could position its digital roots as its strategic advantage. If only it had permission to play beyond its core. If only it had the time and talent to engage in innovation and business development.

Over libations at Finnigan's Wake and chicken potpie at the Austin family dinner table, the Alchemedia Project was born of a shared mindset that truly integrated branding won't occur in environments where solutions are bolted-on rather than built-in. Building upon the technology seed of iMarlin, the Alchemedia Project is a new company where creative and media are inseparable, functioning as interwoven halves of the same whole. Because we believe content best communicates within a context that supports it, we imagine message and medium together. It's our belief dynamic messaging environments mold and shape Living Brands™—where the brand constantly incorporates

intel gathered from its feedback systems to become increasingly more relevant in people's lives. We believe it should be impossible to discern where the creative ends and the media begins.

Our talent philosophy is built upon a people-first value system. We believe in the chemistry of joining people with diverse talents and shared mindsets. We are passionate about each other—and the combined mojo that happens when our individual gifts converge. We believe when you value people, people create value. We operate on the Hollywood studio model, and assemble the most sought-after talent in each functional area of expertise to discover, develop and deliver work of lasting value.

Each partner of the The Alchemedia Project possesses proven expertise and the ability to co-create in an open posture that supports the best ideas. It's a shared mindset, fueled by intellectual curiosity. And it isn't found everywhere. Our two most sacred company values are ingenuity and integrity. Our people are inquisitive, driven to ask "what if" and imagine endless possibilities. Personal integrity—congruent thought, belief and deed—is non-negotiable.

Our business is built upon the concept of borderless talent and technology-enabled collaboration. We can be anywhere. We reside in Kansas City. We reside in Springfield, Missouri. Our business cards promote our virtual address.

For the business seeking to create a Living Brand in a fragmented media environment, Alchemedia Project delivers ingenious outcomes because it is technologically rooted and driven by a spirit of experimentation.

Do you believe your brand delivers the same over-the-top customer experience everytime? Do you believe your brand has been adopted by people who incorporate it seamlessly into their lives? Do you believe you have realized the benefits of emerging media in the DNA of your business? If not, Alchemedia Project wants to meet you. We're not for everyone. But if you are ready to peel back the layers and shoot the sacred cows, we should talk.