Filed under: Comment
So a couple of weeks ago I held – what I call – a pizza–dinner party with a bunch of my colleagues.
What that translates to is that I bought some pizza and booze and invited some guys from different departments in the agency to ‘have a chat’.
The things I’ll do to be liked eh!
OK, that’s not why I did it – which is handy, because let’s face it, if I did, we all know it wouldn’t make the slightest bit of difference – however while we were chatting, I asked them all what the highest job title they would like to attain in their career.
There were 2 things that I found especially interesting.
1/ Quite a few of the guys said “Founder” … which indicates their desire to one day start their own company, something I’d recommend to anyone.
2/ One person gave a title that – in all honesty – would be no stretch for them to achieve within a few years at all.
This second point fascinated me.
Here was a person who is very smart … conscientious … diligent … eager to learn … and yet they were aspiring to a job and title that they could probably achieve in a few years without any additional effort whatsoever.
It didn’t make sense.
However, with a bit of probing, I realised this ‘goal’ wasn’t because I’d completely misread them or they were lacking in ambition and drive, it was because of uber-practicality and a total lack of awareness of just how good they could be.
In some ways it was quite refreshing – especially when I meet so many people who seem to have a ridiculously out of proportion evaluation of their own capabilities and brilliance – however their answer bothered me, because whilst I have no right to dictate what a person should – or shouldn’t – be aspiring to, I didn’t want them to set their goals so low simply because they failed to grasp how good they could be.
I remember a few years ago being in a similar situation with another colleague.
They mentioned to me that they’d be interested in one day working overseas.
When I asked where they’d like to go … rather than giving me a place, they responded with, “You mean I have a choice?”
Sure in both cases they were young and relatively new to both the working life and the advertising industry … but also, in both cases, they were/are fiercely bright and passionate about doing things that interested them and had real meaning which is why I hope they end up in a far more interesting, exciting and challenging place than they originally thought they were capable of reaching.
But here’s the thing, they needed to hear it.
They needed to know they were clever and capable of taking control of their own destiny … not in terms of moving higher up the advertising ladder, but in terms of wherever they ended up wanting to go … even if that ambition keeps evolving or changing.
This isn’t about being Paula Abdul and giving false hope or copious amounts of overpraise to all and sundry … it’s about letting people you feel have something special, understand that with hard work, good guidance and a bit of luck, you believe they could end up wherever they want to be – even places they never thought about.
I’ve written previously how I’d received this sort of support from both my parents and people I genuinely looked [and look] up to, so I can tell you first hand how much of a difference it can make [especially given a careers advice officer once said I should focus on a career in catering management!] so next time you spot someone who you think has that special something – especially if they don’t realise it themselves – make sure you tell them they have the right to dream bigger because you just might just find you can make more of a difference to how their life turns out than you could ever imagine.
Filed under: Comment
I’m traveling till next Monday.
To people in different continents, beware – I might pop in and pay you a visit.
Filed under: Comment
I’ve talked before about people being too quick to say long copy doesn’t work – when the truth is, it’s bad long copy that doesn’t work.
Just like bad short copy.
Or bad headlines.
When you read words that capture the sprit of the time … the feelings held within … the desires wishing to be released … long copy – or any copy for that matter – ceases to be words on a page, but an emotion that envelops you and takes you to a better place … a place that makes you feel alive.
I wish I had that talent … I wish I could write like that … but I don’t, which is why when I’m writing a brief – on top of looking for as much stimulus as I can possibly find – I like to work and collaborate with copywriters, because in my experience they help me capture and communicate what I’m trying to say in a way that allows the reader to feel the words rather than just read them.
I say this because I’ve just come across a piece of writing that I copied down from a BBC Football pundit a couple of months ago.
It was just before one of the last games of the English Premier League was about to begin – a game between Manchester United and Chelsea – where the winner would basically be crowned the champion.
While I don’t support either team, the way this journalist captured the importance of the upcoming 90 minutes made me feel compelled to be a part of it …
I wanted to be part of the experience.
I wanted to know “I was there”.
I wanted to belong.
“These are the days we live for; the days that come as a gift from above.
Today, kids will fall in love with football for the first time and grown men and women will look upon the action free from the cynicism they encounter in everyday life.
Today, all of us will watch the game through the eyes of a child – with hope in our hearts and the sport we love, coursing through our veins.
After eight months of maneuvering, jostling, cruising clear at the top and lagging off the pace, it comes down to this … a 90-minute shootout at the Theatre of Dreams to decide who will be bestowed with glory and who, after such a sacrifice, will have ultimately fought in vain.”
Maybe you feel different, but every time I read it – and I mean every time – I feel excited and nervous at the same time.
I want to relive the moment … see what happens … experience the ups and downs.
In short, that bit of writing is up there with this …
Or what I believe is the advertising equivalent of Al Pacino’s speech …
Sure, they both are clips that have been delivered with tension, drama and emotion … however if you were to take the soundtrack away and simply read the words on a page, I think you’d still feel the power of what’s being said, which is what we should all be aiming for.
Planning isn’t about writing, but good writing makes planning [and everything that comes from it] better – so next time you have a brief, don’t just think about what you need people to know, think about what you need people to feel.
Filed under: Comment
One of the things that I have always advocated is building a relationship with your clients.
I don’t mean just attending meetings, but creating a dialogue inside and outside the office environment.
This is not to be confused with becoming mates … or getting so close to the business you lose your ability to be objective … it’s about helping develop better understanding of each others needs and skills so that over time – and with a continual stream of positive actions and input – you can build the trust that leads to you being seen as indispensable to that individual and their business.
So how do you do it?
Well obviously it’s doing the big stuff well – however I am a firm believer you have to continually demonstrate you give a shit about them and their business … which means sending them information that you think is interesting … writing papers/documents/books that you think could be valuable, even if they haven’t asked for them to be done … doing mini research projects that you think could raise issues or opportunities for their business in the future … even going for lunch and just seeing how everything is going.
In short – as my colleague Richard Summers say’s – marketing yourself to them.
There are a lot of companies that believe the flow of communication should be carefully managed – and of course, you don’t want to go off and do things on your own without at least notifying your colleagues and wider team about what you’re doing – however if you think client relationships should only be the domain of the account service department, then you’re both limiting your influence as well as your ability to develop the skills that could lead to you working on things you really give a shit about.
This isn’t about being a corporate toady … nor is it about falling into a ‘client management role’ … it’s about shaping your role, influence and career which is why planners who think their job is only about working in the background are missing the point, because the best thing you can do is help clients define their objectives rather than simply responding to their briefs.
10 ‘Quick Ways’ To Open Dialogue
1/ Use Google Alerts to identify interesting news/issues that you can send off.
2/ Use Twitter to track popular opinions/news that might be of interest to your client.
3/ Read newspapers – you never know when a topic of interest may come up.
4/ Look at the things the company fundamentally believes and do mini projects to see if things have evolved/changed.
5/ Visit and photograph a different client store each week and report your findings.
6/ Do street interviews and report what you’ve found in relation to your clients business or just people’s general attitude and approach to life.
[You can do this in a whole bunch of ways … ways that also allow you to show off your unique/different approaches to uncover insights – ie: photographing what people have just bought through to the clothes they’re wearing to go shopping … and pretty much anything inbetween. Trust me, it would be a very strange client who didn’t find this interesting, if only for the approach you’ve used]
7/ Do a competitive review – but not on who their competitors are, but on who could view them as a competitor.
8/ Tell them about films/books that you feel cover issues that you know are close to their [personal or professional] heart.
9/ Connect them up to people you know who do things – or have experience in things – that are of [personal or professional] interest.
10/ Invite them for lunch.
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This is, of course, in no way an exhaustive list – I’m sure many of you have a bunch of totally different little tips and tricks to open dialogue – however if you’re lost and looking for a helping hand, any one of these may help, accepting that some [like research and competitive reviews] will take alot more time to do than others, which automatically has implications on just how often you can interact with your client.
Word of advice, don’t over-do your interaction.
There’s a fine line between helpful and annoying … but if you provide genuinely valuable information in a positive way, you will soon find you get sought out [as well as stand out] from the countless people they regard as giving them problems rather than solutions or even simply, ‘food for thought’.
PS: Happy Independence Day to all Americans out there. Though there’s nothing happy about it from her Majesty’s perspective.
Filed under: Comment, Crap Campaigns In History
I’ve worked on airline business pretty much all my career.
Actually, I’ve worked on one airline business pretty much all my career, Virgin Atlantic.
Now while I appreciate they’re different to most – if not all – the ‘established’ airline carriers, there are some things that are common across all – and one of those is to never, ever, Ever, EVER talk about safety in your comms.
Safety is a major no go.
Apart from the fact it’s a pre-requisite for all airline travel, the last thing you want to do is put any seed of doubt in the passengers mind.
Hell, I once got my knuckles rapped for jokingly suggesting the following for VA:
“Qantas are the safest airline in the World which means statistically, they are the most likely to have the next big crash”.
OK, so it was [1] statistically incorrect and [2] pretty evil … but even as a joke, it was frowned upon – that is how seriously they take this issue – which makes this new ad from one of the brands I love to hate – yes, Qantas – even more surprising …
Are they fucking mad???
“Because I can always trust them to get me home”.
Seriously!?
Do people ever choose an airline because they only ‘sometimes’ trust them to get them home?
They’re stark raving fucking mad.
OK, so their safety record is the best in the World, but …
1/ They are opening the door on the biggest airline taboo there is.
2/ If they have a major incident in the near future, their whole ‘competitive advantage’ disappears forever.
3/ Qantas have quite a track record of accidents, it’s just they pay for all ‘airline damage’ themselves, rather than claiming on insurance, which keeps their record intact.
All that aside, it’s a fucking terrible ad – from idea, visual and everything inbetween.
Now I am sure some guy at Qantas will claim this is not an ad about ‘accidents’ but simply the assurance they’re a stable airline that will always fulfill it’s ticket obligations – especially prevalent given the amount of Australasian airlines that have gone bust leaving thousands of people stranded – but even if that is the case, it’s reads absolutely like a fear mongering ad … designed to appeal to people’s sense of survival rather than their desire for a positive flying experience.
Which is handy, as you don’t get that very often on Qantas either.
Sometimes its much better to leave things unsaid … let them hang in people’s collective consciousness and build additional benefits around them to give your brand an even stronger and more powerful proposition.
Of course this is dependent on a whole host of things, however where safety is concerned, opening the door on that issue could prove to end up being the Pandora’s box you wish you kept shut … especially when there has been so many recent headlines talking about Qantas’ recent run of bad luck and maintenance.
I don’t know who did this – or who approved it – but unless we see competitive airlines running lines like …
“We Have A Bad Safety Standard Record, But We’re Cheap”.
or
“We Are The Terrorists Airline Of Choice And We Don’t Bomb Our Own”.
… I’m guessing they may live to regret putting out this crass shit.
I certainly hope so.
Guess it proves my point from Circus, when I said …
“If Qantas is the spirit of Australia, then the whole country is fucked.”