Freelance Brand and Creative Strategist / Strategic Planner and Fractional Strategy Director
I've been thinking quite a bit about diversity in the marketing world recently. Agencies in particular (and particularly outside London) seem to be staffed predominantly by youngish middle class white people, which isn't terribly reflective of the diverse Great British Public that we're supposed to flogging stuff to. There's also lots of research that says that … Continue reading diversity = better ideas
I've been working as a freelance Planner for six and a half years with no intention of going back agency side - then I got offered my Dream Job which it would be nuts to turn down. So I'm now officially Head of Planning at Bloom in Leeds, who recently became part of Jaywing. Bloom's clients might … Continue reading change of plan
On the 12 days of Christmas, the Planner gave to the Agency: twelve propositions, eleven customer journeys, ten creative briefs, nine internal meetings, eight marcoms workshops, seven big brand pitches, six brand personas, loads of PowerPoint, four brand positionings, three focus groups, two conference calls, and a client away-day by the sea.
Since most of the agencies I work for are Shopper Marketing focused (welcome to Leeds!) I always keep a close eye on the Grocery sector, as do most of my agency mates. Grocery is knee-deep in challenges at the moment (the Discounters, provenance, excess floor space, trying to make Online pay, wafer thin margins, Marmitegate, … Continue reading they Asda to have a plan, right?
Last May, a couple of days work unexpectedly dropped out so instead I researched and wrote something on Christmas 2016 trends, thinking it might come in handy for my work with agency retail clients. Since Christmas 2016 planning is now a distant memory for agencies (last month I was working on shopper marketing for Father's Day 2017) I thought I'd share … Continue reading Christmas 2016 trendwatching
In May 2014, Guardian writer Oliver Burkeman wrote an excellent article titled Everyone is totally just winging it, all the time. It was a very reassuring piece for anyone who suffers from a touch of imposter syndrome from time to time: We're all mini-New York Timeses or White Houses, energetically projecting an image of calm proficiency, while … Continue reading *everyone* really is totally just winging it, all the time
Recently I've been writing a lot of powerpoint presentations - short, to-the-point presentations of course because in my time I've lived through hours of Boardroom Powerpoint Hell and have no wish to inflict that on anyone else. I said I've written a lot of presentations recently - but I didn't design them. I'm a reasonably good … Continue reading why don’t we treat powerpoint like a piece of creative communications?
I changed opticians a couple of years ago - after a very minor eye problem that my high street opticians backed away from in horror and swiftly packed me off to the local eye hospital, I decided that I needed eyecare that was a little less commoditised. So my Dad referred me (as his mate had previously … Continue reading CERM is the way forward when marketing service industries
I've been working as a freelance for the last five and a half years and marketing agency types often sidle up to me on the quiet and mutter that they're thinking of going freelance and would I recommend it? I've always answered that it depends on your circumstances and here's why: Is there any work out … Continue reading Should I go freelance? Important questions for marketing types
I increasingly feel like Planning as a discipline/specialism within agencies is over-complicating things. Never mind thinking about what's changed since Planning's inception in the 1960's, so much has shifted in the UK even just the last 20 years. Back in the 90's (yes, I've been a Planner for that long), clients liked seeing the thinking behind the Big Idea - in pitch … Continue reading Planning needs to go back to the Old School