Clever. But wrong. Or at least wrong-ish.

Adweek recently published this US map of agencies:

No doubt, this was inspired by this US map of brands which started its viral romp a few weeks ago.

I like it. Here's why: There are good agencies all over the country doing really good work that never get recognition. And maybe you should be working for them, helping them earn their spot on this map. This map kind of celebrates the little guys as much as the famous ones.

Here's why this map is silly: Choosing BBDO for New York discounts Mother, Droga 5, Barton F. Graf 9000, and even the other behemoths like Saatchi and Y&R who are doing great work. And even though it's hard to argue with Chiat/Day for California, that choice leaves out Goodby and 72andSunny.

But whatever. It's just a map.

They did get GY&K right for New Hampshire. Those guys are tearing it up.

The Creative Ham

Here's something I wish I'd had when I was graduating from portfolio school. It's a site called The Creative Ham, which is a working list of ad agencies by city. Everyone knows Goodby's in San Francisco and Wieden's in Portland. But if you really, really want to work in Denver or Philadelphia or Houston, their Forever Incomplete List of Agencies will give you a good start. There are great shops everywhere.

The Creative Ham was designed by Alex, a portfolio student about to graduate from The Book Shop. High-fives to Alex.