Collaborative Disambiguity: Making Something Into Nothing
Posted by heatherrast on January 6th, 2010The plus-sized model isn’t aspirational enough for the brand. We need someone attractive, but not too.
The target for our dog food product is a married female, and in the photo you’re using there’s no wedding ring.
All the copy must be in French and English. Disclaimer sections, too.
We won’t have the focus group results for another 4 weeks but need you to begin concepting now.
Can you make it Christmas-y without using red? Or using the word ‘Christmas’?
A friend shared this hilarious post from The Oatmeal, covering the cliche (yet accurate) dynamic that is the client-agency relationship.* This ‘toon describes Web design specifically, but I find it easily applies to all creative development processes netting out in the forms of press releases, postcards, drip email, fact sheets, annual reports, radio spots, video, you name it.
Everyone has an opinion, and everyone is a consumer of a host of brands while being the target of three dozen more (that’s a lotta noise, folks). All this general and repeat exposure (Bob receives direct mail) coupled with personal, subjective preferences (Bob likes orange and doesn’t watch TV) lead many to think this marketing stuff is easy (Bob wants to launch the new product using direct mail only and the look should include lots of orange but not be mistaken for ING. We don’t have a list but need 40,000 units sold and have $4,000 total budget and a two-week timetable. I’ll be away from the office for a few days but we can stay in touch by email).
And sure, marketing is not rocket science, there is no gold-level certification. I know that. But good marketing relies on instinctive decisions honed from experience (successes and failures) strengthened by insights drawn from an insatiable desire to learn: learn about client business history, a brand’s evolution, consumer viewpoints, data trends, competitive activity, political/economic/cultural/societal factors and events, and technology-driven communications channels. That’s before you even touch the less glamorous side of marketing and brand management – creative talent caliber, technical expertise, efficient project management, and timely execution and budget reconciliation.
All of a sudden, good marketing isn’t as simple as using the corporate logo and including a pic of the CEO’s cat (because that’s…cute??) along with that tome of descriptive product copy the brand manager (or legal) insists is required. Something’s gotta give. And usually it’s the A) message B) compelling, remarkable factor C) simplicity D) relevance.
- Image via Wikipedia
So the next time there’s rumor of a new project, have your brief document ready. Make sure the client can articulate their offer, their position, and their objective. Agree on a process and handling protocol. Hold each other accountable throughout. If he mentions orange, ask him if there’s profile data to corroborate that choice. If he goes more than 2 rounds of revisions, re-estimate the project to account for the unanticipated billable hours. Before you hit SEND, it’s fine to get some feedback (and hopefully good proofreading!). But no piping up from the neighboring cube farm allowed. They have their own work (and presumably, specialize in).
Stay on task. Let your expertise drive. The end result will be a much more clear, focused body of work. A real, distinctive flavor instead of plain ‘ole vanilla.
* Hey you there. Yeah, you. The one who said “That’s not true! We get along with all of our clients! They respect our expert opinion! That’s why they hired us!” Drop the official-speak and think back to that last ad you created. How long from briefing to release? How many approvals were required? What were the number of revisions? Yeah, that’s what I thought. Run along now.
