WorkInProgress turned simple math into marketing gold for Domino’s new $6.99 campaign, literally slicing burgers into eight comically tiny pieces to prove a simple point: 8 slices of pizza > 8 slices of burger. The spots show real people — kids at a bounce park, football teams at practice — trying to share these pathetic burger portions, making competitors look absurd without mentioning a single name. According to Marketing Dive, CEO Russell Weiner conceived the visual metaphor before WorkInProgress expanded it into what co-founder Matt Talbot calls “illustrating value in this super clear way” for a deal that’s existed forever but new customers don’t know about.
Meanwhile, Indie Agency News members are demolishing other sacred cows: Moontide says your tech stack’s 19 untouched dashboards aren’t strategy, Attention Arc calls the goldfish attention span a myth, and Quality Meats Creative earned coverage for their “absurdly vulgar” Malört campaign. When indies stop playing nice with conventional wisdom, the work gets interesting.
The Great Truth-Telling Movement
When indies say what everyone’s thinking
Attention Arc is demolishing the goldfish attention span myth with agency swag featuring long-form copy that people actually read. Their thesis: attention isn’t short, it’s selective — and most brands give people nothing worth selecting. Consiglieri founder Chris Noble took to MediaPost to argue that marketing efficiency starts with leadership, not layoffs, calling out the industry’s quick-fix headcount reduction obsession. Left Hand Agency CEO Lauren Ridgley breaks down why brand health tracking is broken: “If your metrics only show good news, you’re probably not measuring the right things.”
Red Door Interactive dropped two truth bombs this week. First: your customer journey isn’t linear, it’s Google’s “Messy Middle” of search, scroll, and second-guessing. Second: social media is now a search engine, with AI indexing TikToks and Google ranking Reels. Still treating social as an afterthought? You’re already behind.
Women’s Sports Having Their Moment
When the revolution gets televised
BarkleyOKRP just launched a new project with the Chicago Sky WNBA — “The buzzer don’t stop” energy in full effect. Territorial director Andrea Buccilla makes the case on their podcast that softball is more exciting than MLB on TV: faster, tighter, packed with energy, and finally getting the respect it deserves. Serviceplan asks the critical post-Women’s Euro Championship question: was this a breakthrough or just hype? Their colleague Niko Backspin says it’s profound, lasting change — women’s football has what men’s football lost: attitude, authenticity, closeness.
🎬 Indies Building Culture Beyond Campaigns
When agencies become studios, publishers, and movements
Revery got featured in Ad Age for making actual indie films — “Clementine,” “A Love Story,” “Angel Hair,” and the upcoming “A Fork in the Road.” They’re not just talking about storytelling, they’re creating it outside the brief, building a film studio inside an agency.
Artemis Ward dropped wisdom in their newsletter “The So What” about why we fear cringe — and why that fear prevents breakthrough creative. Beers With Friends is sharing their “Bar Rules” series for disrupting the status quo, going lightning round with CMO Pub Quiz to catch the algorithm, and proudly declaring themselves “fiercely indie.”
🌍 Scale That Matters
When indies go big with purpose
Elite Media helped launch the #TeamWater creator collaboration reaching 400 MILLION people today. With MrBeast leading the charge, they’re proving creator economics can drive real impact: $1 = clean water for one person for a year. This isn’t influencer marketing, it’s influence with meaning.
Xpedition is helping ROARR project climate stories onto the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, starting at Victoria Falls. They handled the brand refresh, partner kit, and social strategy for what might be Earth’s largest storytelling canvas.
Giant Spoon and Walmart launched their biggest experiential tour ever — “Walmart Delivers” trucks hitting 10 cities through November, meeting K-pop fans, lo-fi gamers, and country western enthusiasts where they are. FUSE Create brought Canada together with their Confederation Centre campaign appearing on everything from print to coffee sleeves nationwide.
🎨 Creative Chaos & Calculated Risks
When weird works
Day One Agency turned e.l.f.’s Jelly Pop collection into wearable oozing art with visual artist Gab Bois — because sometimes the best way to sell lip gloss is making it avant-garde fashion. Mischief created such demand for Chili’s x Tecovas Booth Boots that they’re completely sold out — “It is okay to weep gently,” they posted.
Curiosity gave Stop & Shop a personality with “Good things are in store” featuring Justin, the new face of grocery love. Haymaker is cooking up something bold and spicy for Maggi with no sleeves harmed in the making. Argonaut packed their Cricket Wireless campaign with WWE’s Jey Uso and Easter eggs for superfans to discover.
👥 Building Teams That Actually Matter
When culture beats strategy (and shows it)
Super Nice dropped a team photo featuring their 11 full-time “forces of nature” with introductions that actually make you want to work there. Nicole Bradley: “Global DJ by night, art director by day, possibly not originally from Earth.” Jeremiah Adeola: “Thinks Maroon 5 is underrated and refuses to elaborate.” Hannah Lenkey: “Once threatened to fight anyone who said Green Day was ‘just okay.'”
Brandon sent off their summer interns with reflections on favorite moments, showing what happens when you treat interns like future leaders. Lewis had their creative interns create cinematic self-introductions. Broadhead is gathering their entire team in Minneapolis for their all-staff symposium “Radiate” with sessions on AI, fearless leadership, and Lead Like a Mother workshops.
🧠 Strategic Evolution & Expertise
When indies share the real playbook
VaynerMedia CEO Gary Vaynerchuk spent 10-hour days at the National Sports Card Convention slinging cards to understand what makes passionate communities tick. His take: your brand’s next idea isn’t in a spreadsheet, it’s where your customers actually are. They’re also celebrating the one-year anniversary of Day Trading Attention, the book that’s still being quoted in brainstorms.
The Alt League executives Meredith Chase and Rick Albano shared youth sports marketing insights with Ad Age after successfully launching Avoli and Combat MFG. Mower Agency created a guide on extracting gold from SMEs — how to get past blank stares and technical manuals to find real insights. Chameleon Collective broke down the 7 messaging missteps that sabotage international expansion.
🏆 Recognition & Momentum
When the work speaks for itself
The hardware and honors are rolling in. McKinney’s Darcy McCarthy was named an ADWEEK Agency All-Star for driving McKinney Health’s growth. Special Australia MD Tori Lopez is a double finalist at B&T Women in Media Awards. Broadhead collected three Telly Awards. Preston Spire’s Free Guitar For Kids posters made Communication Arts’ Advertising Annual.
Corner Table Creative got the full Indie Agency News profile for their hospitality-meets-high-impact-social model. Cornett’s CEO Christy Hiler landed on Ad Age’s Small Agency Conference coverage with President Jessica Vincent quoted throughout. Davis+Gilbert made BTI’s Client Service A-Team 2025. Barbarian’s CCO Adam Gloo is judging the Clios Entertainment awards. Klick’s Kristine Brown is on the Effie Global jury.
🎓 Education Gets Real
When learning leaves the classroom
Portland State University took MBA students into Portland’s entrepreneurial ecosystem — from creative cafés to sustainable urban farms to mission-driven brands. Students heard directly from founders about how passion, values, and innovation drive real business success. Words From The Woods created a video for The Roux Institute at Northeastern spanning their ecosystem of students, professors, researchers, and entrepreneurs — innovation that starts in Maine but ripples globally.
🚀 What’s Next & What’s Now
When indies set the agenda
Young & Laramore is hosting Unreasonable 2025 on September 26, featuring behavioral science insights including “The Upsides of Imperfection in the Marketplace” — how typos and errors can create value. Club CMO brings their Summit to Chicago September 9-10 with peer-tested answers and immediate playbooks. Duncan Channon is joining the AI content creation panel on how AI reshapes personalization and growth.
Pereira O’Dell teased something launching this week. Reverve Agency rebranded their podcast from Permission to Seek to Humans & Brands — getting closer to what they’re actually talking about. Yes& brought on Avigail Schlosser as CFO to power their next growth phase.
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Doug Zanger is the founder and editor-in-chief of Indie Agency News. He is also the founder of the Creative Bohemian consultancy, lives in the Pacific Northwest and is insufferable about it.
