In an industry that is constantly changing, young creatives have to prove to creative directors that they’re thinking big and thinking forward.
Such was the consensus at last week’s Portfolio Night at BBDO Toronto. Around 150 creative students had the chance to present their books to 50 of the city’s top creative directors.
Some of them shared their thoughts on the new directions of the advertising industry, how to stand out as a young creative, and what students should be prepared for.
Focus on big ideas and integrated campaigns
Joel Pylypiw, a creative director at BBDO, said when he got into the industry, ad campaigns were centred around one specific medium, like print or TV. “Now, you have to present multiple things around a campaign. It’s how do you put a social calendar together for 12 months of Facebook posts, Twitter and Instagram.”
Students impress DS+P creative director Brian Murray, when they have “ideas that are big enough that can work in different media, that work as a whole, instead of somebody creating a print campaign and then creating a Twitter account for the sake of it. You need ideas to support each other and work together to be truly integrated.”
Deena Baij, a graduate of the Humber College copywriting program, said learning to integrate is vital for young creatives. “You have to have your hands in every part of the internet and the real world. Know how all those things are working together. It seems like everything’s happening faster, which means you have to be faster.”
The highest caliber of ideas are those that make creative directors wish they’d thought of it first, said Murray, “where you get a little pain in your stomach and perhaps a tinge of jealousy.” Students who present ideas he’s thought of himself also make a good impression. “If you’re a professional and you’ve thought of that, you really can’t hold it against the students.”
Stay open minded
Pylypiw said he wished students showed him less finished work. “Because it feels by the time you’re seeing things your feedback is almost irrelevant because they’ve gone so far with it. Finding the conceptual idea and the talent to understand ideas is what the important part is.”
Mike Blackmore, an associate creative director at Taxi, said students that can accept criticism will be more successful. “They have to have a thick skin. They have to know that when we comment on their ideas it’s not them, it’s their ideas, and that’s probably going to get better.”
“The industry is changing everyday; there’s no blueprint. You need people that can adapt.”
Use your millennial-ness
Being young is an advantage in the digital age, said Ian Simpson, an associate creative director at Ogilvy and Mather. “I want to see work where I say that’s a great way to use a new medium, something they would have a great insight to being consumers of their age.”
To Blackmore, that means being able to use new technology effectively. “We’re on the cutting edge of technology; every time something comes out you have to come up with a way to use that in our communications. It moves so fast that I think anyone that comes in now has to kind of be a leader in new thinking.”
Humber graduate Baij said, “Everyone’s trying to get a handle on what millennials want, and here we are, we’re looking for jobs.”
Simpson said it’s a good time to be a young creative. “With a lot of new media channels and social media, they have a much better chance of being digitally native and understanding that behaviour.”
Outshine the competition
One thing that hasn’t changed in the advertising industry is the level of competition.
Ogilvy’s Simpson said, “There are a lot of students looking for the same position. So I think competitiveness and the ability to show up at their first place of work and be able to know what they’re doing very quickly and hit the ground running,” will make young creatives more successful.
Creative directors agreed that a good personality helps a student stand out.
Murray said, “Face-to-face, people are looking for talent who carry themselves with confidence, can take you through their thinking process, and who you know you could eventually put in front of a client and work on real pieces of business.”
Andrew Chhour, a copywriting intern at LG2 Toronto, said a good work ethic can also set a young creative apart. “The main objective of the intern is just to clear your desk of the grunt work. Good work ethic goes far in any industry.”
