I felt like I stood out like a dog’s hind parts. The Caxton Weekend is about ad folk. I was a media buying boy in an ad folk’s world. But there was something that resonated from this weekend which affects both ad land and the media land that I work in.
Some folk may think creatives are thieves, in the sense that new ideas are stolen or bought (cheaply) from not so smart curators. They can come in the form of uni students, a bunch of mates mucking around etc. Before you jump, uni folk and all you other folk are smart, but perhaps could have gotten a little more than what you accepted for your idea (not just the dollar amount too).
I’ll admit it must be hard being a creative. Coming up with loads of ideas and then having them rejected. You finally come up with an idea that the client likes, then your idea comes to life and sinks faster than the disappearance of loo roll after dodgy Singapore soft shell crab (trust me it goes fast). Then comes the bad wraps from every place possible.
It takes a particular type of person to do that, and that’s ballsy.
It gave me a more appreciative understanding of the pressure that creatives are under. Then it made me think about media agencies. Get a bland product and give it an awesome kind of activation/campaign and then translate that into sales/increased uptake. When you think about it, there are quite a lot of bland products out there that would make the most ‘fuck yeah’ type of person do a double take.
Think of a recent product that is a little bit on the average side but brought to life with creative thinking. The most recent one that comes to mind was one I saw recently. A bread brand hooking up with Movember and giving out sandwiches. Bread. But it was bread made for men (so they claim) so it did give it that differentiation and an angle to guide them for their idea. Clever. But it’s bread. Bold. Did it work? Remains to be seen.
So what do these great activations have in common? Balls. The people coming up with the idea would have been convinced it was a great idea but there is always that little bit of fear.
That little fear is what makes us strive so hard. ‘Yes I’m ballsy, I’ll harness this fear and do all that I can to make sure my idea is the right one.’ Good on you tough nut!
Add to the mix: stress, sleepless nights, missing time with loved ones etc, and it truly shows the guts that folks have in this industry.
I take my hat off to the folks that have been in the industry for a long time and good on you other folk for deciding to take this industry on.
It’s a great industry and all things happen in cycles, there will be crap times and there will be good times. Just ‘nut it out’ during the tough times and enjoy it while times are good.
Cheers… all puns intended and by no means do I have a fascination with the aforementioned items.
Octavio Martinez