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How being open to ideas creates a healthier agency
Clients have good ideas, too.
There, I said it.
Now don’t go sending me creative hate mail. Or declaring my nose is artificially tan.
You see, for far too long, creatives have been trained to believe that any ideas that come from the client are automatically bad (in fairness, there have been a few doozies in my career). But if you step back and tell your ego to chill the heck out, there’s a chance you might see things from a different angle. And it might just open another path of exploration.
This openness doesn’t just apply to clients’ ideas. Agencies should be an open environment for ideas. Good ideas aren’t exclusive to just the creatives. While it should be the practice of creatives to “craft” the ideas, the process of getting the best ideas possible should be as open as you can make it.
One of my favorite campaigns from the past year stemmed from a comment made by the head of our media department. Landmark Bank had come to us to help them launch a new bank in the Dallas area. We thought, how do we make a small bank stand out in such a saturated market? They already had a line they had been using, “I’m a Landmark.” Our media person suggested using 3D technology to turn every new customer into their very own “Landmark.” Bingo! Signs, posters, emails, social, even video showing new bank customers holding small statues of themselves standing on a pedestal declaring “I’m a Landmark!” I mean, who wouldn’t want a small statue of themselves? It’s the ultimate selfie. The campaign was so successful that Landmark is already opening more banks in the area.
Actually, we’re currently working on a social video that was the brainchild of one of our clients. The video is turning out so good, I have a feeling it’s going to become an entire campaign.
At JNA our physical offices are extremely open – with lots of space to tape things up (and very little space to have a private conversation). When we’re in the middle of a big campaign, our walls are papered with ideas. Some look like final ads. Some look like a 5-year-old’s stick figures (usually the writer’s). We put them up on the long glass wall that everyone passes to go from one side of the agency to the other. As new ideas happens, they get posted for everyone to see.
This allows for two things to happen. One – the wall shows everyone where we are on a particular project. There’s no unveiling at the last minute – or last-minute drama. (I hate drama). Two – it allows everyone to make comments and suggestions along the way. And if the client happens to come in before the official presentation day, I actually love to show them the progress and bring them into the process.
The trick as a creative is to grow secure enough in your creative skin that you can be open to other ideas. We simply need to ditch the toxic “us vs. them” mentality. The byproduct is a healthier, more creative agency where people feel included, even the clients.
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Written by Lance McCormick, VP, Chief Creative Officer
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