Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Context, Craft, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity, Cynic
Once upon a time – when we had cynic – we were approached by a car company to work on a secret project for them.
Or so they said.
As we spent more time together, we discovered what they wanted was to see if we could help them stand out from the competition when their cars were literally rebadged cars from another manufacturer [under licence] and there was almost no distinctive feature whatsoever.
Originally, we thought that was an interesting situation in itself, but the more ideas we presented, the more we realised, ‘what they wanted’ … and ‘what they were willing to do’, were very different indeed.
So one day, exasperated, we showed them a campaign that looked just like every other campaign, except we removed every element of background. For all intents and purposes, it was the car driving around a white space. And while that sounds weird – and shit – it actually had this hypnotic effect.
Familiar and new.
Clinical and intimate.
Boring and interesting.
It was strangely bizarre, and while the client never made it – in fact we told them we didn’t want to play with them, shortly after this – that work still messes with my mind for the feelings it gave me.
Mainly because on face value, it shouldn’t have made me feel anything.
But then, if it didn’t have that effect, then Andy and Rudi wouldn’t have come up with it.
I’ve thought about that campaign every now and then for literally years, and then I saw this:
Suddenly it all made sense.
Why that idea felt comfortable while also igniting confusion.
But a confusion that was addictive and infectious.
And all because what we’d done was create a campaign that was generally the same as every other car ad campaign, but with one distinct element removed … meaning it felt psychologically very different, which meant it felt very emotionally different.
Which is why this piece I saw recently from Nils also hit home.
I love this.
I admit, it’s something I’ve been a part of countless time, but it’s always felt part of a conversation of curiosity rather than part of a designated creative process.
So seeing it written down was really good and powerful.
And to me, this kind-of captures the difference between making advertising and creativity.
When we make advertising, too often we think of it as an entire package … where everything needs to communicate a singular message that has been designed to present the product or brand in the most favourable light. But when we think in terms of creativity, it’s more about igniting feelings and emotions – things that stick deep within and make you think.
And that’s what we did with that ad we presented to the crazy client … we made something that was creatively psychological rather than advertisingly logical … exemplified by the fact that while I’ve seen a lot of car ads in the past week, I can’t remember any of them. But I can remember how a car ad we put together 20+ years ago made me feel.
Sometimes, the worst ideas open the door to some of the best.
So be careful before you kill things … you might be destroying your chance to do something that you’ll never be able to shake.
Thank you Mario.
Thank you Nils.
And thank you Andy and Rudi, who caused this whole mindfuck for me, over 20 years ago.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Effectiveness, Empathy, Management, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Mediocrity, Planners, Relevance, Strategy
So the good news for you all is this is the last post for 2 weeks.
Yep, you’ve guessed it – I’m on a holiday, I mean a work trip.
Or should I say trips. Plural.
First to Europe. Then Australia. Then LA … I know, I know, I’m a prick.
Now given I pre-write my posts [for example today is the 25th Jan] I appreciate I could still cover this period, but let’s be honest – after 18 years, I’m running out of things to say so we could both do with the break from each other.
What that means is this is the last post until March 4.
MARCH!!!
How the fuck have we got there so soon? Oh, I suppose we haven’t yet have we … but anyway, March 4 is a Monday, so you get to have multiple weekends before I ruin your week again.
You’re welcome.
So now what do I do after writing that long-winded introduction?
Fuck knows.
But recently I saw a couple of things that I thought were particularly good and both revolve about intelligence in marketing rather than the egotistical commodification of it.
As I’ve written a few times before, I’m a bit fed up of the ‘hustle culture of commentary’ that our industry has got itself into. Where everyone seems to speak like they’re gods and gurus who have invented or reinvented the World.
That doesn’t mean they’re idiots – many say stuff that is genuinely interesting – but so much of it has an air of self-interest. Hijacking topicality for self-capitalisation.
Though the ones who claim they’ve got the answers to everything make me laugh – especially when they do nothing with it other than pedestal spouting. I mean, how stupid is that if they think it’s going to change the world. But maybe its because somewhere along the way, they’ve realised what they’re claiming is not ‘new’, just new to them and all they’re doing is reinforcing how little they know about their industries history or life outside their bubble.
That’s not wrong, we all do that to a degree, but it tends to lead to people changing their ways rather than doubling-down on their ego.
But even those people aren’t as annoying as the ones who claim some sort of ownership over something someone has actually done, because they spouted something vaguely associated with the topic on Twitter/X about 6 years earlier.
As I said a while back, it will only be a matter of time before someone makes a paper plane and claims they’ve invented flight.
Look, I’m all for thinking out loud – hell, I’ve been doing it on here for almost 2 decades – but when it’s conveyed with the confidence of a mediocre white man [copyright Chelsea] then that’s where the problems start. At least for me.
There are some brilliant people out there … genuinely brilliant. People who do stuff or try stuff with what they think and say. And a lot of them aren’t even on social media. But unfortunately there seems to be a lot more who are camped out on social platforms … churning out an endless stream of strategic myths, obviousness or bullshit … using a tone that suggests they’re innovators and anyone who dare challenge them, is a luddite.
It’s kind of the Trump strategy and sadly, like Trump, it works with many.
Which makes me wonder, ‘what if I’m wrong?’.
And you know what … I could be. And I’m open to be.
But popularity is not a sign of originality … or accuracy … or smarts … and I think those things are pretty important too.
That said, if we’re going down this imitation intelligence path, at least make people think rather than try to demand how they should think. And recently I saw two things that did just that.
The first was this:
Now I appreciate a strategist supporting a message of not getting lost in planning may sound a bit weird … but apart from everything else, it makes a welcome change from the overly complex schtick we seem to be celebrating and advocating for right now.
Of course thinking things through is important. But one thing we don’t seem to talk about a lot is the importance of knowing when to stop. So you can put things into motion rather than putting them into an endless loop of consideration.
I got given a piece of advice once I’ve held on to for a long time.
“Be rigorous as hell until you find something exciting …
… then stop and protect it at all costs.”
Now I appreciate the person who told me this was very successful so could afford to say that, but their point was that it was this approach that had got their position. In essence, they advocated for planning to show them the way not obscure it.
I like this view.
When I was starting out, strategy was valued when it was powerful simple … delivering a path to the bigger, better places with sharpness, potency and focus.
But now it seems we’re not like that.
The general narrative appears to be ‘we live in different times with different considerations’ and so we need a completely different approach to the work we do.
And while they’re not wrong about a lot of that … we’re forgetting what strategy is for so now we’re at this weird place where it appears the value is in the complexity rather than the potent, fierce, simplicity.
Please note I say simplicity, not simplistic – which is another thing some people do in an attempt to look like Einstein, when all they’ve done is reduce Liquid Death’s success to “a can that looks different to all other water cans”.
But I digress …
The reality is strategy that is all about complexity is harder to execute, easier for people to hide and more focused on what is done rather than why we’re doing it in the first place.
And that’s why I liked the clip above … because it was a reminder we need to protect what we want to do rather than only care about where the process will lead us.
Which is why I also liked this:
Sure, I get it’s a retrospective, observational view … but it’s interesting and simple.
And funny.
Plus if it was true, it would be a piece of fucking amazing reframing strategy.
Not that people would say that or see that.
Or at least not as simply as the originator articulated.
Which reminds me of the image we used in our Cannes Strategy Is Constipated, Imagination Is The Laxative talk with the image of all the different strategic frameworks that say the same thing in ever more complicated ways.
My Dad once said that people who want to show how smart they are, aren’t that smart.
That their need to demonstrate their brain is a demonstration of their insecurity.
I wonder what he’s say if he was alive today and saw how a lot of my industry was behaving.
Because I think he’d have a different view.
That their talk is not about insecurity, but distraction.
It’s why I loathe when I hear people say ‘we’ve done all the work so you don’t have to’.
Oh my fucking god.
But I appreciate this post is getting so long that I’ll be back by the time you’ve finished reading it. That is if anyone did read this, so I’ll just leave you with this …
There is no ‘secret’ to being good.
Even the most talented people work hard at developing it.
In a world promoting hustle, we need to give more value to graft.
I get that’s not a popular thing to say, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.
So stay open to different views but be cautious of definitive claims.
Especially from people who can’t point to what they’ve done beyond how many people follow them. Because you just might find they value speed over substance and you don’t want their ego to be at the expense of your growth.
Huge apologies for the epic rant, a bit like old time – ha.
See you in March.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Brand, Cannes, China, Comment, Complicity, Context, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Differentiation, Distinction, Effectiveness, Honesty, Imagination, Marketing, Martin Weigel, Metallica, Nike, Paula, Planners, Point Of View, Provocative, Succession, Uncorporated, Wieden+Kennedy
When Tiger and Nike recently ended their relationship after close on 3 decades, there was a lot written about why.
Hot takes.
Wild ideas.
Conspiracy theories.
But among them all was a post by Tom Bassett – a brilliant ex-Wieden strategist who was there when so much of what became Nike folklore was written.
The reason his voice stood out is because it wasn’t WHY the relationship ended, but why it started.
At the heart of his story was the brief Phil Knight gave for NIKE Golf.
He said: “Get NIKE to be #1 in golf or we get out the category all together”.
Having had the errrrm, pleasure(?) to meet and present to Mr Knight a few times, I can literally hear him saying/barking this … and what I love about it is the stubborn, blinkered ambition.
We seem to live in a world where the majority of conversation is around optimization … efficiency … brand assets … and basically how to get the most out of what you’ve got.
There’s nothing wrong with that, except it’s all about not being wrong than being as good as you can be.
Or said another way, being comfortable with what you’ve got as opposed to being impatient for what you want to have.
Get to #1 is a proper goal. One where the evaluation criteria is very fucking simple.
No hiding behind incremental growth or internal metrics … #1 is a criteria that dictates decisions and investment rather than the other way around.
Sure, there are ways #1 could be reframed in an attempt to look like you’re doing better than you are . Let’s face it, we see this sort of shit in the ad industry all the time, especially around award time … but Phil Knight wasn’t about skewing results but going right at them … which is why he didn’t place any additional burdens on how to achieve goal, other than demand it was true to the sport and how NIKE see’s the athlete.
Sounds easy, but it isn’t.
To do that takes a lot of confidence.
Confidence in who you are … confidence in your team … confidence in what your company stands for and confidence your company is full of people who know what that translates to in terms of behaviour, consideration and action.
And that’s why we often undermine the value of confidence and right it off as bravado.
Of course it can be that, but it is also about trust, experience, knowledge and openness.
As a chef once told me when we were doing Tobasco research at W+K, “the more confident the chef, the less ingredients they use”
And that’s why I love the clarity of Phil Knight’s objective.
He could have added a million mandatories, but he knew that would add a million reasons why his objective would then be almost impossible to achieve.
At least in a realistic timeline.
Which is why, as difficult as the objective was, he increased its chances of success by being clear as fuck and – to a certain degree – open as fuck. Enabling the team to not just tackle the project head on – rather than tap-dance around politics and restraint – but to also place responsibility back on the company in terms of what it needed them to do to help make it happen.
Not just in terms of money, but action and change.
It is one of the many reasons why I loved my time in China … why I loved Branson’s brief for the Virgin lounge … why I love working for Metallica and Mr Ji.
Sure, in China’s case, it was often more the ambition and scale than the clarity … but for the others, it is/was the single-minded, stubbornness of their objective, the trust they placed in the people they were asking to help them do it, the commitment of the whole organisation to give it the best chance of making it happen and the willingness to walk away rather than accept a poor substitute of what they wanted to change.
We need more of that.
Creative work would be more amazing for that.
Effectiveness would be more powerful for that.
But sadly we’re in a world where it’s all about hedging bets, outsourcing responsibility and managing internal politics rather than being focused, fierce and open on creating change.
Proper change.
Real change.
Massive change.
It all kind of ties in with the ‘Strategy Is Constipated, Imagination Is The Laxative’ talk Martin, Paula and I did in Cannes last year.
The obsession with playing to the process while being continually outsmarted by those who are focused on enabling the possibility.
And while some claimed we were being irresponsible, unrealistic and even unprofessional in what we were saying, the reality is we have – and are – in the incredibly fortunate position of working with brands/people who prove the most responsible way to create powerful and lasting change is not by hedging your bets, but being willing and open to fight for it all.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand, Communication Strategy, Confidence, Corporate Evil, Corporate Gaslighting, Creativity
As you know, I love tech.
Especially pointless tech.
So I’ve often found myself on fundraising sites like Kickstarter – putting myself down to help fund all manner of projects.
The reality is most end up being pants.
Like, proper pants.
Nowhere near the hype videos that they create to sell their idea.
But even that isn’t as bad as how delayed every project ends up being.
I have NEVER had one come when it claimed it would.
NEVER.
But recently, while looking at some old emails, I realised that sometimes, they’re not just late … they’re basically redefining time.
Have a look at this.
This product is called Scribble – a pen that let’s you scan any colour and it would then create the ink of that colour so you could write/draw with it.
Back in 2015, this was cutting edge which is why – despite never really using a pen and definitely never needing one that could write in any colour – I bought it.
Except, thanks to reading an old email, I realised I never got it.
Putting aside the fact that shows I have a bad memory, a flagrant disrespect for value for money and too much other shit coming into my life so I get distracted with what I’ve ordered – I started wondering whatever happened to Scribble so I looked them up.
And guess what … beyond all expectation, they are still around.
So I’ve written to them to ask where my bloody overpriced pen is.
And when I say overpriced, I mean OVERPRICED … especially when you can get those cheap multi-colour pens for about $1 at the local newsagent.
I should say I’ve told them that given 9 years have passed since I paid my money, I would rather they donate the value of the item to a charity than send it to me … but it does highlight the fatal flaw with platforms like Kickstarter, not to mention stuff like ‘brand vision’ and ‘purpose’.
Because while there are people who love the idea of being early adopters, co-creators and/or supporters of companies/brands who want to write the future – and let’s face it, I’m probably one of them, if the companies they’re supporting take so long to make anything happen that the future becomes the past … then you don’t just get angry, you lose trust.
Honestly, failure is a better outcome, because at least you know they tried.
Our industry loves to talk about the importance of ‘clarity, communication and purpose’, but one thing we often fail to acknowledge is that while people will put up with a lot of shit, they need to see you fighting and giving a shit.
Saying, “we’re not happy with the quality we’re making for you yet so we’re sad to announce we have to delay sending out the products for the 500th time” isn’t fighting … it’s outsourcing blame.
We’ve started to believe that as long as you apologise, you’re worthy of loyalty. But the problem is people can smell marketing/hype/excuse bullshit a mile off – so what they actually want is to see you fighting to make something happen.
Not just in terms of the product, but your approach to everything you’re doing.
So it might be good in 2024 if the industry goes a bit further than regurgitating the same bland statements in our pitches and work … because if we don’t reinforce marketing needs to be an extension of the values and behaviour of the whole company – rather than the hype man of the company – then we’re as complicit as them.
Wow, that Scribble Pen really fucked me off didn’t it.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Brand, Comment, Communication Strategy, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Family, Fashion, Fulfillment, Happiness, Health, Individuality
So as I wrote a couple of weeks ago, my health situation has had a profound affect on me.
Not just physically, but emotionally.
From actually liking myself a bit to suddenly being interested in clothes – simply because now I feel I have access to choice, whereas before I was left behind by it.
I know that might sound weird for a person who has seemingly only ever worn shorts/jeans, black t-shirts with weird logos on them and Birkenstocks … but while I love those items and still wear those items, I have to acknowledge some of this may have been influenced by their accessibility to me.
But now a whole new world has opened up.
Different shapes, different styles, different colours and different brands.
Admittedly, part of this has been helped by having a client who is the Godfather of Street Culture Fashion and who keeps sending me clothes from the brands he’s started/bought/owns … but maybe, for the first time in at least 3 decades, I not only can explore and experiment with fashion, I want to.
It’s stark, raving, bonkers.
And you know what else is crazy … they’re not too bad on me.
OK, I know I’m never going to be Mr Stylish, but I’m also not Mr Blobby anymore either.
It’s made everyone happier.
Me.
My family.
My friends.
My colleagues.
My clients … especially the fashion lot, who – maybe for the first time – are happy to be seen with me rather than just work with me.
But there’s one item of clothing that has now entered my life that really highlights the impact of this healthier lifestyle.
Again, part of it has been influenced by freebies – which in this case, the copious amount of NIKE’s I’ve been given over the years – but I’ve started buying socks.
FUCKING SOCKS!!! Who the hell am I?
But it gets worse, because they’re not the cheap, ultra-thin, black sock shit from the local supermarket that I’d have grabbed in the past [unless NIKE gave me some] … they’re socks like this:
Yep, designer-ish socks.
OK, so these are sweary socks – or KFC fan socks, depending where you look – but I have loads of different ones. In different colours. With different imagery and messages.
And I bought them.
With my own money.
And why did I do this?
Because – get this – I CAN COLOUR CODE THEM WITH WHAT I’M WEARING.
I find this both sickening and hilarious all at the same time. But I’m here for it, because it is a symbol that I am starting to care about myself in ways I never cared about myself. Not in some desperate need to look stylish – because we’ve already acknowledged I’ll never be that – but to remember than my health has given me choice.
Now I appreciate this sounds stupid.
And I appreciate most people have been this way for decades.
Plus – as a mate recently said – I acknowledge I’ve swapped one daft fashion addiction for another.
But for 53 years, I’ve never had a chance to explore this side of my character and so it’s all new, intriguing and fascinating. At least right now.
Of course it doesn’t mean I’ve ditched the birkies.
Or the jeans/shorts.
Or the black tees with weird logos on them.
It just means they’re more of a choice than a necessity and while there is a disgusting amount of superficiality behind what this has ignited within me, it’s quite an infectious feeling. Which is why I want to thank my family, friends, colleagues and clients for all their support and encouragement on this journey, because I couldn’t have done it without them. I should also thank them for not raising their eyebrows too much at some of the things I am turning up in each day, hahaha.
Hopefully you can tell from how much I’ve written about this subject in the last 4 months, that this has been an incredibly powerful and liberating experience for me. I may muck up in the future, but how I feel because of it is too strong for me to completely forget.
Which is why I can’t work out why health companies have not talked about this benefit in their advertising. Some may have mentioned it – albeit in very contrived and superficial ways – though most tend to either be utterly rational or all about body shape.
Now while I am sure those approaches connect to some audiences, from my perspective the most surprising and enjoyable benefit has been feeling I have been welcomed back into life. That I have choice. That I have a way to explore and express who I am and who I can be.
Or said another way, I get to play dress up, but for adults. And not in a weird way.
Well, not in the weird way some people could read that.
And while that may not sound exciting in words, for those experiencing it, it’s about as uplifting as you can get. Because you’re not just living life, you’re rediscovering it … but with all the experience and lessons from the years before. [But sadly, without the ability to exploit history to make loads of cash … damnit!]
As I’ve said before … should anyone be interested in knowing what I did and how I did it, just let me know. I’m no expert – and I still have a way to go – but I found a way to make it work for me and if it can help you, I will be happy to share.
No judgement. No expectations. And no recommendations on socks. Promise.