Can I be forgiven for not blogging about the ICE Awards last week? I had a bit of an ICE hangover … actually I’d like to re-tract that … I don’t think there is an ICE Hangover, just a regular hangover and a great feeling of pride. Sure, there are a few agencies with sour tastes in their mouths, as some other agencies took home more crystal than usual, but we all know the game. And as a good friend of mine always reminds me, “Don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

When Brad and I took on the awards this year, we had four cornerstones that we wanted to build the event upon:

A single agency lead. Not single agency led: We wanted the planning and organization of the event to be as democratic and transparent as practical. All agencies were invited and encouraged to participate in the organization and execution. And regular updates were circulated.

Our clients are judges, too: Though the judges were reminded that this is a regional show, we did not expect judging standards to be at all compromised. What they were asked was, “Is the work at a level that has delighted their clients and impressed their peers?” If the answer is yes, they deserved to be recognized.

Welcome, Atlantic Canada: Although the show itself was in Halifax, participation from other cities was encouraged and welcomed as much as possible. The ICE committee endeavored to have representation from all four Atlantic Canadian provinces.

We’re in this together: We wanted to continue to foster the notion of “Friends of Ice” that was started a couple of years ago with the directory. All agencies and suppliers were welcome to support and participate. In addition, there was no exclusivity regarding sponsorship.

After six months of preparation and a sold-out show last week, we are thrilled to report that we lived up to all four principles and are proud of the results. On top of that, we were able to enjoy the show since we had pros taking care of the parts that were outside of our expertise … basically every part of the gala itself. Apart from the great work, the highlight had to be Steve Patterson, who for the second year, kept the iconoclastic crowd engaged and entertained.

By all the metrics we set out earlier this year, the 2009 ICE Awards event was a success. We had a record number of entries, the most awards ever presented, established a successful young creative competition, sold-out the show and perhaps the most important measure of all, no complaint letters … yet, anyway.

I've been in the marketing game for almost 25 years now and the most valuable thing I've learned is that I have a whole lot more to learn. I started off in sales and worked my way up (so I thought) to advertising. In hind sight, I realize that sales was the top! You can have sales without advertising, but advertising without sales is just useless art. When Trampoline Branding was formed, we set out with that firmly planted in our minds. Now more than ever we need to keep it very simple for consumers. Good thing, I'm a very simple guy!