The Brief Bros.

225: The Open Brief

A shout-out to our friend and past guest on The Brief Bros., Lance Saunders. He shared with us a fascinating article about The Open Brief.
It gave Henry Gomez and me a brilliant topic for today's discussion. And it triggered memories of past lives where we both had experience with a version.
Is the open brief a valuable concept, a path to creative innovation? Or an invitation to disaster?
Henry and I have fun in our exploration. Where do you stand? Open Brief or Closed Brief?

224: Chaz Wigley's new book

Our old friend, Chaz Wigley, returns to The Brief Bros. He reminds us why his 100 Things Planners Should Know is a font of wisdom. His insights, collected after decades as a strategist, are the building blocks for a stellar career.
Chaz shares his favorites among the 100 Things.
But this conversation is mostly about the bigger picture. About where strategy is today, the role of brands, the influence of AI and more.
And all from the perspective of an industry insider who is former chairman at BBH Asia.

223: Brand Truth vs Human Truth

Returning to our Lightning Round debates, The Brief Bros. today ask:
Which is more important on the creative brief—brand truth or human truth?
Howard sides with Brand Truth. Henry lines up with Human Truth.
In this short episode, we offer insights to help brief writers tackle their next brief.
What's in your brief?

222: The history of the brief

Four-plus years in, The Brief Bros. finally get around to asking an important question:
When did the creative brief make its first appearance?
Henry Gomez did quite a bit of research on this. Because it's what good strategists do. So we decided to do a brief history of the document.
Who was the first to use the term, creative brief? Stephen King? Stanley Pollitt?
Tune in and find out what we found out. History buffs, this one's for you!

221: Light Round 2: Insight vs SMP

Part Two of The Brief Bros.'s Lightning Round, inspired by my buddy Giles Edwards, who puts his podcast guests through a series of five or six quick-answer questions.
So we ask, Which is more important on a brief, the insight or the SMP?
Henry Gomez tackles Insight, and I give you my best thinking on the Single-Minded Proposition.
Now don't be fooled into thinking one part of the brief is actually more important than the other. Both play their roles.
Thanks to Giles's inspiration, Henry and I use the Lightning Round scenario to make our case for each question.
Why? To help brief writers think clearer and clearly when they write their next brief.
It's a fun concept and we'll be back with more Lightning Rounds. So enjoy this one.

220: Lightning Round: Objective vs Target

Today on The Brief Bros., we borrow from our buddy Giles Edwards who puts his podcast guests through what he calls a Lightning Round.
Each guest is hit with a series of fast-delivered questions and expected to deliver fast answers.
So Henry Gomez and I took this concept and adapted it to our show.
This is the first in an on-going series. Each of us takes one question on a brief and makes the case that it's the most important.
We're not truly arguing against the other question, but instead helping brief writers bring clear thinking to their task.
Stay tuned for more Lightning Rounds!
 

219: London's SCA now online

Our friend Marc Lewis joins Henry Gomez and me today for a major announcement:
The School of Communication Arts in London now offers a six-month fully online course for portfolio development.
And he's got a special offer for viewers of The Brief Bros.: a coupon code worth $500 off tuition—BROS500.
The April cohort is underway, and the US is well represented, with almost half the attendees.
Plus, SCA online is supported by instructors from some of London's finest creative shops.
Watch as Marc lays out the courework and his vision. Are you ready to sign up?

218: When creative gets killed

Creative work presented to the client gets killed with alarming frequency.
The average number of rounds today is...five...before the client signs off.
Scary, yes. But today Henry Gomez and I talk about the immediate problem: how to recover, regroup and come back with your best thinking.
The task requires leadership from both the brief writer/stragetist and the creative director.
Howard and Henry break down the challenge from both perspectives.

217: When you must rebrief

In another "Nuts 'n bolts" discussion, Henry Gomez and I talk about the rare but not unusual occasion when your client says, "Start over."
This is different from those presentations when the client rejects the work, but not the brief. Something more serious happens and you're instructed to begin again.
Henry and I will tackle the former challenge in an upcoming episode. Today we dissect the process brief writers sometimes face when the brief may need adjusting.  And then the creative team needs to be read in a second time.
How should strategists handle this scenario? Henry offers a few valuable guideposts.

216: Evaluating ideas is hard

Our friends at BetterBriefs, Pieter-Paul von Weiler and Matt Davies have delivered more scathing survey results. This time on the subject of evaluating creative ideas presented by agencies to clients.
Why are ideas so difficult to judge? Why have rounds of creative presentation grown from an average of three to five before clients sign off?
Henry Gomez and I share one juicy survey result from the lot and break it down for you. it's a sad situation, and it's both not surprising and shocking. We discuss.

215: SXSW teaching star

Kit Altin is chief strategy officer at The Gate London. And she made a splash last year at Austin's SXSW with queues round the block waiting for her workshop.
She was so popular, she was invited back last month. And she's now a fixture at the annual festival that celebrates tech, film and music.
Kit joins Henry Gomez and me to talk about her journey from journalist to copywriter to strategist and renowned creative educator.

214: Eight hours to write a brief?

You're given only eight hours to write a creative brief. What now? According to our guest, Dan Carlton, it's not a common event, but it's not rare either.
Dan is the CEO and founding partner of The Paragraph Project, a company that develops "human-centered strategies" for marketers and agencies alike. And he's created an online training for strategists in a pinch for a quick-turn brief. It's an hour-by-hour structured training to move from blank page to a finished brief.
He's even offering Brief Bros. viewers a 50% coupon to try his "8 Hour Creative Brief."
Use this link and the code BRIEFBROS: planneru.gumroad.com/l/eighthourcreativebrief

213: Inside look at podcasting

Meet Kevin Le, content creator and podcast producer. A chance encounter on a business flight led to a three-hour non-stop conversation. And in invitation to join me on The Brief Bros.
Kevin's enthusiasm for podcasting is infectious. And his deep experience opened my eyes. And since so many of Henry Gomez's and my colleagues are dabbling in podcasting, this was an ideal time to delve into the topic. As you'll discover, Kevin will open your eyes too.
Which online tools work best for podcasters? How do you record, edit, and reformat your podcasts? Kevin answers these questions and offers so much more.

212: Creative-Strategist tension

Henry Gomez and I return to discuss an important "nuts 'n bolts" topic: why is there tension between strategtists and creatives?
Alex Morris joined us a few months ago to share results from his own informal survey on this topic. But Henry and I decided it merited further exploration.
When the relationship works, the results are magic. When it doesn't, the work suffers.
Henry and I share our thoughts on how to foster this important partnership. Creatives and strategists, pull up a chair.