Creative Strategy Week 2

1. Creative Strategy Week 2 Turn In Homework

2. AMA to New Orleans

3. Your Objectives for the Class

4. Creative/Creativity How to incorporate creative strategies into marketing strategies How to share & back up creative ideas Deeper understanding of how creative strategy influences brand identity & equity Steps taken to do a “unique” ad Understand why “creative” is so crucial, aside from the obvious How creative is really done Are my “Big Ideas” big enough A better way of discussing/writing creative ideas & strategies; when to be concise & when to be wordy How to write a good brief Ability to critique ad strategies Present & defend Three basic categories Process • Ins & outs of working within a creative department in an agency • Steps taken to produce work • Learn what a creative team does Career Prep • I need good ideas for work • How to apply my creativity; how to sell my ideas • Ability to succinctly explain objectives & strategy • Critical thinking; explain & motivate • Use my knowledge & experience; not just regurgitate • How to brainwash audiences • Meet new associates with whom to network & build careers • To better organize, articulate and present my ideas Misc. • Get out early • Not hate the class; have some fun

5. Networking events; third Wednesday of each month:Masu in SW Portland. • Starts around 5:30 and winds down around 7:30 p.m., depending on the crowd, which may range from 25 to 40 professionals. • Usually a mix of employed and unemployed, all looking to improve their situation or that of others. • Free, as are the email reminders • No standard format for the evening, simply show up with a few business cards, buy yourself or someone else a drink and introduce yourself to a few people. • http://www.pdxmindshare.com/

6. Creative Process

7. Functional

8. Experiential “The production of ideas is just as definite a process as the production of Fords. The mind follows an operative technique which can be learned and controlled; its effective use is just as much a matter of practice as in the effective use of any tool.” - James Webb Young, J Walter Thompson Writer through Director, 1912—1964

9. Young’s Creative Process Model • ImmersionGathering raw material and information through background research and immersing yourself in the problem • DigestionTaking the information, working it over, and wrestling with it in the mind • IncubationPutting the problems out of your conscious mind and turning the information over to the subconscious to do the work • IlluminationThe birth of an idea—the “Eureka! I have it!” phenomenon • Reality or verificationStudying the idea to see if it still looks good or solves the problem; then shaping the idea to practical usefulness

10. Bendinger’s Variation • PreparationMore info = more possible connections • FrustrationUnless the answer is obvious or reached through simple logic, frustration can result • IncubationMull it over; sleep on it; discuss with others. Groups of people and creative teams duplicate this same function • IlluminationAHA! Two previously unrelated elements connect—you’ve just had an idea • EvaluationIs it a good idea? Learning to be critical of your own work in a positive way • ElaborationWorking out the idea, copy and layout. Having good ideas is often pretty easy; making them work is work --Bruce Bendinger, author of The Copy Workshop

11. What Creative Teams Do • Develop communications that accomplish objectives • Their job:Turn all of the information regarding product features and benefits, marketing plans, consumer research, competitive information, market trends and communication objectives into a creative concept that will bring the advertising message to life • Your job:Get them close, inspire their thinking, and give them a great starting point: THE STRATEGY

12. Creative Output • OMG!!! • What were they thinking??? • Basic and commonly seen • Accurate and doesn’t suck • Better • Accurate, targeted, on strategy, connects, particularly arresting, intriguing, compelling • Best • Involves consumers on both rational and emotional levels; capable of affecting a change in thoughts and behaviorSo “nails” the intersection of subject and audience that a new way of looking at a product, service, category, or interrelationship is created

13. Note: Ads removed to reduce file size

14. How Creative Teams Do It • Advertising is a team sport; Copywriters and Art Directors depend on each other • If done right no business relationship is closer • Art Directors are visual: right side of the brain • Make ideas look right • Copywriters are verbal: left side of the brain • Typically more time with clients and account executives • Preparation, frustration, incubation, illumination, evaluation, elaboration • The meeting is the media* • “You probably think you do ads for print and TV. Wrong! You do meetings!” * Bruce Bendinger, author of The Copy Workshop

15. The Meeting is the Media Or, selling an idea can be harder than having one • Visualize the meeting • How big is the room? • Where is the wall? • Where are the people you’ll be presenting your ads to seated? Who are they? • You’ll have to make an impact in that space; own the room with the power of your work • Attack the wall • Give the meeting a headline • Get the theme up big • Have a simple right-brain visual to go with all that left-brain verbiage • Remember, if you don’t do the meeting right, the ads will never run.Or worse. Another team wins. Bruce Bendinger, author of The Copy Workshop

16. The Creative Brief

17. Purpose of a Creative Brief • Beginning point for the creative team’s work • Purpose of ad/campaign • Audience insights • Product insights • Tone, style, voice • Strategy • The document that inspires the creative team to do great work • Format varies by agency • All agencies and creative groups easily become militant about what is the “right” creative brief format and content

18. For This Class • Why we’re doing this • Audience Insights • Product Insights • Executional Considerations • Creative Strategy

19. Terms • Demographics: “hard” infoAge, gender, income, geography, household size, spending pattern(s) • Psychographics: “soft” infoPerceptions, preferences, values, behaviors • Findings vs. InsightsThe difference between data/information and its relevance Creative teams depend upon insights and like data/information to back them up

20. The Difference Between Findings and Insights • Findings = data/information • Insights = key points relevant to the assignment

21. Example #1: Travel Portland Findings • There are 56,637 corporate meeting planners on the west coast • There are 13,365 association meeting planners on the west coast • There was $107B spent on meetings in the U.S. in 2005, $75B of that from association planners • Ninety-percent of that spend was from delegate/attendee spend • There were 1,245,000 meetings held in 2005, 82% from corporate planners • 37% of corporate planners booked convention centers compared to association planners 24%

22. Example #1: Travel Portland Insights • Corporate planners present a greater opportunity for convention center business • While associations’ total spend was higher, corporate planners represent a stronger revenue opportunity for meeting facilities compared to associations • Corporate planners represent an excellent opportunity for Travel Portland to diverse its revenue stream and capture additional mindshare

23. Example #2: Samaritan Health Services Findings • Individual hospitals have unique naming without the SHS name incorporated • Brand assets are written with clinical tone and manner rather than empathy and compassion • Brand assets do not appear to have purpose or meaning • The health plan websites/collateral is totally different from the System and its sub-entities • The imagery, colors, naming and layout of brand assets are inconsistent throughout the materials

24. Example #2: Samaritan Health Services Insights • Clear definition of the SHS brand and sub-brands is critical to show relevance and value to the community • There is a need to bring clarity to the value of the system to demonstrate benefits received and differentiation from competition • Visual representation of the brand does not embody the integrated system – identity must be aligned to the brand

25. Back to the Brief…

26. Audience Insights • Based on the demographic, qualitative research and our collective experience, the most insightful target audience characteristics are… Here we talk mostly about psychographic and behavioristic characteristics. For example: What are the target audience’s big issues…their needs…their pains…their challenges...their fears…their hopes? How do they feel, what do they think when they use this brand or category? What are they looking for/do they want that this product/service/company can provide? • Why are some people in the target audience buying the product and others not? • What do they currently know and think about our brand? • What emotional and psychological barriers do we need to overcome? • What emotional and psychological characteristics can we enhance? • Who is the real competition and why?

27. Product Insights • What are the most important or unique rational benefits and emotional attributes of our client’s products? • How do these most important benefits connect with the audience’s needs, wants and world view? • What is the competition’s strong point? • What is competition’s weakness or vulnerability?

28. Executional Considerations • Proper message tone • Corporate posture • Brand personality • Current positioning • Competitive flash points • Legal taboos and requirements • Hot buttons • Concurrent brand campaigns • Peculiar market conditions • Specific client preferences • Other parameters that might impact the direction of the creative work

29. Creative Strategy • Based on insights (audience & product) and executional considerations the most compelling thing we can communicate is (what?) • A single, clear, focused statement • This is the Big Idea in rough form; it needs to be short, sweet, and to the point • This the most intellectually challenging part of the brief. It falls under the most scrutiny, generates the most debate, and is the definitive starting point for great (or horrible) advertising.

30. Sample Brief from Last Term

31. Audience Insights • Target audience • The target audience for this advertising campaign is women 24-34 who are looking for a comfortable bra that adds support without the annoyance of an underwire. Average annual household income of $73,000 and already has a favorable view of the Warner’s brand. • Audience description • Julie is 27 years old and is a barista at Starbucks. She has struggled to find the “perfect” bra ever since she began to wear them. She has tried several different brands but has failed to find one that offers great support while still being comfortable. Often times she walks into a store and is clueless about which bra to buy that fits her body the best. This is a very frustrating experience and she wishes there was a better way to buy a bra.Julie is a confident, independent woman. If she found the ideal bra she would not hesitate to buy it no matter how expensive.

32. Product Insights • Most important attributes • Support and comfort • Product description • Warner’s collection of wire-free bras provides the support of an under-wire without the discomfort. Women often force themselves to endure the under-wire because it is a “necessary evil.” Meaning, that it greatly enhances the appearance by making a woman appear bustier, but at the same time the wire can be painful and dig into the chest. Warner’s has finally created the solution to this problem in crafting the perfect bra. A bra that provides comfort and lift without the painful under-wire. This bra also has a sexy design that will suit the audience, because it‘s not too skimpy yet not too covered either. It comes in a variety of colors and sizes to suit any occasion. This product will coincide with a “Wire-Freedom Event” which will have an expert bra fitter at several locations in order to help each woman find the appropriate size and fit for their body type.

33. Executional Considerations • Brand personality • Caring about customer desires and confident about their products. • Focus and feel of advertisement • The focus of the ad should be the bra. It needs to look comfortable and sexy. It needs to make the woman viewing the ad feel as though she has just found what she has always been searching for. The ad should be fairly simple yet it should excite something inside the viewer to learn more about the product. • The most compelling thing to communicate about this product: • The search for the perfect bra is over. Warner’s has crafted a bra that will meet all your expectations if not more; it combines comfort, support and style all into one bra.

34. Creative Strategy Feel perfect and look perfect too.

35. In-Class #2 • Truth, Lies & AdvertisingChapter 5, up to “The Briefing Itself”

36. According to Jon Steel: 1. What is the one reason to write a brief? To help make advertising better • A brief is not intended to: Prove a point to yourself or to others • A creative brief(ing) is the bridge between [what] and [what]? Smart strategic thinking and great advertising • What defines great advertising? Advertising that involves consumers on both a rational and emotional level, and is capable of affecting a change in both their thoughts and behavior

37. According to Jon Steel: • The two main tasks of a creative brief are: Inform and inspire • Who should be involved in preparing a brief(ing)? The brief(ing) “owner” and team members who can contribute meaningfully • If it’s not [what] to the consumer, it’s not [what] to the brief? Relevant; relevant • Of the two hours in John Webster’s briefing, how much time was “irrelevant and useless”? One hour, 59 minutes

38. According to Jon Steel: • To John Webster, what constituted a great briefing? A single word or sentence that gave him an idea • What, in a perfect world, might a client prefer a creative brief to be? List of instructions; checklist against which to “grade” the advertising • Downside of this approach (instructions; checklist)? Little, if any, room for creativity • What is the key word in the John Madden/Michelle Pfeiffer paragraph? Relevant • What’s the difference between writing to a brief and writing from a brief? Limiting vs. liberating

39. According to Jon Steel: • What is a good way for planners and account executives to justify their existence? The quality of the advertising or the quality of their creative briefs/briefings 15. What do you think of Hegarty’s means of coming up with the first ad in a campaign; explain why briefly. • What is the argument for putting creative ideas in a brief? If the writer of the brief can’t come up with an interesting, relevant idea the creative team will probably struggle as well • How does Steel equate Joe Montana to writing a creative brief? Simplicity is genius

40. For Next Week Homework • Pick a product and write a brief • Find and source audience information • Remember the difference between findings and insights:Data and information vs. its relevance • Remember to write the brief as though you’ll be presenting it to your creative team Extra Credit #1 • Crispin Porter + Bogusky vs. Carton Donofrio Partners;who’s more relevant today and why • http://cpbgroup.com/ • http://www.cartondonofrio.com/