I've worked on quite a few things, some of it freelance that I have signed NDAs for, or it never made it into the world.
But here are some kind words that people I have worked with have said/written.
David is one of those rare breeds of creative who can come in as a writer or creative director and get the job done – no matter the voice, client, brief, or industry. He finds the perfect marriage between clarity and creativity every time, and despite his talent, has zero ego about stuff.
- Tim Stiefler, Founder of Gush
David has been our creative sherpa as we’ve been developing the Buderflys brand. He was instrumental in establishing the personality and tone of the brand. And has consistently been a valued perspective with our communications, social strategy and writing, and go-to-market plans. As well as being a major part of writing and designing our website.
- Shea Gerhardt, CEO at Buderflys
David Smail was brought in to work on a sizeable pitch for the agency, and contributed concepts and manifestos that proved to be crucial for the deck and in-person presentations.
- Matt Talbot, Partner_Creative at WorkInProgress Boulder
David’s ability to find the essence of a brand, and articulate it in a clear and powerful narrative, is impressive. His talent for bringing a brand to life (or reviving it) through the difficult and immersive medium of storytelling and conceptual output is immensely valuable for any agency or client he serves.
- John Weiss, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Human Design
David is a rare bird. He's been steeped in the advertising world, founded the Vietnam office of BBDO, served the world of academia and hungry minds, and mentors up-and-coming professionals with The One Club. He holds perspective few attain, and wields it wonderfully for his clients.
David helped our agency find its voice during our rebrand. As a result, our rightful place among the countless competitive agencies who know how to tell their story. David's perspective client side and agency side made all the difference in us understanding our own perspective.
- Fred Hart, Partner & Creative Director at Interact Boulder
Man, David's writing could make dog shit sound attractive.
- Matt Rheingold, Owner of Zengold’s
After reviewing David’s printed advertising work for various global clients, I thought I had found someone who could tell a story in a way that would resonate with the audience and bring the emotional connection I was hoping to bring to the film.
After hiring and working with him I found he could do all of that and more. He is smart, thoughtful, strategic, and creative. He has the ability to take any subject and wrap it with just the right tone to convey whatever emotion that is required.
The best part of working with David is David himself. He is fast, collaborative and pleasant- a rarity in a world filled with low talent, high ego of creatives.Hiring him for any project will be the best decision you will make today.
- Charles Mangano, Senior Director of Strategic Video and Communications Consulting, University of Colorado Boulder
I have known David Smail for more than a decade. We first got together in 2007 when BBDO was looking to set up an agency in Vietnam. David, being creative by profession, was our business partner and also the creative who ran the agency as Chairman. During the nine years that David was with is, he grew the agency business, and consistently produced EBIT margin in excess of 20% for us.
- Soo Siong Keoy, Chief Financial Officer at BBDO Asia and Japan