The lazy way to write a target-audience description.
Bullets should be banned. Sorry, gun fans, I don’t mean ammo. I mean those pesky black dots that show up on creative briefs everywhere. Like this: The bullets are usually followed by useless acronyms and marketing-speak such as HHI, 24-49, and other lingo. This is not thinking, it’s rote nonsense. Remember what Dave Trott said: […]
E76: One team or multiple teams—who gets briefed in?
Airs July 27, 2022 A recent guest on TBB, Mark Jenson, lecturer at the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the U of Minnesota, recommended a book called Rethink the Business of Creativity. Henry Gomez and I discuss a chapter from a book about how many creative teams at an advertising agency should […]
How much does an idea cost?
I use real briefs when I teach my workshops on writing creative briefs. Not blank templates, but completed briefs. Not case studies, but real working briefs. Among the questions I ask attendees is this: What’s missing from the briefs they review in my workbook? I know the answer before I ask it, of course, and […]
E75: Why do brief writers struggle writing a target audience description?
Airs July 20, 2022 This week, Henry Gomez (http://henrylouisgomez.com) and I return to Creative Brief Basics, a “nuts and bolts” topic. It’s old news that never gets old: Target Audience. Some brief writers forget how to dig to understand who their communication is meant to speak to. The lazy answer sometimes is, “Well, everyone.” Everyone […]
E74: Creative Review—2022 Cannes Winners
Airs July 13, 2022 Week Two of Cannes 2022, Henry Gomez’s (http://www.henrylouisgomez.com) continuing adventures. This week, he and I review four Cannes winners. They are: “Super Human,” Grand Prix winner, Film by 4Creative London/Somesuch London. “Detectives” for Apple, Gold Lion, Film, by O Positive LLC Santa Monica, CA. “Liquid Billboard” for Adidas, Grand Prix, Outdoor, […]
E73: Winning a Lion at Cannes 2022
Airs July 6, 2022 Today we celebrate my friend, partner and co-host of The Brief Bros., Henry Gomez, who went to Cannes this year with his colleagues from Zubi Advertising in Miami and won a Silver Lion for work the agency produced for Burger King. In this episode, Henry takes us on the wild but […]
E72: A conversation with Mark Jenson, lecturer, Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communications
Airs June 29, 2022 Mark Jenson is an old friend. I’ve been making virtual guest appearances to speak to his advertising students since 2018. He teaches at the University of Minnesota. Mark was instrumental in facilitating Henry and me in our recent multi-episode project to write a creative brief on The Brief Bros for Hulu. […]
E71: A conversation with Russell Davies, former strategist at W+K and Nike.
Airs June 22, 2022 Russell Davies was Strategic Planning Director at Weiden+Kennedy in Portland and Global Consumer Planning Director at Nike. For nine years, he was a contributing editor and columnist at WIRED magazine. Today, he’s CMO at an energy start-up in London called Bulb. Henry Gomez (http://www.henrylouisgomez.com) and Howard Ibach (https://creativebriefworkshops.com) had a wide-ranging […]
E70: A conversation with Andy Nairn
Airs June 15, 2022 Andy Nairn is the author of an insightful and valuable new book, Go Luck Yourself: 40 Ways To Stack The Odds In Your Brand’s Favour. He’s also the founding partner of London’s Lucky Generals, whose clients include Amazon and Virgin Atlantic. Henry Gomez (http://www.henrylouisgomez.com) and Howard Ibach (https://creativebriefworkshops.com) quiz Andy on […]
