Making brands more distinctive

I know you’ll find this hard to believe, But we didn’t win a pitch last week. I still need to have a debrief with the client to find out what went wrong. And that’s the interesting part. Has anything actually gone wrong when you’ve done the right thing?

We could have put ideas in front of the client that we thought would be closer to their expectations or safe or however you want to put it. But we didn’t. We decided on a plan of action that we believed, through experience and previous success would fulfil their objectives. It doesn’t mean that the client was wrong to reject our ideas. Absolutely not. This is their inalienable right.  Choosing a creative route often comes down to trust, chemistry and being able to see the bigger picture. As ever we enter into these situations eyes wide open and know that pitching comes with highs and lows.

There is also a real value to clients of unsuccessful pitches. These pitches offer context and help them evaluate the ideas that they think are right. Therefore there’s a value to pitching whether successful or not. Those who understand this are valuable clients indeed and when we’ve often been paid to pitch. This doesn’t take the sting and disappointment out of not seeing your ideas fly but does make the whole process more bearable and professional.

Don’t get me wrong I’m not advocating pitching as the best way to get the creative work you need. I’d rather be offered projects because of our previous credentials and experience. And this is happening more and more as clients realise the lottery of the pitch doesn’t always offer the most productive relationships.

So, I’d rather lose a pitch doing the right thing than win a pitch doing the wrong thing. That’s what I keep telling myself anyway.

Joe