R/GA channels Mao with its little red books

During a quick trip to R/GA yesterday, I was offered a flu shot (don't ask) and a copy of the first in a series of "monographs" that the digital shop is producing on subjects that are important to it. Naturally, subject No. 1 is ... R/GA itself. What is unusual is the theme R/GA is borrowing. It calls the series "Little Red Books" and is distributing them to all employees. This is, of course, the name given to the book of Chairman Mao quotations published by the Chinese government in the '60s and '70s. The Cultural Revolution meet the Digital Revolution. R/GA's version is a little less focused on class struggle and imperialism. Instead, "Ten Things You Should Know About R/GA" is a statement of principles such as the shop's customer focus and commitment to making brands useful. A note of caution to R/GAers who threw the book in a drawer: Mao had people beaten or sentenced to years of hard labor if they didn't have the Little Red Book on them at all times.

—Posted by Brian Morrissey

November 7, 2008 in Morrissey, R/GA, Self-promotion | Permalink