Category Archives: Advertising

Don’t sell what’s in your head


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I’ve mentioned Dave Trott’s CST blog before, but why not throw out another mention. Dave is approaching one of those legendary ‘ad men’ statuses, perhaps. The tales he recalls and weaves on his blogs entertain, educate and provide decades of insight into the complex business of advertising, marketing and client relations. I wouldn’t be surprised if in 20 years time he’ll be recalled amongst the Ogilvys and Ardens of this world. In a recent article, he talks about how you should sell the client what they want to hear, as opposed to telling them what to do. At least with regards to winning pitches. This ties in a little with an article I wrote a while back on designing with empathy. My point is that although we, as design/marketing/advertising professionals, think we know best as this is our business. We don’t. Not all the time. Jimi Hendrix (I believe) once said “Knowledge speaks, Wisdom listens”. There’s the key. Listening. Jon…

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On creativity


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An interesting, and rather long-winded question posed to Dave Trott on creativity caught my attention today. Dave, likely flabbergasted by such an exhausting query, posted it on his blog and allowed the world to share their views instead. Amongst the ramble, several tricky and often avoided questions emerged: Can you train your mind to be more creative and have better ideas? Are there any exercises to develop creative thought processes? Is creativity really ’99% perspiration and 1% inspiration’? Is creativity a teachable/learn-able skill of coming up with good ideas consistently and on demand? Some of the remarks in the comments section addressed these questions from several different viewpoints, all putting up very good arguments. I’ll look at a few excerpts shortly, but first I think it’s important to consider what creativity really is. What is creativity? I’ve always believed creativity to be far more than just ‘coming up with ideas’. Although this is often seen as a genuine starting point;…

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What is a brand?


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Your logo is your brand! Yep, that just about sums it up. Everyone knows that your company logo encompasses everything you stand for, your past, present and future, your ethos and vision. That’s why it’s so essential that your logo commands as much real estate as possible on your website and every facet of print advertising you generate. Unfortunately this pretty much sums up what many people still consider as ‘a brand’. For those of us working in the creative industries, whether it be advertising, logo design, graphic design, online and especially those specialising in branding; this frustrating notion plagues us on a regular basis. I don’t need to even bother linking to the ‘Make the logo bigger’ sites, videos and memes that have floated around the web for years – we’ve all seen them, we’re all aware of the issue. Branding, however, can be difficult to define. Explaining to clients that their brand is far more than a logo,…

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Choose your own adventure


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Flame‘s very own Dom Rodwell spoke at the North event – Rule of Thirds (I’m not sure why it was called that). Not to seem biased, or to be sucking up to my boss, but it’s a bloody good presentation looking at how the communication of narrative has fundamentally changed in the age of digital media; how you can no longer talk at consumers but instead craft compelling and engaging experiences worth talking about. This isn’t another waffling rant about clients getting board with social media – it looks at the entire process of how creative digital agencies work with clients and their clients’ clients to develop irresistable, functional experiences, and what skills and structures companies need to face up to the undoubted challenges the rapidly changing communications landscape will bring.

Further reading:

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The power of influence


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Regular readers may have noticed that Redswish has taken a slight turn in topic style over the past few months. This is largely because it’s a one-man mission and I tend to blog about what I’m interested in or learning about at the time. Recently I’ve been focusing a lot on new marketing, building up more personal and effective relationships with clients, the demise of mass media and commoditisation, the evolution of experience design and authenticity and the psychology behind how we, as marketers and advertisers can influence and connect with people and craft stories that spread.

Hence the reason it’s been a while since a design post, which as a web design blog I truly feel I owe you. But I must admit there’s been a wealth of great design articles blanketing the web at the moment so feel free to hit up Smashing Magazine, Web Designer Depot etc and you’ll find lots of great material. BUT NOT RIGHT NOW! Because I have other stuff to sell.

This article may not seem beautifully crafted and may come across as thought spilled onto paper (or a computer screen). Well, that’s exactly what it is. I want to hear what people think about this, I’m merely dipping my toes in the vast lake of this subject and I’m totally cool with holding hands!

Advertising is dead

Advertising will never die. But it sure as hell is transforming massively. And we’ve known this for a long time, but are still slow to respond. Investing stacks of cash in big, bold, flashy, in-your-face ads isn’t enough anymore. Breaking through the noise is too difficult. How often do you notice the Google AdWords or daft banner ads on a site? Most certainly less and less as we subconsciously train ourselves to tune out the distractions. I’m not saying billboards, TV, radio etc are completely useless, but yeah unless you’ve got a silly marketing budget and creative license to bang your head against a brick wall, then yeah.. go home.

Creating ideas that spread

It’s the way forward folks. Viral is still in it’s infancy. In old marketing the marketers jump in at the end and try to bridge the gap between product and consumer, now flip it upside down. Authenticity is essential. Great products and services that people talk about is what will drive you forwards. Your customers are your marketers.

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Interactive advertising


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Who said that adverts had to be directly relevant to what a company does or provides. At the end of the day, everyone knows who McDonalds are. A billion pound marketing budget couldn’t make them any more well known.

So what’s wrong with making people smile?

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