Art Or Commerce?

As you are all probably aware Narcissus in Greek mythology was a hero who was renowned for his beauty.
He was also exceptionally cruel, in that he disdains those who love him.
As divine punishment he falls in love with a reflection in a pool, not realizing it was his own, and perishes there, not being able to leave the beauty of his own reflection.
We agency folk are great at what we do.
In fact we're proud to have some very talented people working at all levels in all agencies and I understand it's easy, when you look as good as we do, to become entranced by our own beauty... by our art.
By all means create wonderful ideas that will enthral and beguile audiences.
But beware of the point when reality, or the reality of the brief at least, feels like an intrusion into your vision.
Because that's the point where you start looking for reasons to ignore what is being asked for.
You need to stop looking in the pool.
We are here to sell stuff.
To create solutions for the client, brand or company that does one of two things.
Increase the pleasure or decrease the pain.
That’s it, it’s simple.
In the world of the agency the real beauty is in the results

Says Who?

Paul Daniels knew what he was talking about. “You’re gonna like this... not a lot!”
He knew how to manage expectations, by selling in an idea, with a caveat that his fondness for it was in no way a guarantee of approval.
So why then, do we insist on going out there and telling prospective clients “We’ve got a great idea for you” when we present?
If they’re in any way hostile, annoyed or bored, their first response is likely to be “I’ll be the judge of that” or “prove it!”
Great ideas should sell themselves, we don’t need to tell our audience what to think or feel about them.
The moment we try, we invite them to find a reason to dislike it.
If we love what we’ve created, it should come across in the way we tell the story.
Now, for my next trick...