Jack Blog
December 4th, 2015 By Jack Morton
Whilst being surrounded by the very best in European advertising, it is easy to enter the trade-show mentality. I’m tired, yet inspired, yet slightly jaded and altogether a little overwhelmed. There is far too much to say in one blog post. So instead of writing an epic, I am going to share 3 insights that I’ve learnt so far that relate back to the extraordinary experiential marketing work we strive to create.
1. Simplicity is key.
The best work I’ve seen has been the most simple. One speaker said:
If logic doesn’t prevail, then the idea is too complex and will fail.
We can all, at times, (and i am definitely guilty of this) try to be too clever. Our work is all about communication and simple communications are the most effective.
2. Stereotypes are shit.
This is a most pertinent observation at this time in Europe, if we think of the many gross generalisations about both refugees and Muslims that we encounter. It may seem frivolous in comparison to think of stereotypes in relation to our industry, but stereotypes are shit whatever their focus because they don’t represent the populace en masse. Instead they obscure truth and throw away rational thinking. When creating projects that are focused on cultures other than our own, this festival has made me think about the importance of understanding the nuances, cultural variances and most importantly, the audience. The better our grasp is of the target demographic the better we can creatively speak to those people.
3. Saving the world is good for business.
Many celebrated projects at eurobest, and the presentations and case studies that I’ve most connected with, have shown brands using their power to not only sell products, but to change perspectives and behaviour to the benefit of society. One speaker asked:
Do you remember why you got into creativity?
My answer is that ‘I wanted to save the world!’ This might seem an idealistic ambition, but nevertheless, the work championed at eurobest has reminded me that we can, as marketers, change the world around us for the better. And we can do that by creating exceptional and brave work for our clients. Fact.