Northern Planner

All agency meetings - how to get out of politics and back into problem solving by being like Tom Hanks in Big

I've often in my adult life felt like Tom Hanks in Big. I suspect we all have. 

However, embracing this a bit in all agency meetings could improve your experience greatly. 

If you are fortunate, these are meeting of the best minds, the broadest experience and nicest people. All in order to bounce off each other, pool knowledge and solve client problems in the most amazing way.

In most cases, we are rarely that fortunate. They tend to be regular sessions of point scoring, back stabbing and deviousness. Regular skirmishes in a cold war fought with icy politeness, ruthless charm and merciless precision, all for share of budget, owning the idea and leading the strategy.

To quote Tsun Zu, the supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.

I have often found myself wondering if some clients enjoy the polite conflict playing out in front of them, or if some are wonderfully oblivious. I suspect it's both. 

Of course, great clients don't have the time or patience and people who don't play nice don't last long. 

Yet, even if it's the passive aggressive point scoring scenario, even if you're shy planner like me, all is not lost.

First thing to remember, no one cares if you're right. I've seen the nicest, most serene human beings fall apart because their watertight argument, there eloquent delivery or whatever falls not only on deaf ears, it's slayed through charm, off the cuff remarks and people the client simply likes more than you.

You will never win through guile and cunning, there is always someone more devious. Guile and cunning are in the job description of Account Directors, or should be. Make sure you have a great one with you, make sure you're gone through what you need out of their meeting and let then work their black magic. 

Or you can forget guile and cunning and be generous. 

Let me explain. Others will always be more slick, more eloquent and clever than you, however, the thing that kills charm  is enthusiasm. 

Like Tom Hanks in Big.

 

 

The trick to being a great planner is to genuinely care about what happens to the client, their business and their customers. Interested people are always more interesting, you'll naturally know more about every aspect of the client's business and it will show. Your enthusiasm will be infectious, clients will feel and WANT you to do well in these meetings.

Weirdly, it rubs off on your previously stand-offish colleagues too. Not only do they see you're more interested in everyone doing well through the client doing well, so you become less of a threat. You become simultaneously become more of a threat by exposing them as see you next Tuesdays. They play nice. 

The deeper knowledge, the palpable care enables you to cut through the bullshit with the brutal honesty only afforded the nice. Who can fault someone who wants the the best, not to win?

It also liberates you to ask the dumb questions no one has thought off or dares ask. Like what is the actual objective? 

And when you're not second guessing every move from people around the table, you're free to use your most powerful weapon, your ears.

Because when they are not being petty, other agencies are amazing practitioners too. You can be enthusiastic about THEIR work build on and., most wondrously, steal it for your own stuff another time.

I had the misfortune to work with a well known London agency, clients use to call them Motherfuckers, because they were brilliant, but arrogant. As soon as they messed up, they were fired. But I learned a lot of new ways to think about strategic leaps and deliver presentations that were stories, not decks. Watching their CEO deliver a creds deck was like watching Federer hit a forehand. 

The more approaches, ideas and frameworks you absorb, if you would just listen, the more you can breathe out at the right time. 

But it's hard to listen while you preach. 

 

Ultimately though.

No one wins unless the client wins.

To quote Morrisey, it's not easy to love, it's so easy to hate, it takes strength to be gentle and kind - but it's worth it. 

Follow that through, care more, be generous, be kind do the work. 

Be more Hanks. 

 

Mum

My Mum died 14 months ago very suddenly. I remember the moment I found out vividly.

I was driving to the tip to get rid of some accumulated crap and, just as turned off the main road onto the trading estate it was situated in, my sister called to let me know. 

It was like a kick in the heart.

Then I calmly finished the journey, unloaded the rubbish and drove home. 

From that moment until last week I never understood why I never felt as much as I thought I was supposed to feel. I got though the planning for the funeral, the day itself, the aftermath, the pain of untangling my life with my ex-wife that was happening at the same time, without any out-pouring of much emotion.

What on earth was wrong with me? I wasn't prepared to try and feel how others maybe thought I should, but it was weird. People who know me understand I'm not afraid to show my feelings, I'm lucky to have friends, who share, who talk.

Not a thing.

Then a few weeks ago, my nephew had his first child and a picture of my Dad, with the tiny bundle of joy, without my mother, made me feel something different.

For a week I didn't know why, then I realised the absence of my Mum in that picture had finally hit home, because it made me think of my time with her as a little boy.

Then, like some mental pinyatta split open, visceral memories tumbled out. 

My way of dealing with the death of my mother was to block out all those wonderful memories. 

How we used to cuddle on the sofa watching finger bobs after playgroup.

Her teaching me know to make lasagne.

The way her curly hair felt on my cheek when we hugged. 

Her over competitive spirit playing cards.

Her kindness yet frustrating lack of filter. 

So many memories forcing their way out.

She was so worried about me being alone.

I wished she could have met the new person in my life.

Seen my son transitioning into a teenager.

I wish I could have shared the pride and terror of my younger daughter becoming a young women.

Retaining her innocence and joy, yet sharp as a razor. 

Finally I am grieving for her properly. Honouring her memory by remembering her. 

Pain is a part of being alive.

Death is a part of being alive.

Avoidance of pain is dumb.

I miss you Mum. 

Be a brand people wish existed continued

I discussed here the challenges with simply following best practise and precision, beginning to suggest you might do better to focus on being a brand people actually existed. 

I must be clear and honest here, I'm not dismissing the splendid insight we have from years of data. Certainly, I wouldn't tell you to ignore Byron Sharpe. As with most things, you really must become familiar with the rules before you break them. 

Advertising is famously unpredictable, so the luxury of some level of certainty is welcome one. 

But that's the kind of strategy that can be, and increasingly is, done in house. Best practise is there to help you not do anything stupid. In fact, that's not real strategy, the point of which is reaching goals in the most efficient way, hacking the system.

No, that's not good enough.

In a world where people are savvier, harder to reach and numb to the overload of EVERYTHING, let alone marketing, we need to create stuff that connects. Indifference is the real enemy.

Markets have never been more competitive, it's naive to imagine many companies can just sit back and wait for long-term, brand  building effects.

Markets and culture just move too fast, we need to work with its pace, not against it. 

However, they need not endure the hand to mouth treadmill of short-term tactics that never really break through. 

That's why I think it's our obligation to create stuff people actually wish existed.

That doesn't 'disrupt' or make them think hard. No one has the time. 

Do the short term well and the long term will take care of itself.

By working with the pace and direction of real life.

Creating ideas that stand out, yet feel instantly familiar.

That make you react and actually want to buy something, yet remain in your heart for a lot longer. 

That cut through the landfill of pointless, pre-tested crap because they make you feel something.

That you want to have in your life, because they feel part of it.

Yes, build distinctive assets - in other words, consistent look and feel that doesn't constrict ideas.

Yes, build the brand over time - in other words, have a point of view on the world, have a story that every piece of activity builds towards. 

Yes, reach the whole market - in other words, whatever money you have make it go further by making stuff people want to share.

Yes, be make people feel stuff and be creative, but creativity to impress your audience, not awards judges. What they enjoy tends to be vastly different. 

The fact I'm going to share some rules of thumb is risky, you don't want to make advertising (it use that word in the broadest sense) that looks like advertising. 

But here goes..

First COLLIDE things together. Most ideas are re-combinations of things that don't obviously go together, the trick is making them fit. 

A pure example is the Cadbury Gorilla. Ignore the case studies that try and make it look it was about Joy. It was an ad that made no sense - a gorilla drumming and chocolate don't go together. This also shows why you need a real point of view or story - they never pulled it off again because really it was just a stunt. 

Whereas Snoop Dog and Klarna worked well, because the whole thing was about smooth transactions. Yes it's celeb endorsement, but it's a wrong fit made right. 

 

Then there is AGITATION. Tap into an issue in the lives of your audience, just make sure you have a credible reason to do it, that you have the right. 

This example where a supermarket removed foreign goods to show the dumbness of rampant nationalism is just great

 

Love or hate Brewdog, you can't deny they have a voice, something close to anti-establishment. 

 

Of course, it's not right for all, some brands want to be felt more reliable and negativity can backfire.

A safer option is simply 'closeness'. Show a deeper understanding of what's really going in in the daily lives of your audience, involve them, celebrate them, make it a shared story - get into the REAL emotional truth of what you're selling.

I'd love a UK supermarket in the cost of living crisis to go beyond PR and really expose the courage, bravery and kindness with which so many get through scary times right now. Like this plumber who will only charge what people could afford. 

Imagine if ASDA had gone beyond paying top dollar for this Elf Xmas ad, which I imagine will have cut through, and built greater resonance sending out real 'elves' to reward people making something good happen this Christmas. 

Or shooting the Elf out there in the real world with real struggling people. 

Anyway. I have always loved the replay campaign where Gatorade connected with over 30 year old athletes by settling old scores (every one wished they had second chance)

 

This is one of the best shopper activations ever - simply built on the fact we all love the sound of our own names - and probably some data about the need to remind lapsed users they love Coke .

Spotify Wrapped shows us our own data and taps into the tension between respective musical tastes and the slight fear of people knowing what you really listen to. 

I hate that Spotify recommends me Queen because I listen to Under Pressure sometimes but there you go.

Of course, there is pure creativity and magic. However, entertaining people was much easier when, in the UK at least, there was one commercial TV channel, no internet and shops were shut on Sunday. There is too much entertainment for us to consume nowadays. 

So instead, you can build short-term value and long term memory if you create things people wish existed in their lives because they're relevant.

They share a brand point of view, they are relevant to what is holding the brand back today.

While building the brand for tomorrow.

Because they work with the pace and direction of life.

They add to it, not interrupting. 

They stand out from all the dross because they touch something deeper.

Make you feel something so you buy something today and want to tomorrow. 

It doesn't take masses of budget, just masses of thought and enthusiasm for people, not 'segments'.

So yes, best practice is fine, but if you can do more why on earth wouldn't you?