Check out this retro guide to the internet, it's glorious. Wonder what the guide of today would be like?
Exciting Update: While Our Website Is Down...
Thanks to the lovely people at Daisy Group, the infamous Sell! Sell! website has been down since Saturday (more info on how and why below if you're interested*) so for those who might be looking, here's the important info:
Phone: Our main office phone number is 0207 0333 999
Email: You can email doubles [at] sellsell dot co dot uk with any general enquiries.
Work: If you're looking to see some Sell! Sell! work, you can either look on the blog: Sell! Sell! Work, or on Haystack and Creative Brief - on both of which you'll also find company details and other contact information, case studies and stuff.
*Apparently they've had some monumental meltdown on two of their servers, which they claim almost never happens, which meant that not only did ours and a lot of other people's site become internet mincemeat, but somehow the backup also ended up in the same mess. Luckily, being the forward thinking types that we are, we have our own backup. Hopefully, once Daisy have their new servers up and running, the Sell! website will be up and running again sharpish. Obviously, if anyone out there can recommend a very good and reliable alternative to Daisy for hosting a business website, we are all ears.
Phone: Our main office phone number is 0207 0333 999
Email: You can email doubles [at] sellsell dot co dot uk with any general enquiries.
Work: If you're looking to see some Sell! Sell! work, you can either look on the blog: Sell! Sell! Work, or on Haystack and Creative Brief - on both of which you'll also find company details and other contact information, case studies and stuff.
*Apparently they've had some monumental meltdown on two of their servers, which they claim almost never happens, which meant that not only did ours and a lot of other people's site become internet mincemeat, but somehow the backup also ended up in the same mess. Luckily, being the forward thinking types that we are, we have our own backup. Hopefully, once Daisy have their new servers up and running, the Sell! website will be up and running again sharpish. Obviously, if anyone out there can recommend a very good and reliable alternative to Daisy for hosting a business website, we are all ears.
Winner Sports, Please Ask For Help
Dear Winner Sports, we know that ad agencies can be annoying, difficult and expensive. But there is a reason why successful brands still go to good agencies to help them. Please, for the good of everyone who was unwittingly subjected to this ad over the weekend, find an agency, any good agency, go to them, and ask them for help. Best regards.
Predatory Thinking by Dave Trott
They include What's The Big Idea, by George Lois, Ogilvy on Advertising, The Book of Gossage – about the great Howard Gossage, and Ally & Gargano.
Not because they're textbooks or guide books on how to do advertising (is such a thing really viable anyway?). And yes, times have changed since then... etc.
But because they offer an insight into a way of thinking, acting and being that is essential to really do great things.
And that is more vital than any how-to guide, I think. Especially in Britain, where we’re all taught to be polite, toe-the-line, to not cause a fuss, to do what you're told.
People who want to become great ad creatives need to understand that they aren't just creative people – they need to be active, energetic, trouble-causing, status-quo-challenging, unrelenting, awkward and ballsy – and smart and streetwise as hell.
I always try to keep in mind the great George Bernard Shaw quote “All change depends on the unreasonable man”.
These books capture that spirit brilliantly. In reading them, you can see through the exploits and anecdotes of these greats, that none of their successes were ever handed to them on a plate – they fought, bit and scratched, as well as thought, their way to success.
Now I think there is another book that needs to be added to that list.
Predatory Thinking by Dave Trott is subtitled A Masterclass In Out-Thinking The Competition.
What it offers most of all, I think, is an approach to problems – and life – that is necessary to making things happen.
Entrepreneurialism crossed with creativity Dave calls it. I think he's right. It's about not accepting the obstacle placed in your way – not even accepting that the problem you're presented with is the real problem. Then finding the real issues, and addressing them, through creativity and street smarts.
For some people, this kind of thinking comes naturally. I've met and worked with a few. For others, me included, you have to work at it – constantly remind yourself not to accept what's put in front of you.
I re-read these books all the time. And I never fail to be inspired – and kicked up the arse – by them. And I think Dave's book will fall into that category of books that I will re-read many times.
I recommend you do too.
You can buy it here.
Read Dave Trott's My Favourite Writing Post on the Sell! Sell! Blog Here.
Unpaid internships: why employers need to DIY
When it comes to internships there are strong arguments on both sides. This post will only delve into one side of the debate, so fans of balance, look away.
I’m not alone in disagreeing with unpaid graduate internships. I believe them to be reserved for university students who are looking to get a taste of their chosen industry and build up their CV while they’re financially supported elsewhere.
When it comes to graduates, the horror stories of internships seem to have worsened over recent years. Take this story, for example, of an illustrator’s first internship out of university.
If only it ended there. Graduates, beware – a new level has been reached. A friend recently told me story about one of her professional heroes who asked her to intern for an internship. We’ll call her The Editor.
A well-known, respected figure in a competitive industry and with an enviable CV, The Editor took a leap into entrepreneurship and needed an intern to help with a new start-up business.
She wanted to intern several people over the space of two months before deciding on one lucky mug to carry on with internship for four months with no solid job prospects at the end. She offered only travel and lunch expenses – her clever plan was to end up with the smartest of the bunch and all of the profit.
Realistically, anyone with a backbone will have told her to jog on, and of the remaining candidates it’s fair to say the more capable ones will have found a job elsewhere. The Editor will inevitably be left with some spineless, mildly talented sod who can’t get any better offer than to work for free for months on end. In other words, not exactly the perfect candidate to help you start a new business venture.
Stories like this prove (to me at least) that unpaid graduate internships need to cease existing. Play the game unfairly and you’ll attract the wrong people, set a bad example, and release people back into the wild having perpetuated the myth that free labour is acceptable. If you can’t pay someone to help, do it yourself.
Are There Too Many Jobs In Advertising And Marketing?
I am of the belief that more simple and human a process is, the more likely you are to get to a brilliant solution. By 'human' I just mean things like informal, non-jargony chats about the problem and the work, people meeting face-to-face, having honest conversations, discussions, arguments, a laugh here and there.
But the simple part got me to thinking, the way agencies and marketing departments are set-up makes it far more difficult to come up with great stuff than it should be.
What do you need, from an agency point-of-view? Someone who understands the commercial side of what is trying to be achieved, someone with an understanding of the punter, someone who can come up with a way to attack the problem, someone with the skills to put in together well, and someone who can sell the solution.
In the current world of advertising agencies, all of these jobs have been split out, production-line style into separate jobs.
I don't think this is the simplest and best solution. I think advertising was, and is, better off, when fewer people get involved, and those skills above crossed over between them. Less baton-passing, and more attacking of the original business problem head-on.
I think a far better way is to have a commercially and strategically-minded account director, and a strategically-smart creative or creative team working on a problem. I think the planning process gets in the way of coming up with great ideas. It separates the problem from the solution.
This might come off as planner-bashing. But it isn't. I don't have a problem with the people who are planners - I've worked with some great ones, some really smart people. I just have a problem with the role that is planner, and its place in the process. Most of the really good planners I've worked with would have either made very good creatives, or very good account directors of the kind that I'd like to see more of.
What's happened is that separating-out the jobs has removed responsibility from the creatives - in a lot of agencies they don't have think strategically or be commercially-minded. They just paint the pretty pictures. This is part of the reason why a lot of advertising ends up being so facile, and part of reason why the role of creative is being diminished. And also, I think, part of the reason why the quality of advertising creatives is going down.
And the same has happened to account directors. They no longer need to be commercially and strategically smart, they just have to be good at making sure the client is happy (whatever that means).
It's the same on the client-side. All of these marketing roles that have been created look great on paper, but the jobs have become too fragmented. Where once an agency might have dealt with a commercial director, a sales director, or even directly with a CEO, now there are levels of people even within marketing departments.
What set-up do you think presents the best opportunity for the people in it to produce the best solution?
Senior responsible client – smart account director – smart creative people
or
CEO – Marketing director – marketing manager – brand manager – account director – account planner – creative team?
I'll nail my colours to the mast: I am firmly of the belief that cutting out all of the middle-men leads to better advertising.
But the simple part got me to thinking, the way agencies and marketing departments are set-up makes it far more difficult to come up with great stuff than it should be.
What do you need, from an agency point-of-view? Someone who understands the commercial side of what is trying to be achieved, someone with an understanding of the punter, someone who can come up with a way to attack the problem, someone with the skills to put in together well, and someone who can sell the solution.
In the current world of advertising agencies, all of these jobs have been split out, production-line style into separate jobs.
I don't think this is the simplest and best solution. I think advertising was, and is, better off, when fewer people get involved, and those skills above crossed over between them. Less baton-passing, and more attacking of the original business problem head-on.
I think a far better way is to have a commercially and strategically-minded account director, and a strategically-smart creative or creative team working on a problem. I think the planning process gets in the way of coming up with great ideas. It separates the problem from the solution.
This might come off as planner-bashing. But it isn't. I don't have a problem with the people who are planners - I've worked with some great ones, some really smart people. I just have a problem with the role that is planner, and its place in the process. Most of the really good planners I've worked with would have either made very good creatives, or very good account directors of the kind that I'd like to see more of.
What's happened is that separating-out the jobs has removed responsibility from the creatives - in a lot of agencies they don't have think strategically or be commercially-minded. They just paint the pretty pictures. This is part of the reason why a lot of advertising ends up being so facile, and part of reason why the role of creative is being diminished. And also, I think, part of the reason why the quality of advertising creatives is going down.
And the same has happened to account directors. They no longer need to be commercially and strategically smart, they just have to be good at making sure the client is happy (whatever that means).
It's the same on the client-side. All of these marketing roles that have been created look great on paper, but the jobs have become too fragmented. Where once an agency might have dealt with a commercial director, a sales director, or even directly with a CEO, now there are levels of people even within marketing departments.
What set-up do you think presents the best opportunity for the people in it to produce the best solution?
Senior responsible client – smart account director – smart creative people
or
CEO – Marketing director – marketing manager – brand manager – account director – account planner – creative team?
I'll nail my colours to the mast: I am firmly of the belief that cutting out all of the middle-men leads to better advertising.
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