• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, March 29, 2007

He probably won't stop at many Wal-Marts, even though some say it provides a window into the soul of America. But GSD&M President and founder Roy Spence this fall will embark on a coast-to-coast walk across the country with the goal to "feel America again."

The 3,000-mile journey starts Sept. 30 in southern Maine and will wind through New England as the fall leaves turn. Clients needn't worry: He'll be armed with his BlackBerry and cell.

"I want to connect again with real families, schools and urban and rural festivals," Spence said as he announced his impending journey at an industry event this week.

The genesis of the trek is a belief that marketing cannot lose sight of consumers and perhaps boardroom discussions, and experts running "regression analyses" may have left him too far removed.

"So while so many experts are trying to isolate us, I will be on the road looking for what unites us as a family and community of America," he said.

It's high time, he said, to "get out of the planes, trains and automobiles, if just for a moment, and into the hands, hearts and soul of America and the world, itself."

"Will this make me a better marketer? I hope so," he said. "Will it make me a better person? I am betting everything on it."

Spence's journey looks to take six years, as he said he will walk 25 days a year and 20 miles a day.

It will be hard to crisscross America without encountering a string of Wal-Marts. But even if provisions are low, it's unclear whether Spence will stop in--maybe for nostalgia's sake. GSD&M held the account for years before losing it late last year, then when a corporate snafu gave the agency another chance to retain it, the Texas shop declined.

Spence said family members would join him annually on the trek, where he aims to traverse different regions at strategic times--the Rockies in the summer, the Great Plains in the spring, for example. Former President Clinton is expected to tag along for a mile or so, maybe through Arkansas?

Even as Spence will be reachable via technological gadgets, the agency's day-to-day operations will be run by COO Duff Stewart and founder-Executive Vice President Judy Trabulsi.