If you’ve been in marketing for more than five minutes you know about the importance of agency briefs.
If you want the best work you need the best agency, but even the best agency can’t deliver without a clear and detailed brief.
Yet it seems that many marketing departments don’t have a clue about briefs!
Well, that’s the conclusion coming out of a US survey reported recently in Advertising Age. The survey covered more than 250 senior US executives at a variety of top agencies.
The agency executives reported that at least 30% of staff time is ineffective or wasted due to poor communication from clients.
More than half of the survey respondents said fewer than 40% of client briefs give them a clear indication of what's expected.
Some 30% of agency respondents said only 1% to 10% of briefs provide clear performance expectations.
The survey results reflect an insight also gleaned from the experience of the person who commissioned the survey: Casey Jones, former VP-global marketing at Dell, who now runs a marketing consultancy called Jones & Bonevac that counts among its clients Microsoft and Walmart.
Mr. Jones said the study was prompted by observations from his time at Dell. "A lack of commitment to tight and coherent input to the agency was a major contributing factor to the struggles between Dell and the agency," he said.
There is obviously a real need for marketers to learn how to write a brief. But there’s even more to it than that. There’s the whole issue of clear thinking and a commitment to a strategic direction.
The survey highlighted a major problem about strategic thinking relating to the way briefs change along the way.
A massive 75% of agency respondents reported that client briefs go through an average of up to five significant revisions. This is AFTER the project is underway!
Maybe even more amazing, 8% said they've seen briefs go through upwards of 45 iterations.
Clearly, this is unforgivable. The marketing managers and directors responsible in these cases are obviously totally out of their depth. You have to feel sorry for the people working under them.
28 September 2009
How to overcome writer's block
So you know all about it? You start writing and it’s going OK. Then you dry up. You can’t go on. And then you call it ‘writer’s block’.
Giving it a name seems to legitimise it.
Well, here’s my take on writer’s block, and you can run with it or ignore it.
The first thing is to be very clear that it is not actually real. Writer’s block does not exist. I absolutely do not believe in it. Sometimes I am slow, yes. Sometimes getting thoughts on paper is tedious, yes. But writer’s block? No. There is no such thing.
When you’re at a roadblock and finding progress tough, you can dig yourself into a hole. And then things get worse. And any thoughts you have about not being able to progress, become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
To avoid all that, you have to take action. The action I take is to leave the keyboard and pull out a writing pad and pen. That simple change usually solves the problem and I return to the keyboard after a few minutes.
If it’s still not working, I leave my office and take a two minute break. The change of scenery normally does the trick. Finally, if all else fails, I take 15 minutes to walk around the block. And then I am right back into it.
Essentially, with all these tricks, what I am doing is changing things to give the mind a chance to refocus. Mostly, these simple techniques are not necessary. Few hold ups occur when you are solid about the key truth: that you don’t believe in writer’s block. Believe me. It does not exist.
Giving it a name seems to legitimise it.
Well, here’s my take on writer’s block, and you can run with it or ignore it.
The first thing is to be very clear that it is not actually real. Writer’s block does not exist. I absolutely do not believe in it. Sometimes I am slow, yes. Sometimes getting thoughts on paper is tedious, yes. But writer’s block? No. There is no such thing.
When you’re at a roadblock and finding progress tough, you can dig yourself into a hole. And then things get worse. And any thoughts you have about not being able to progress, become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
To avoid all that, you have to take action. The action I take is to leave the keyboard and pull out a writing pad and pen. That simple change usually solves the problem and I return to the keyboard after a few minutes.
If it’s still not working, I leave my office and take a two minute break. The change of scenery normally does the trick. Finally, if all else fails, I take 15 minutes to walk around the block. And then I am right back into it.
Essentially, with all these tricks, what I am doing is changing things to give the mind a chance to refocus. Mostly, these simple techniques are not necessary. Few hold ups occur when you are solid about the key truth: that you don’t believe in writer’s block. Believe me. It does not exist.
Direct Response TV - why not Australia?
Direct Response TV has been huge in the US for decades, but it has never done so well in Australia. It’s hard to know why.
There are a few truths that marketers who embrace DRTV innately understand, but maybe many others still find elusive.
• People from every socio economic grouping watch DRTV. Children, business people, factory workers, the wealthy – they all watch sometimes. DRTV is not a demographic profile. It’s a successful sales channel that has specific benefits, just like other channels have their benefits.
• Direct response is a proven approach to brand building. Beautiful imagery or clever slogans are great and agencies love creating these, but when you build a brand what you really want is prospect acceptance. You want the people you are targeting to accept that your product or service can solve a problem for them.
• DRTV is all about sales. Of course, it fails sometimes with some products, but for the most part, DRTV sells. And if you do it properly you get a very rapid, measurable result. You are not left wondering. With reasonably limited budgets you can test it. In Australia, World Vision has used it very successfully.
• People like benefits. Sometimes brand advertising puts too much effort into being impactful or beautiful or politically correct. Direct response advertisers show the product and they show what it does. The benefits are demonstrated. People can see what they are getting and if it is right for them, they respond.
• Research is all very well. Obviously, professionally conducted research plays a vital role in marketing, but DRTV is all about actual sales. You know what focus groups are like. People can say anything. They can be influenced by others. But DRTV sells to individuals in the privacy of their homes. And actual sales don’t lie.
There are a few truths that marketers who embrace DRTV innately understand, but maybe many others still find elusive.
• People from every socio economic grouping watch DRTV. Children, business people, factory workers, the wealthy – they all watch sometimes. DRTV is not a demographic profile. It’s a successful sales channel that has specific benefits, just like other channels have their benefits.
• Direct response is a proven approach to brand building. Beautiful imagery or clever slogans are great and agencies love creating these, but when you build a brand what you really want is prospect acceptance. You want the people you are targeting to accept that your product or service can solve a problem for them.
• DRTV is all about sales. Of course, it fails sometimes with some products, but for the most part, DRTV sells. And if you do it properly you get a very rapid, measurable result. You are not left wondering. With reasonably limited budgets you can test it. In Australia, World Vision has used it very successfully.
• People like benefits. Sometimes brand advertising puts too much effort into being impactful or beautiful or politically correct. Direct response advertisers show the product and they show what it does. The benefits are demonstrated. People can see what they are getting and if it is right for them, they respond.
• Research is all very well. Obviously, professionally conducted research plays a vital role in marketing, but DRTV is all about actual sales. You know what focus groups are like. People can say anything. They can be influenced by others. But DRTV sells to individuals in the privacy of their homes. And actual sales don’t lie.
Engaging professionals makes sense
One of these does not fit in. Please guess which one:
1. Need printing done – call a printer
2. Need your accounts reviewed – call an auditor
3. Need computer help – call an IT specialist
4. Need quality copy written – do it yourself
If you feel that one, two or three don’t fit in, you may be right. But you must be thinking of something that’s far too deep for me.
Obviously, there are no prizes for guessing, the answer I am looking for is number 4.
And why people do this never ceases to amaze me. After all, writing is a craft, just like carpentry.
Marketing people, and business people generally, are constantly involved in scores of different activities. They have little chance to improve their writing. Whereas the full-time writer, just like the full-time carpenter, is enhancing his or her craft every day.
Take websites, for example. People spend thousands of dollars on website design and then write the copy themselves.
Yet isn’t the message conveyed through words? Good design supports the message, of course. And I am all for excellent design.
But it’s the copy that provides the message. People come to your site looking for information. Contained in the copy.
By doing the writing themselves, managers very often sell their company short. And worse, they damage their brand. Here are a few horrible examples of copy that has come unstuck:
> This week I take a look at one viewers site and what they can do to make it rank better for their key phrases.
> If your only now thinking about tax, your late.
> With enhanced productivity during the downturn our efficient and flexible processes show a convergence towards performance indicators that are heading north.
All of these (presumably) went through the approval process. Yet, to everyone’s embarrassment, they slipped through. And in the rush of day-to-day activities, it can happen. (Corrected versions appear below)
I am not for a moment suggesting you should call for a copywriter every time you need to communicate anything. But when it is an important client letter, brochure, website, report or other article, the investment will pay for itself many times over.
If you want a particular response, it’s worth paying a professional to give yourself the best possible chance of success.
And now for the corrected versions (which I am sure, if you have read this far, you will be well aware of):
Ø This week I take a look at one viewer’s site and what needs to be done to make it rank better for key phrases.
Ø If you’re only now thinking about tax, you’re late.
Ø This could mean anything! It’s a sentence some politicians might get away with, but it has no place in a business communication.
1. Need printing done – call a printer
2. Need your accounts reviewed – call an auditor
3. Need computer help – call an IT specialist
4. Need quality copy written – do it yourself
If you feel that one, two or three don’t fit in, you may be right. But you must be thinking of something that’s far too deep for me.
Obviously, there are no prizes for guessing, the answer I am looking for is number 4.
And why people do this never ceases to amaze me. After all, writing is a craft, just like carpentry.
Marketing people, and business people generally, are constantly involved in scores of different activities. They have little chance to improve their writing. Whereas the full-time writer, just like the full-time carpenter, is enhancing his or her craft every day.
Take websites, for example. People spend thousands of dollars on website design and then write the copy themselves.
Yet isn’t the message conveyed through words? Good design supports the message, of course. And I am all for excellent design.
But it’s the copy that provides the message. People come to your site looking for information. Contained in the copy.
By doing the writing themselves, managers very often sell their company short. And worse, they damage their brand. Here are a few horrible examples of copy that has come unstuck:
> This week I take a look at one viewers site and what they can do to make it rank better for their key phrases.
> If your only now thinking about tax, your late.
> With enhanced productivity during the downturn our efficient and flexible processes show a convergence towards performance indicators that are heading north.
All of these (presumably) went through the approval process. Yet, to everyone’s embarrassment, they slipped through. And in the rush of day-to-day activities, it can happen. (Corrected versions appear below)
I am not for a moment suggesting you should call for a copywriter every time you need to communicate anything. But when it is an important client letter, brochure, website, report or other article, the investment will pay for itself many times over.
If you want a particular response, it’s worth paying a professional to give yourself the best possible chance of success.
And now for the corrected versions (which I am sure, if you have read this far, you will be well aware of):
Ø This week I take a look at one viewer’s site and what needs to be done to make it rank better for key phrases.
Ø If you’re only now thinking about tax, you’re late.
Ø This could mean anything! It’s a sentence some politicians might get away with, but it has no place in a business communication.
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