Alex Cook lets loose on WDIY's "Young Valley Leaders"
Standing Outside the Noise: A discussion on WDIY 88.1
Photo credit: WDIY
What’s the point of an ad agency if it can’t solve real problems? That’s where Structure starts every conversation.
Earlier this month, our Lead Director, Alex Cook, sat down with Louis Holzman - host of WDIY’s Young Valley Leaders - to talk about the state of creativity, AI, and why branding isn’t just design — it’s survival.
“We’re in the business of pain relief,” Alex said, when asked about what Structure does. Not the kind you pick up at CVS, but the kind that pulls businesses out of confusion and chaos. We fuse strategy, design, storytelling, and marketing into one single point of contact. No handoffs. No silos. Just one clear vision, executed well. It’s working — and it’s why our clients stay.
Alex took the conversation back to the early roots of how our firm got started, highlighting the music industry and turbulent environment; “We went backwards… Where I think a lot of agencies started off as ad firms and figured out how to incorporate creative into the scope of their abilities and what they can do, we started off in creative and put ourselves in the deep end with the music industry, which is hard in and of itself to work within, but then deeper within that we were specializing in the hardcore music industry, so that made it even harder because they're very dog-eat-dog. So coming out of it, we learned how to do really edgy, crazy stuff, thinking ‘how do we transition this out of music and into the corporate/commercial world in a way where it's not quite so crazy, but still gets people to think outside the box and try new things’, and then apply it to the actual campaigns.”
Alex went on explaining why he loves what he does every day. “I love my role as a director of all this, because I get to see the amazing team that we have and bring those people in, and work with them and help them grow as individuals, but also seeing the impact and difference we are making on the brands that we are helping.” Alex went on. “These are your Mom and Pop corner stores or local nonprofits. We're really seeing in real time the actual impact that we're making on them, and it's just so amazing to be able to do that as opposed to always working with a huge brand, where you do something and it disappears into a black hole and you don't really know whatever happened to it. It's okay to do those - and there's a time and place for that - but we get way more out of helping a local nonprofit and seeing them grow because of it… It's just so rich in reward and that's why I love it.”
And on the topic of AI?
Use the Robot… Don’t Be the Robot…
Alex didn’t mince words: “When you fight the future, you lose. And the future is AI...”
AI is a tool, not a replacement. It can generate, but it can’t discern. It doesn’t know what’s good. That’s where human intuition, taste, and strategy still win. The key is to slow down, listen, ask better questions, and actually interact with people. Sure, we use AI - it would be foolish not to - but it is simply another tool in the deep toolbox that our team sticks their hands into sometimes.
Building a Brand vs. a Business
If you’re thinking of starting something — anything — hear this: “Don’t just build a business, build a brand...”
Alex borrowed advice from legendary brand strategist Marty Neumeier: “A brand isn’t a logo or a product. A brand is a result and a gut feeling.” He went on to explain, “The reason you want to have a brand vs a business is because you want to have followers who are supporting you at whatever phase your business’ evolution is in, even if (and here’s a hard-to-swallow pill) your product or service isn’t great.”
That gut feeling is why people follow you even when things aren’t perfect yet. It’s why Liquid Death sells water at $2+ a can. Better water? No. Better brand. Same for McDonald’s; the food isn’t 5-star dining, but the branding is…
On Creative Confidence
For creatives, Alex’s advice was blunt: “Stop defending yourself before the fight starts. Stop explaining. Stop weakening your value by trying to justify everything. If they ask, you answer. If they push, you pivot.” He explained, aiming the sights right on all creatives. “You’ll often find that a fight wasn’t ever going to happen in the first place… They were planning on working with you anyways. And if they do walk away? Good. You dodged a landmine.” In other words, trust your work. Trust your process. And stop apologizing for knowing what you’re worth.
And for everyone else? The people thinking about being bold enough to start their own endeavor? Alex spoke on that as well: “Get out there and network, and stop trying to be weird or not yourself online… everyone else is taken - just be yourself.”
Photo credit: WDIY
Young Valley Leaders - led by Louis Holzman - brings you monthly discussions with the Lehigh Valley's upcoming movers and shakers, the young leaders making it happen for themselves and their community. New episodes air live the second Monday of the month at 6:30 PM following At the Movies.