Well it's usually not a big deal when an account is missed, but when you're a little shop in Texas, and you're hinging a potential name change on your next client, it may.

Yeah, as if business was ever won or lost based on a title. But either way, GSD&M won't be retrofitting its creatives' offices with gas grills, lanterns or stoves. We hear they didn't win the Propane Council account.

The agency hasn't seen too much of anything great lately, and with propane being considered to potentially offset greenhouse gas emissions, the lost business could have been lucrative. No better place than to see the troubling effects than on a smaller scale. One symptom is explained in the Humble Observer, article here.

It could have been big for the Austin, Texas based agency. But that part of the country is no stranger to lost work. Another Austin shop, The Think Tank, or T3, suffered huge layoffs when Dell left. They're still recovering, but many of the best creatives have or are planning to skip town.

As a friend tells me, there's no where else for interactive folks to go in Austin and the work is nowhere to be found. Amsterdam is experiencing a similar phenomenon. So, where has all the work gone?

Update: (Thanks BillyBlanks) "It should be noted that GSD&M lost this pitch to a local/regional shop from Minneapolis called Colle McVoy."

We hear the shop is waiting to hear back on a pitch from, ah, the Propane Council before announcing the change. And even though their only two wins this year have been L.L. Bean and John Deere, GSD&M is apparently also looking into getting the Popeye's Chicken & Biscuit account.

The tipster who brought us this news had the following insight on the situation.

"Tractors, flannel shirts, fried chicken and propane. The logical next step is to rebrand [sic] themselves from 'GSD&M's Idea City' to 'GSD&M's Green Acres.'"

So, one of our too-fabulous friends told us yesterday that GSD&M is trying to snag the Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits account.

Now, WE HEAR THAT... Campbell Ewald is also in the race from another tipster. Merci. In 2006, the chicken shack selected Houston agency Fogarty Klein Monroe.

Founded in 1972 in New Orleans, Popeyes is the second-largest chicken restaurant group with more than 1,800 restaurants in more than 40 states and 20 countries worldwide including United Arab Emirates, Japan, South Korea, Philippines, and Panama.

Do you remember the landfall PR moment that the AFC Enterprises owned biscuit shop scored a few years ago? The chain gave Beyonce a card guaranteeing her free food at any Popeye's for life after the singer mentioned how much she enjoyed their product on Oprah Winfrey's talk show. KFC has recently followed suit after pop star Rhianna was getting all kissing faced with boyfriend Chris Brown at a Miami location.

That aside, Popeye's is also getting some play in the film world. Lloyd Dobler, no sorry... John Cusack's new film "War, Inc." in which he plays a hit man whose latest mission takes him to the nation of Turaqistan. The Viceroy, who runs the Turaqistan green zone but is never seen, is actually hiding in a bunker behind a Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits. In the trailer above, you can watch the Popeye's explode. Their PR company is working over time, so they've got that going for them.

"It's been a bit quiet over at GSD&M. Luckily, we have an inside source who sent us in the inside scoop. Take it away Deep Throat:

What’s that aroma coming from GSD&M's Idea City? It
smells faintly like fried chicken, but it's more
likely the smell of desperation as the agency tries to
further staunch a $500 million-loss-of-business blood
flow by secretly pursuing the Popeye’s Chicken &
Biscuits account.

OK, who doesn't love fried chicken? But this account
doesn't seem like the kind an agency would use to
reclaim past glory. The creative is, uhm, challenging (we hear)
to say the least (3 Thighs for $3!!!) and they have a
revolving door history with agencies - three in the
last five years. Then there's the inevitable
in-fighting with the agencies already representing
regional franchise groups.

The recent L.L. Bean win seemed a step in the right
direction. Granted, they don't have the best track
record with agencies either (three in six years, then
the last two years when they didn't have an agency at
all) but at least there's some cache to the brand and
a hint of a promise to do good, innovative work.
Selling chicken wings and biscuits? Not so much.

Maybe it's that there's already a little schmaltz in
the blood. After all, GSD&M Idea City handled Popeye's
rival Church's Chicken way back in the 1980s."

The Idea City has had a tough year, but here is the D+ rated agency's chance to prove they've still got the stuff. The advertising agency learned Monday that it will handle the L.L. Bean account, which includes online, print, television and radio. L.L. Bean's media and buying duties will still be handled by Mediaedge:cia. Bucking retail trends, L.L.Bean is looking to up their dozen stores to 32 by 2012.

Hold on, kiddos. Lets see whether Mark Taylor can bring some of that Crispin game play to Idea City. Roy Spence has got to be praying to Xenu that Taylor can make it happen. That's he Kobe ready to lead the troops to greatest. We shall see... We shall see.

Announcer: In lieu of the numerous emails we've gotten about Adweek's agency report card for GSD&M, it's time to play you favorite game show "Does That Make Any Damn Sense?"

(Queue 70s era game show music)
(Queue applause track)
(Enter stage left the host of the show, Super Spy)

Super Spy: "Welcome, welcome to "Can. You. Add?" (applause track) "On today's show we're going to be taking a look at some complicated numbers. Are you ready at work audience? Okay. Here we go. Add up the following account win totals:

HD Radio Alliance at $230 million.
AT&T's 411 and 1-800-Yellow Pages at $50 million
Cost Plus World Market at $30 million
DreamWorks/Toshiba HD assignments at $20 million
John Deere at $20 million
Small Smiles at $20 million
Hallmark's mass channel at $20 million
San Antonio Spurs project, Baton Rouge Area Foundation, American Stroke Association - under $1 million each, but let's round them up to an even $1M for fun!

And what is your answer? It should be $393M. Now add up these account loses:

AT&T media at $1 billion
Chili's Grill & Bar at $75 million
Frito-Lay's Tostitos at $40 million
Wal-Mart loss in late 2006 at $10 million

And what is your answer? One billion plus $125M? We'll give you a second." (Queue tick-tock sound effect) "Your answer should be... $1,125,000,000. Now, this is where it gets tricky. Subtract, yes, subtract the wins from the losses. That's $1,125,000,000 minus, yes minus, $393M. (Queue tick-tock sound effect) "And what is your answer? It should be negative $732M." (Queue applause)

"Now, why is this our question of the day? Adweek's report card for GSD&M reads: "Billings flat at $1.8 billion, revenue down 3% to $112 million on restated 2006 revenue of $116 million."

"This calculation has caused a flurry of activity in our inbox. Well, you just did the math. Either the shop has $732M coming in on their media buying side straight up or that $1B from AT&T was media buying and so the shop made some percentage on the buys that isn't indicated in this Adweek blurb. Hence, the GSD&M is not really losing a $1B, but some slice of that pie. All very confusing right players?
The labyrinth of billings in this business can be troubling some times and so, we ask that you all take these report cards with a grain of salt. Obviously, they aren't covering every nook and narrow nor being precise in their language. Don't be upset if the numbers seem fishy. It's advertising! Hell, in this case, it's Omnicom.

At home players, feel free to chime in on any discrepancies you see on this year's Adweek report cards. In the mean time, I and hopefully, you, too have learned a little bit more about this shaky financial ground we call the biz. Until next time and thanks for playing!"

(Queue exit music)

Remember how I mentioned that GSD&M was pushing further into Second Life with their partnership with Metaversatility? Cybergrrl Oh's asks five questions of Rene Huey-Lipton VP Director, Marketplace Planning Department for GSD&M Idea City's Second Life initiative. Rene, by the way, is a very likable with her quirky avatar and affable personality. Watch the entire interview above.

Questions include: What kind of investment is Idea City making into Second Life? The dollar figure for the agency's island is $25,000 with more spent on IdeaBots and other such Second Life things.

What kind of return is GSD&M seeing? Rene says intrigue, skepticism and relationships. She goes into more details, but that's the skinny.

What are the metrics that the company is using to measure their program? Rene's short answer - "viewer eye rolls."

Is it worth being in Second Life is question four. Naturally, she says yes, otherwise that $25K wasn't worth it. "Our purpose, for our company at GSD&M Idea City is visionary ideas that make a difference and we think that this is one of those."

How much longer do you plan to be in Second Life is the final questions. Answer: "Last man standing."

Tribble points us to a new scandal for the downtrodden GSD&M. Seems the agency is getting sued. The Austin Statesman, spends quite a bit of time following the turmoils of the shop and from their pages, it seems:

"The lawsuit stems from a national advertising campaign that depicts a man waiting to check in for a flight who is asked by attendants to spin a wheel for a prize: a seat on a large plane. A song similar to the theme from "The Price Is Right" plays."

Agencies and brands are always getting sued. With their army of lawyers, you'd think they could secure this kind of stuff out of the gate. For example - take the Addams Family themed spots created by BBDO for Mars' brand M&M. The agency and brand cleared only some of the rights with the "Addam's Family Foundation," failing to clear incidentals on the usage rights for likeness of the characters portrayed in the print and TV spots. Mars is now being sued, though BBDO stays in the clear. Ryan Bowling, a spokesperson for Mars, said that it was the company's policy not to comment on pending litigation. C'est la vie.

Everyone is talking about GSD&M landing the renewal of the Air Force contract, which is good for the shop considering they've been doing nothing, but pro bono work. Good for GSD&M. Sort of... The original Air Force contract was $350 million over seven years, or $50 million per year. The new contract is estimated at $372 million over TEN years, or around $37 million per year. How is it that GSD&M can turn gold into straw? By winning, they've also kind of lost with a longer contract with less in estimated annual billings.

Don't you kind of feel bad for Idea City? Especially with that name, you might think they'd be able to get a clue. Staffers who still remain at GSD&M, Agency Spy loves you. We're wishing you the best in face of a your executive leadership. Gotta wonder whether Mark Taylor is starting to feel like he bit off more than he can chew.

From the press release:

"U.S. Air Force Selects GSD&M Idea City for 10-Year
Advertising Contract

~ $372 million estimated award value will fuel
marketing for Air Force recruiting ~

AUSTIN, Texas — April 3, 2008 — After a hard-fought competition and nearly a year since beginning the
process of vying to extend their seven-year relationship, GSD&M Idea City has been selected by the
Air Force for an unprecedented 10-year contract to handle national advertising, media and event marketing
duties for their recruiting efforts. The estimated value of the contract is $372 million.

The agency began competing in June 2007 for the contract after government contracting rules mandated a
re-competition for the business. The agency’s original seven-year contract with the Air Force was valued at
$350 million. "

Just a second ago, we mentioned that GSD&M has partnered with Metaversatility to begin taking survey and acquiring data in virtual worlds. See it here. We decided to take our own suggestion and ask Greg Verdino, CEO of crayon, what he thought about this new journey for Idea City.

"Strange indeed.

Virtual ethnography isn't a terrible idea – there are other companies walking down the same path and I think it's a path worth walking -- but I'm not clear on what any of this has to do with GSD&M. I know they’ve done some work in Second Life but they hardly seem to be at the epicenter of the virtual worlds movement. In theory, I'd think Metaversatility could have done this on their own – no?

Plus, I wonder if "lack of data" isn’t a red herring. I’ve never had a client tell me that they won’t experiment with virtual worlds due to lack of data;; lots of them shy away due to lack of scale, especially with worlds like Second Life and There.com. The real virtual world action seems to have shifted to youth-oriented worlds like Webkinz and Club Penguin and into worlds that seem to be more marketer-friendly like virtualMTV or inherently brand-focused like Virtual Magic Kingdom."