As a slightly less eccentric than normal creative type, and one that works with and manages other creative types for a living, I often find myself wondering how clients put up with us. Furthermore, when observing the CTs (creative types) in their natural habitat (advertising agency award extravaganzas) it often appears that "creativity" gets in the way of delivering a simple message that boosts sales for the client.

Winning awards is great, and having your peers titillate about your latest "cutting edge" and "deep" branding campaign of course feels good. But did it boost the client's bottom line? Did more people become customers? Did current customers spend more money or refer more of their friends?

If it did AND it was the most "creative," then that's GREAT! If it didn't, shouldn't the campaign that increased revenue the most be considered the best?

This article would be irrelevant if that was the case, which elucidates my point. Further proof that CTs are sometimes hampered by their own creativity was reported in a recent survey done by Nielson. It found less than 10% of commercials are considered "interesting" to the average consumer. An even more paltry 7% found them to be relevant, prompting action.

Have you ever watched a commercial that has great visuals, a very esoteric feel... and when it's over find yourself thinking, "Now what are they selling?" or, "What the heck was that commercial FOR?" Of course you have, we all have. It was probably the result of CTs run amok, blinded by "creativity" which resulted in forgetting the goal of advertising - get more customers, make more money!

These travesties are generally justified by throwing a bunch of CTeak (creative type speak) terms around to shroud it in legitimacy, then close the discussion with, "It's all about building the brand."

Now before any CTs who may read this send out a rallying cry to gather the torches and pitchforks and sally forth lynch me for advertising heresy, let me clarify that I believe in branding 100%. Building a client's brand is ultimately what we are hired to do, regardless of the size or scope of the project. However, shouldn't EVERYTHING we do be designed to build a consumer's trust, while delivering a relevant message about the solution that business offers?

Don't get me wrong. Creativity is king. Creativity separates agencies that get results from ones that don't. If it was easy there wouldn't be a need for agencies at all. I just think we need to focus on creative yet simple campaigns, that focus on one thing - making our clients more money!