Dave and I were working together at TeleTech in Moundsville for a year or so. I had a pretty cushy job as a supervisor and he had an even cushier job as some ‘coach’. We would often break away from the call center action and discuss projects.

I had recently taught myself (read books) on how to write screenplays. I wrote six episodes of a sitcom based on my favorite hobby – professional wrestling. Dave read them and gave feedback. In return, I would read his screenplays. We both had interests in movies and film.

Wendy’s Drive-Thru

During one of our late-night shifts, Dave and I went to lunch (dinner?). We drove down the street to the Moundsville Wendy’s. We made an order for a few Junior Bacons and a medium fry. When we pulled up to the window, they handed us a large fry.

They Bigged the Medium

Dave coined the term and we were a bit slaphappy that day. It was funnier to us than it should have been. Needless to say, we repeated it often and everything was ‘bigged’.

Website and Advertising Agency

Dave had a few blogs running at the time. Most dealt with movies or writing. He soon bought the domain bigthemedium.com and we had a joint blog. The beginning was pretty basic – short entries that meant nothing.

We both were annoyed with our job and would often talk about how we could make advertisements for local businesses. My wife was (kind of) working in advertising and I had a general idea of what it would take. Through her outside selling, she sent a few clients my way for websites.

It wasn’t shortly after, Dave moved away to the Northeast and I went ahead and created my own website (The Imaginary World of Eric Hersey). The agency idea died but Big the Medium stayed strong.

Life Goals in 5-Years

Years later I was working in retail and was sent to manager training in Chicago. The first day of class, the instructor had everyone give their five-year goal. Lots of people were saying upper management, buy a house, and other normal answers. When it came to me, I said I wanted to run my own advertising agency. I had a few odd looks.

The idea for Big the Medium never really died. I made a few mock-up web designs and even made a Facebook page (unpublished). I always thought the name made sense – we would make you bigger on any medium. It was fun to say and there wasn’t anything like it.

Five years later, I was indeed working for an ad agency in Steubenville, Ohio. I didn’t plan it and never intended, but it’s funny how things work. The company wasn’t Big the Medium, but I had my fair share of helping to develop a brand. I wasn’t the owner, but my opinion mattered (I was in control of the website).

Would I Want an Advertising Agency?

I was probably incorrect in 2008 and later in 2012. I never wanted an ad agency and probably only wanted the ability to make money doing the things I enjoy. Sometimes that is editing a video, other times it’s writing a script, and most recently it’s designing a website.

There is a lot to an ad agency (I’m a little more aware since I work so closely with several). Acquiring clients by cold-calling is not something I enjoy. I also am only one person and don’t have the time to do every little aspect. Even though I don’t want a full-service ad agency, I still think I can ‘Big the Medium’.