Is It Criminal Not To Be Creative?

Creative has alot of up-side – it can often be memorable, evoke a laugh or perhaps two, be passed on to others that may not normally have received a sample and for the person who has actually come up with the clever and insightful creative – some old fashion back patting from colleagues, bosses and importantly, the client.

Today, no matter how much I wanted to be creative – I knew it wasn’t the time, the place or the right market in which to do so.

For tomorrow’s pitch to a building supplies company, I am going back to marketing 101. Sometimes, you just have to bite the bullet and give a client exactly what they need to connect with their customers.

Sure, we make more money out of outlantish creative and possibly could win some awards, but the reality is, the client has to sell their products or services and we have to provide the platform for this to occur.

The incumbent company has had the account for quite some time and I have to say, with many of their other clients they are very clever, very creative and I am immensely jealous of their ability to secure sexy and fashionable clients – that if I was in the b2c space I would love to have.

In the not so glam b2b space, we are restricted to say the least with what we do. There is no high end fashion shoots with supermodels in bikini’s happening down at Marketing Eye headquarters – although we do have one fashion client that is quite a bit of fun for the gen-y marketing executives we employ.

What the current agency has done I presume is to be far too comfortable with the client and to produce same old, same old collateral and marketing activites. They aren’t looking outside the box or perhaps the client has asked them not to. I am unsure, but tomorrow no doubt I will find out.

Pitching is a funny thing – putting your credientials out there, presenting in a room of people who may or may not like you or your ideas, being questioned on areas that often to the arrogant marketing professional common sense and being judged on your performance on that particular day – rather than on that week, month or year.

It’s disheartening to lose a pitch and although this has not happened to me too often (mainly because I cannot handle rejection and therefore do not put myself in the position to pitch to organisations relying very heavily on client referrals and repeat business) in the current environment we all have to put ourselves out of our comfort zones.

We’re prepared as a company and have been talking of nothing else for the last 2 days. The enthusiasm amongst the team is contagious and lively – so I do hope that the choice not to go creative, but to go back to basics wins on the day.

Marketing is my passion and I believe in the value it represents.

Fingers crossed… maybe toes too!

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