“I never expected they’d call me,” said Sandy Weisberger in response to winning AAF-Madison’s 2010 Silver Medal Award. After 35-plus years in advertising,Weisberger (now semi-retired after 19 years as Media Director with Hiebing in Madison), was in Florida on vacation when the phone rang. AAF-Madison representatives Bill Kennedy and Georgia Roeming informed him of the news. “It was great!” Weisberger said, “I didn’t even know I was being considered.”
Weisberger is a native New Yorker who, together with wife, Darlene, long ago adopted Madison as their home. It was a far cry from the lifestyle he once led as a cab driver in the Big Apple, a job he said he took because he really didn’t know what he wanted to do at the time.
A graduate of the University of Bridgeport, Weisberger originally enrolled as an engineering student, but when that didn’t trip his trigger, he switched to physics. A year later, he discovered marketing. “I took advertising classes, did some copywriting, and learned about radio and TV,” he dismissed with a wave of his hand. “But my kids are smarter than me now. It skips a generation,” he laughed.
Advertising by Accident
Weisberger broke into the advertising industry not because he pursued it, but because it pursued him. His is the story of the proverbial friend of a friend of a friend who told him about an opening at a New York agency. Weisberger, marginally interested, applied; then one day the phone rang. “It seemed like it would be an interesting thing to do,” he said, still somewhat wary. “I was good with numbers and liked the analytical portion,” he said. “That was over 35 years ago. Now I don’t know anything else.”
Through the years, Weisberger worked at several large advertising agencies — including McCann Erickson, Bozell and Jacobs, Cunningham & Walsh and GSD&M. He transferred often around the country. He worked in Chicago (where he met Darlene), and Dallas (twice), Phoenix and Minneapolis. Finally, having added young children to the mix, the couple chose to settle closer to Darlene’s Chicago family. Acting on a tip about an opportunity in Madison, Weisberger called Roman Hiebing, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Hiebing recalls interviewing Weisberger: “It’s always difficult to find good media people with experience,” he said. “But Sandy had moved so many times that I was concerned. I thought he was a fly-by-nighter. I knew he had the qualifications, but was he going to stay or leave? Turns out, he was the most stable guy there ever was!”
Change is Good
Looking back, Weisberger reflected for a moment on the changes he’s seen in the advertising industry in more than three decades: “Reaching people effectively is a lot more challenging these days,” he said. “Media habits are so different. More and more people are recording programs, zipping through commercials, and [spending time] on the Internet. It’s harder to break through the clutter. But traditional media still works,” he insisted. “[The industry] is more challenging, but also more interesting because we must learn new things.”
His advice to those following in his advertising footsteps: “It’s not about YOU! It’s about your client,” he said emphatically. “If you make it about you, it’s never going to work. Advertising is a service industry. You’re there to help a client find solutions and solve problems.”
Weisberger credits several former co-workers and mentors with teaching him the virtues of patience. In turn, long-time friend and former Hiebing president Scott Cooper credited Weisberger with bringing “humor, intelligence, kindness, and team play every day he was [at Hiebing]. He was mild mannered most of the time, but able to bring out the New Yorker when needed.”
Weisberger wouldn’t disagree. “I’m more accepting of the fact that I may butt heads with people, but that doesn’t bother me. I’ve always said that I’m an acquired taste that nobody really acquires,” he quipped.
Looking Ahead
Retiring from Hiebing two years ago, Weisberger looks relaxed and tanned after a month in the Sunshine State. He’s glad to be back, saying he and Darlene simply love Madison and the wealth of friends they’ve made here. He still works — though “on his terms,” he said — doing the marketing for the Madison Area Builders Association, and as a very involved volunteer board member with Susan G. Komen for the Cure. He also helps out with the Pleasant Rowland Reading Program when he can.
“I’d like to keep doing this for a while,” he said of his post-agency life. “I can’t sit around and do nothing. I can’t build furniture, and it’s not about money anymore. I’m happy because I’m busy, have time for myself, and can do all those other things. I don’t have the financial pressures any more, my kids are off on their own. There’s less stress … a lot less stress,” he said.
Don’t we all wish we could say that?
Weisberger will be honored at the AAF-Madison ADDY Awards Gala on Saturday, February 27.
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