A lot of briefs say ‘be creative’.
Or this is a ‘chance to push things’.
Or even ’this could be a Cannes winner’.
The issue is everyone’s opinion of what great creative is differs massively.
I remember one briefing where we were told we needed to be really creative and out there. One piece of ref was Bo Selecta, which was massive at the time.
Sounds great right?
Well, imagine if Bo Selecta hadn’t been created or become incredibly popular. If we’d come up with a surreal campaign starring a guy wearing an oversized Britney Spears mask talking with a strong Yorkshire accent they’d likely have looked at us like we were mad.
What we did come up with created a response that wasn’t far off.
If something’s so new or different the instinctive human response is to fear it. Not what you want when presenting work.
That’s fair enough, you wouldn’t eat some strange looking berries in the woods without some good evidence of why they won’t poison you.
Getting the right level of creative can be difficult. What’s creative for one client is not for another. Some clients will be really for a big leap from the off and others need a series of smaller steps pushing forward over time.
You have to find the right level for every job, push on a few steps beyond that then sell it in a way that makes the idea feel like the clear, obvious and right answer.
But if you do have an amazing Cannes winning idea, even on a brief not ready for that level, present it anyway. You never know.
