Toothpaste can save advertising.
This is obviously not the next ad industry domination theory. Rather, it is simply the one constant to which I have set my career watch, in an industry that sheds its skin whenever someone catches its tail. So how will this ubiquitous tube sitting on your bathroom counter do what senior ad executives periodically have to do to stay relevant in the game?
I started my career in New Zealand in 2002. I might wear a creative cape and mask today but I am in fact a marketing business grad who was lucky enough to have been accepted into a prestigious ad school in Auckland after my undergrad. Eventually at TBWA\Whybin, I teamed up with a lovely American by the name of Valdean Klump. He was chilled, I was chilli; he was the well-read nice guy who could write competently, I was the dope who thought big ideas could end any problem. So, it happened to be that one day Val told me something that changed my life. “What toothpaste do you use?” I replied with [insert generic brand name here]. “How long have you been using it?” Like most people, I revealed that it wasn’t something I change very often. “But if you’re really so creative, you should always be trying new things. Even when it comes to your toothpaste.”
I know it sounds simple. A mundane fact even when talking to my peers who – in the case of creatives – are in the business of seeking fresh solutions daily. But to a young adman there suddenly appeared a rule of thumb where once there was none. Not a year has gone by that I haven’t recalled that modest concept. I don’t think my old partner would even remember the incident today. But it marked me. And I tucked away that idea in a drawer in my head, conveniently pulling it out whenever I found myself drowning in a sea of sameness with an agency brief.
A big problem we face today in the industry comes from using the same toothpaste. We’ve done away with everything to keep with the times, but beyond the shiny logo standing behind the grinning receptionist lies the same tube with 0.22% Sodium Flouride. Sure, the logo is now a San Serif, the neon is gone and everyone’s title contains some form of the word digital or social but it’s the same name on the door, give or take.
Before I start being in danger of pointing the finger at agency management and the powers that be to blame for things, let me assure you nothing is further from the truth. The fault lies in us – the creative. Sort of.
Since the start of the millennium, nothing has seemingly impacted the business of advertising creativity more than the birth of the digital medium. The numbers were crunched, the research was done, the markets reacted and as a model we shifted our efforts towards the new guiding light of digital advertising. Then came subset ‘big data’. And then to a lesser degree, the focus on social media, and today content video gets a lot of traction around the creative water cooler. (Do note: these are observations on what has transformed the creative offering rather than the industry itself).
So where were the creatives when all these genres became the norm?
We were there. But we were there more to ensure we kept our egos shiny, our glasses flowing, our lunch hours long. In other words, at the start we were going to do everything to move with the times without having to move with the times. And it shows. Clients know it. Agencies know it. While there were many reasons I started my company in 2013, realising that the industry was at a tipping point was a tremendous factor. Until that point, I was lucky to have always been connected to great agency brands, but unfortunately not with the particular offices that were future proofed (enough). The democratization of ideas and opinions on social media was going to dictate the way brands communicated. But the storm hadn’t hit Singapore’s shores at that time.
I decided to change my toothpaste.
When I started ZIGIDY in 2013, it was primarily a company designed for me to remain in Asia with a visa. I also didn’t want to hop into bed with another brand so fast. This way I could freelance legally. But now I could talk to my own clients as well. What I discovered was a pleasant surprise: clients were in the midst of creating their own bunkers of designers and macs; the in-house trend was well under way. But the rebellion did not have finances to invest in creative leadership – it was a simple execution strategy. I had found my white space. I would step in as a creative consultant/director/writer, work on their big ideas & campaigns and vanish in the middle of the night. It felt good. I was both a fireman and a firestarter.
On the other side of town, my freelance life at agencies was steady. But it felt like an over packed lifeboat; the food was running low and the smell was getting more foul by the day. Work came and went. Less for me since I was at the more senior end of the pay scale. If it wasn’t for client work, I would’ve thrown in the towel by year 2.
Today, thankfully the skew of work is more balanced. Agencies understand the value of someone with a unique experience and clients are more open to paying fairly for the right type of problem solver.
But if you are a creative person who hasn’t had the luck to get quite to the top yet, if you find yourself walking down the supermarket aisle (or online shopping cart) and about to reach/click for the same tube of dental cleanser, stop please. Consider trying something new. It might not be comfortable. You may not like it at first or at all. But in my opinion at least you are truly earning the right to call yourself creative/brave. Who knows, if we all did this more, we might even save advertising one day.
Peace.
