The old story of the suit and the ponytail

The big companies are already doing this, fortunately for us at this stage most of the brand managers don't have a clue about what it is to manage a brand and seek help from the outside. In order to avoid inhousing, we need to develop new ideas, and we can only do that together. There must be a synergy between the creative, the strategy and the retail sell. We must be seen as the specialists whose offerings and expertise will always exceed that which the company could do in-house.

We need to stop working against each other and develop new strategies together, understanding both sides of the spectrum. As far back as people have been involved in this thing we call advertising, there has been the debate between 'good art' and 'good sales'.

This may sound familiar, nothing new to your ears. Why then, is it still the prevailing wind in advertising and related industries?

The scenario:

On one side we have the client service people, the 'make the logo bigger' guys. Their sole aim is to sell clients products, quicker and better and faster.

The other side is the creative team, the 'don't clutter the white space' guys. Their aim is to make the world a very 'pretty' and interesting place by producing nice, pretty and interesting advertising 'art'.

Somewhere in the middle of all this is the nirvana, the place where advertising does its job and consumers buy and clients increase their bottom line.

While this war of two worlds has been going on, the world has been changing. Consumers are reading about consumer marketing and are wising up. It's time we woke up as advertisers to the very real truth that we both want the same thing, just our perspectives are different.

The art school teaches very little about the real world and economic viability to students. They don't understand the rules of the corporate world. The BA guy does not understand aesthetics and yet passes judgment on things they are not qualified to do.

And as they get older and their egos bigger the fight continues until, by fumbling in the dark, they both find common ground. Yes, the institutions are to blame in many ways, but it is our industry and we need to start shaping it from the inside.

Clever lines do not sell cars, nor necessarily does making the logo bigger, or a massive price point.

There are thousands of ads out there which don't do anything for anyone. We need to learn the other's language, get inside their head and see where they are coming from. It's the only way to work smarter.

We need to come up with new strategies, as the consumer now has all those books at home too. The only way to do this is to tinker with things, get to know what the toy is you're playing with.

Sometimes it's not fun, but hey, it's not your money you are throwing down the toilet every time your ego gets in the way of the clients needs.

So learn from each other, find the common ground and work a solution that satisfies all. Read the books and ask the questions. Learn about Lautrec's artistic perspective and learn about market share and LSM's. Your graphics must not only reflect the brand, but also it's promises. Your price point and USP need to work with the overall flow and integrate seamlessly into the design. If you don't have a problem, how are you ever going to find the solution? The road may be long and the journey quite intimidating, but the proverbial pot at the end of the rainbow is a very rewarding place to get to.

This is not for juniors, or seniors, or somewhere in between, it's for everyone. Remember the main reason we resist is that we think the other person doesn't understand our point of view. Now ask yourself whether you really understand theirs.

An example of what I think illustrates synergy is the Nando's campaign, in all its guises. This is where clever art direction and hard sell, have worked together. Unlike many campaigns we remember, this one actually sells a retail product with prices and pack shots. But the manipulation of rationale, strategy, direction and vision blend it so we don't see the seams and welds that make the adverts so successful. That is a vision, one of many, but one I think highlights where we all need to be. There are problems I am sure, but I am talking generally, don't get uptight if you happen to disagree, find a better example.

If we don't start taking care of our industry soon, there will be nothing left to take care of, and as we don't have any products of our own to sell, we may end up working in a corporation, selling one product for the rest of our natural lives.