July 30, 2008

Advertising Rules and Priorities

Filed under: advertising, creative — Tags: , , — bstraley @ 2:00 pm

I came across this speech given a few years back by Dan Wieden and wanted to pass it along. In a day and age where we in the fields of marketing and advertising increasingly rely upon machines to give us the what’s, why’s, where’s, and how’s of things, we sometimes forget that all of this automation is creating the space and opportunities for us to be creative. What a concept.

W+K company rules:

Don’t act big. No sharp stuff. Follow directions. And shut up when someone is talking.

W+K’s priorities

  1. The work
  2. The client/agency relationship
  3. Yourself

Why put the work first? Well…

In big agencies, the client/agency relationship is the most sacred thing. The difficulty seems to be that the work then serves the relationship, and everything becomes political. And when things get political, the work suffers. And when the work suffers, the business suffers, then the client agency relationship suffers, and you suffer.

Wieden on chaos:

Chaos does this amazing thing that order can’t: it engages you. It gets right in your face and with freakish breath issues a challenge. It asks stuff of you, order never will. And it shows you stuff, all the weird shit, that order tries to hide. Chaos is the only thing that honestly wants you to grow. The only friend who really helps you be creative. Demands that you be creative…

The other thing chaos does is challenge authority. It cares more about truth than power.

If you get the chance, read the entire thing. It’s pretty inspiring.

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