Imperatives in Business, Design & Technology for everyone in the creative business in 2014 – with book references and cases By Sami Viitamäki, TBWA\ www.samiviitamaki.com www.tbwa.fi

1. 3 X 3 For Global
Creative in 2014
!
Imperatives in Business, Design &
Technology for everyone in the
creative business in 2014.!
!
With book references and cases!
!
Sami Viitamäki, TBWA!
www.samiviitamaki.com!
www.tbwa.fi!

2. BUSINESS
1. Get to Your REAL Business
2. Have a System
3. Use Your (Global) Brain

3. 1. Get To Your REAL Business
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Ads and websites are already
commoditized; building brand equity is
always at a premium.
You need to clearly differentiate
creative vs. routine business models.
Learn from consultancies.
To be more relevant and truly creative,
you need to understand also your
client’s business in-depth.
Instead of memorizing market share
and SOV data, understand their
business ecosystem & dynamics.
Further Reading:
Business Model Generation

4. 2. Have a System
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Contrary to the ‘perfect brief’ dream,
creativity flourishes under strict
constraints and the right system.
If DARPA can use a system to create
microwaves, GPS and the internet,
why couldn't you formulate success?
We’ve been in transition and flux since
2008, but now’s the time to lay down
the rules for your business.
A system enables you focus on better
and more profitable work, with happier
employees to boot.
Further Reading:
Lateral Thinking

5. 3. Use Your (Global) Brain
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Advertising is traditionally cultural and
local. As a result, creative networks are
fragmented and rigid by default.
However, greatness in marketing is
now defined by global interests,
audiences and standards.
Harness the brainpower of your
people. Encourage and reward
sharing, and build global practices.
Have less fixed job descriptions. Utilize
flexible, skill-based resourcing to move
brainpower where needed.
Further Reading:
The Future of Management

6. Our Success Case
McDonald’s x
Angry Birds

7. DESIGN
1. Balance Help vs. Hype
2. Revive the Power of Story
3. Drive Everything with Data

8. 1. Balance Help vs. Hype
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Big Ideas are more and more about
ongoing services or content that help
and inform the audience.
Explosive Top-of-Mind is useless if
exploration and decisions are better
supported by competitors.
Proactive and innovative services cut
through the clutter, even as audiences
grow ever more demanding.
Hype is necessary to get the traffic.
But hype is easier to build when you’re
being genuinely useful.
Further Reading:
Youtility

9. 2. Revive The Power of Story
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In the chase of the next big thing,
basic storytelling and storytellers have
been left undervalued.
Stories are an essential part of being
human. We crave them, seek them –
and invent them if we can't find them.
Get back to writing a powerful brand
story and delivering meaning, both in
content creation and service design.
Build on your greatest, differentiating
strength instead of downplaying it.
Also clients need stories to believe in.
Further Reading:
The Storytelling Animal

10. 2. Drive Everything with Data
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With SaaS & API's, collecting data on
people’s behavior is now easier, faster
and more affordable than ever.
Focus your resources to better
analysis. Feed everything from Big
Ideas to micro-targeting with data.
Use data to also prove your impact
beyond direct sales, from reach to
loyalty and Word-of-Mouth.
Be curious and get better at asking the
right questions. Tools will only get you
numbers, thinking gets you insights.
Further Reading:
Data-Driven Marketing &
How to Measure Everything

11. Our Success Case
Adidas
WindowShopping

12. TECHNOLOGY
1. Know Your Platforms
2. Get from Digital to Technology
3. Work and Test in Real Time

13. 1. Know Your Platforms
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As people, things, places and data
become connected, it’s platforms that
get them talking and interacting.
Platforms are resisted (NYC Hotels vs.
Airbnb; French Taxis vs. Uber), but
they will win for they bring the value.
Unlock this value by knowing the right
platform to use for the job, and also
the quirks within platforms.
Mobile use already exceeded TV use.
Know your mobile platforms well, or
your content won’t exist in 2014.
Further Reading:
The Age of the Platform

14. 2. Get from ‘Digital’ to ‘Technology’
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While moving beyond advertising and
communications, you need to update
your skillset.
Bring in technologists, engineers and
inventors. Empower them already in
the research & creative phases.
Wearable tech, accessories,
connected products, etc. require
technology and engineering skills.
Just having tech gear and people
around sparks new creative ideas, also
within your existing staff.
Further Reading:
What Technology Wants

15. 3. Work and Test in Real Time
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Today’s market is a 24/7, always-on
experiment. Check your goals,
milestones, test methods and criteria.
Think about your work as an infinite
process loop instead of a project.
Value and sell it accordingly.
Be curious about your content, the
response in the audience, and
especially the change in behavior.
Insist on agile building and testing
instead of months-long boardroom
rounds and subjective guesswork.
Further Reading:
Growth Hacker Marketing

16. Our Success Case
Nissan NISMO
Watch

17. THE BOTTOM LINE

18. Innovate Or Die
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Without radical innovation and
disruptive work, you won’t be a
creative agency in 2014.
Storytellers need to get together with
designers, entrepreneurs and inventors
to unlock unprecedented value.
Further Reading:
Lean Startup, UX & Analytics
52 Tools to Innovate like a Startup
As devices and people at the fringes
become ever smarter, innovation
happens at the edges.
Encourage and motivate your people
to innovate continuously, or lose their
power and momentum.
@ Slideshare

19. Thanks for#
Your Time!
Contact:
sami.viitamaki@tbwa.fi
+358 (0)44 906 6650
@samiv
www.samiviitamaki.com
www.tbwa.fi