I think you judge people’s advertising ability by how well they advertise themselves.
Like every other creative director, I get emails from people looking for freelance work.
Usually they say, “I’m looking for freelance work. Here is some of my work. I look forward to hearing from you.”
Then a month or so later, they write again.
They say, “A little while ago I sent you some work. Have you had a chance to look at it? I look forward to hearing from you.”
If this was an advertising campaign it would be the equivalent of a headline saying, “We’d like you to buy our product, here’s a picture of it. Please go to the shops.”
Then a week or so later, “Remember we showed you a picture of our product. Why haven’t you bought it yet?”
Be honest.
Would you put an advertising campaign like that in your portfolio?
Would you expect anyone to give you a job on the strength of it?
Then why are so many people doing it?
How come they’re not advertising themselves?
For once in their lives they have complete control.
They are the client.
They are the product.
They are the brand.
They are the agency.
There is no one to stop them doing whatever they want.
So what do they do?
They write an email asking for a job.
I think what they demonstrate is they don’t believe in advertising.
Here’s a tip.
Asking for freelance IS advertising.
It’s not a polite job application to the civil service.
Contrast this with the way Nick Wray gets freelance.
Nick is a very funny guy, and every week or so he sends me (and a couple of dozen other creative directors) a joke.
Or it could be a video clip, could be a newspaper article.
Just the sort of thing you circulate amongst your friends.
It’s usually about football.
It’s usually topical.
It’s always funny.
So I always look forwards to opening Nick’s emails.
Now the truth is, Nick’s emails are actually about freelance.
But it’s never mentioned.
Nick knows the people he sends the emails to give out freelance.
Being normal human beings, they give them out to people they like.
Not to people who nag.
So the brief is to stay top of mind, and be well-liked.
Just like advertising.
What we’d call ’salience’ and ‘propensity to purchase’.
And when you look at the top of the email and see the list of people Nick has sent it to, you’re proud to be included on that list.
And that list also says, without saying it, look at the impressive people this blokes worked for.
This is someone with a good understanding of how advertising works.
Someone who is actually using advertising to sell himself.
He doesn’t look at email as just an electronic version of old-fashioned letters.
He looks at it as an advertising medium.
Another channel like TV, press, radio, etc.
Except this channel’s free.
And better targeted.
Nick tells me he’s never been without work since he started freelancing, ages ago.
But he’s never had to ask for work.
He knows all he’s got to do is be top of mind when a creative director’s got some work coming up.
He doesn’t have to keep nagging them.
Just make sure they think of him.
So there’s never any embarrassment with what Nick does.
Because he never asks for work, he never gets rejected.
And fear of rejection that makes people hate writing letters asking for work.
It’s no fun to write them.
Here’s a newsflash.
If something is no fun to write, it’s probably no fun to read.
So don’t do it.
Think creatively about advertising instead.
Nick has fun writing his emails and circulating jokes.
So people have fun opening them.
Isn’t that how advertising works?
The more fun an ad is, the more likely you are to read it.
The more likely you are to read it, the more likely you are to buy.
RSS Feed
Twitter
Email
I think it’s hilarious when creatives advertise themselves - huge logos, bald propositions, screaming offers.
It reminds me of a spoof Jack Daniels ad I saw on an office wall at BMP back in the late eighties.
The original ad said “The accountant said make the bottle round. The distiller said keep it square. Who remembers the name of the accountant?”
The spoof said “The client said make the logo bigger. The art director said keep it small. Who remembers the name of the client?”
Was writing this post worth the thousands of links to crap clips heading your way over the next six months? (taps into Youtube - kitten football accident hilarious)
Am I glad I’m no longer freelancing now that you’ve put this on your blog, Dave. Thing is, some CDs don’t deal with freelancers. They leave it to their traffic. And traffic people TEND to go for people who give suits what they want.
Sadly, I’ve seen a lot of student teams who’ve spent too much time doing ads for themselves, and too little time doing ads for their book.
These are the teams that often have the slickest website, or the cleverest ‘team name’. But they’re just not backed up by the real thing. All gloss and no substance. Harrumph.
The best teams are those that do both well. And fortunately, I’ve seen quite a few of those too.
(Captcha: “Pacific heil” - er, really?)
Well…some creatives certainly do advertise themselves…
have a look at this one Dave:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FRwCs99DWg
http://ex-blank-page.blogspot.com/2010/06/in-reply-to-daves-great-posts-143-144.html
I am one of those freelancers!! I will be totally honest. I have been making that mistake for years. I am so glad I read the post. NOW I HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT!!
I don’t intend to send humorous quips and silly clips to agencies though. But I believe I can come up with my own way of contacting/getting through to agencies for work, other than just saying ‘look at my portfolio, and give me some work…Please!!’
I have a few plans bubbling around in my creative brain, and will re-work my attack on getting some freelance work very soon.
Thanks.
Kev.
Nick Wray has clearly got it right.
He’s clearly talking to the right people
and delivering what they want.
Abu,
That’s exactly what I’m talking about.
Something original focussing on getting a result.
Kevin Merrey,
You’ve understood what I was saying.
Don’t copy anyone, do it your own way.
Well done.
And if you know someone scottish of influence tell them you now know how it feels to follow the fortunes of their national side. Goalkeeper fumbles. Not beating sides we should. After England’s draw with the lesser footballing light from t’other side of the pond we all know what it feels like to be a Scotland fan now.
Abu,
the Utube vid is inspirational. Thinkingleft of the field is the way to go.
Dave,
Cheers for that. I have about 8 projects I want to get on my portfolio over the next month or so, but all the while, I shall conjure up a plan of my own. I have a list of agencies, once again as you said, some of which employ people I know anyway, so I shall hit them up when I am ready.
(…Including you, just so you can see what I come up with!!)
Cheers.
Kev.
Abu,
the Utube video is inspirational. Thinking left of the field is the way to go.
Dave,
Cheers for that. I have about 8 projects I want to get on my portfolio over the next month or so, but all the while, I shall conjure up a plan of my own. I have a list of agencies, once again as you said, some of which employ people I know anyway, so I shall hit them up when I am ready.
(…Including you, just so you can see what I come up with!!)
Cheers.
Kev.
Wow! Thanks a million Dave, I owe you 17% of future earnings. N
Hallo Nick
I’m not a CD and definitely not in a position to offer you any freelance. But the stuff you been sending out certainly seems interesting. Was wondering if you could include robi…@live.com? Many thanks.
I’m a Planner who started a contract for a London agency two weeks ago - headed by a former colleague of mine from 2002-3. I’ve stayed in touch over the years, come in to see his Planning Director a couple of times and thankfully an opportunity arose to work with them. It really is slow burn in the freelance world and sending CVs asking for a job has never worked for me. It’s all in keeping front of mind, ensuring face to face contact and being a bit personable.
Ironically, am carrying out a Client induction this morning and am quoting Dave Trott’s view on Creative Briefing. So just browsed the CST site out of interest and coincidentally saw this blog.
Isn’t ‘Value Added’. 17.5%, Nick?
I reckon that half percent makes all the difference.
A few months ago we got an irate email from our office manager. When she arrived at work she found post-it notes stuck all over the front door. They were also on the all the lamp posts, cars and railing outside the office. A student team had written ‘clever’ messages on each of them along with their details.
Our creative director sent them a stern email asking them to come back and remove them all, and also to never bother contacting him again.
Hi Gareth,
On the one hand that doesn’t sound like it was very good idea.
Certainly not if they particularly wanted a job at your agency.
But if they’d done it to the top 50 agencies in town, 90% may have been turned off and 10% turned on.
It sounds like the sort of thing Graham Fink might like, for instance.
And when you want a job (as opposed to freelance) you don’t need everyone to like you.
You just need one person to love you.
The way to get work at one very good Animation studio I know is simply hang around there a lot. When a new job comes along the Creative Director will look up from his desk and ask whoever’s in his immediate field of vision whether they’re free for the next few weeks.
By the way I’m on an email list for a monthly London Animators get together which recently had an animated gif of the Union Flag at the bottom adorned with the words ‘KEEP UK ANIMATION ALIVE’
Now, you don’t need that type of thing if your industry is vibrant and healthy do you?
I’ve been running a burger stall with three friends for the local village fete today.
On the way down I met a family carrying boxes of “Stuff”
I don’t know why, but I asked them if they wanted a hand.
By the time we got there, I realised they were a family from a poor background with 3 kids. When we arrived, I noticed the husband had walked all the way, about a quarter of a mile, with his arm bandaged. He had carried the heaviest load.
I think he may have family, or might have come back from a tour of Afghanistan.
The stall they set up was Help for Heroes.
Well, I considered that guy a hero.
An old agency friend of mine also has a son in Afghanistan in 40 Commando.
They’re in Hellmand Province at the moment having a very tough time of it.
As a father, I think of my friend’s son every day, but can’t bring myself to tell him.
Later on, we noticed the kids kept coming to the burger stall, obviously hungry and asking for nothing, so we got together and gave them all burgers.
The eldest son had been disallowed because he’d been “bolshy” to his sister
so later on when the fete packed-up, we went around the stalls giving every stallholder free burgers. We got the young lad at last because it’s rotten when you’re left-out.
Later on, the daughter came over with 4 Help for Heroes arm bands.
They didnt have to carry anything back.
They sold out.
That kind of made our day.
Similarly, advertising is a form of giving
because you don’t get back, unless you give up-front.