ROOFTOP banter

I’ve heard this question quite a few times over the years. Sometimes it’s because someone is curious about what my job entails, and sometimes it’s because, to the untrained eye, our office environment seems too good to be true. Recently, I thought that maybe I should keep track of what a week as executive creative director of Keathley Advertising looks like. So, that’s what I did one particularly busy week last fall.

A Week in the Life of an Executive Creative Director

Sunday
Relaxed at home while reviewing artwork that needs creative direction and approvals while I’m traveling Monday morning. Basically, work left over from Friday afternoon. Some may call it procrastination, but I call it strategic planning for a focused state of attention, because “focused” is not a typical Friday-afternoon mindset.

It’s 3:39pm. Packed my luggage in 9 minutes. Took a little longer than normal, because this trip requires two stops before heading back to Cleveland.

6:00pm flight to Las Vegas. Could be going to worse places, but there will be little time for fun. We have a PR event to throw for 60 members of the press on Tuesday, as well as multiple meetings at the second biggest trade show in the world.

Monday
Woke up at 7:00am to my phone beeping. It’s 10:00am back home. I work from my room for a while. Early morning emails. Phone calls creative directing a pitch for a new client due on Thursday. Conference with my associate creative director discussing a photo shoot she’s covering while I’m out of town.

Breakfast with the client at 9:00am. Then pre-event planning with the Hard Rock to art direct the stage and venue set-up.

Met with our account exec and event planner in the afternoon to go over final details and trade show logistics.

Dinner with the client. Played some cards before going to bed. Not a bad day.

Tuesday
Spent the entire day working from my iPhone and paying attention to the details of a client and her business. My mobile devices make it nice to be able to manage an ad agency, as well as view and provide feedback on projects day and night from any location.

Wednesday
Met with a new business prospect for breakfast. Sounds like Keathley’s ability to grow his business is a perfect fit for his marketing aspirations. I promise him a discovery process and strategy in two weeks.

PR event went off without a hitch. Spent a lot of the day making decisions that sometimes seem silly, but all the details are integral to building the brand at every artistic and strategic opportunity.

Celebrated with the staff and clients over a late sushi dinner. Yum.

Thursday
Flew directly to Chicago at 8:00am. New business meeting. Three meetings with potential partners. Meeting with our web team about the final stages of a groundbreaking site. Straight to a commercial pre-pro for one of our biggest clients. Already feels like a full day.

Met my associate creative director and our senior creative writer. We planned out the shoot over dinner and drinks. I’m very comfortable with our team and the spokesperson that we’ve developed. I’m sure it will go smoothly. I drag myself to bed preparing for an even longer day tomorrow.

Friday
16-hour shoot. Location was very upscale and allowed us a breathtaking view and easily designed sets. My day was filled with creative decisions and creative direction that empowers others to run the show. It was a great shoot and we got tons done. Client was thrilled at how much we accomplished.

Saturday
Flying home this morning. Reviewed footage in the airport while waiting for a delay. Then reflected on the week while grabbing a coffee before boarding. It was a busy one. Most of my weeks actually include two days like this, and three filled with helping clients solve their business objectives and keeping the creative atmosphere in our studio at world-class levels. That requires a creative cocktail, and it’s a tricky dance. It consists of one part empowering creative direction, one part landing large brand strategies, one part of fun diversions from work, and one part not worrying what everyone does all day.

 

 

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Freestyle writing. Yoga. Radiohead. Creatives use many methods to get (and stay) inspired. An inspired and practiced mind is much more prone to moments of creative genius.

People may be born creative, but in order to harness creativity, it needs to be exercised. Creativity is not a bike. You can’t jump on it after years without practice. You’ll probably crash, and definitely won’t land a 720 bar spin.

Advertising agencies know this. Smart ones encourage behavior that inspires creativity because creativity impacts their bottom lines. The question is: Would this mode of thinking benefit other businesses that may view these behaviors as a waste of company time? Maybe the answer is no. Then again… more industries than advertising rely on ideas.

Creativity-inspiring activities aren’t necessarily time consuming.  A break from intense thinking for some short-lived fun has substantial positive results. Redirecting attention for a moment of entertainment and creative release refreshes creative mojo. We bet modern psychology can back this up. And we’ve known it to solve problems on many occasions.

In the names of all those whose work benefits from a 5-minute Fun-Time Refresh, we’ve decided to compile a collection of examples. We’ll call it the “Keathley Take Fives.” Keep an eye out for additions. Here’s one to get you started.

Situation: This Keathley Take Five manifested itself in the form of an email chain. Becki Cooper, Account Coordinator, had to stay home one morning for a kitchen appliance repair. She sent the following email to inform the staff of the situation:

Dishwasher guy said he will be here at 11. Probably be in around 12-12:15. Feel free to email me w anything.

Becki Cooper
Public Relations Coordinator
Keathley Advertising

As any levelheaded colleagues would respond, the staff took the last line of the email quite literally. The following is a glimpse at some of the responses.

Hey Becki:

Hate to bother you, but I have a pressing question I wanted to ask.  Typically, people don’t read labels properly and shampoo their hair incorrectly.

I’m sure you know this, but it says to “Lather. Rinse. AND Repeat.”  I know a lot of people don’t Repeat and only Lather and Rinse once.  This is a shame.  I just wanted to see if you were aware of this situation and were taking steps to assure that you are indeed Repeating as the label implies.

I just don’t want to get into a “He-said” “She-said” situation when it comes to these types of things.  Can you please put together a 20+ page internal policy report on how we can correct this issue in the future (and we might as well put together something on how it can be corrected in the past while we are at it).  If you could have that ready by noon for review that would be great.

Thanks.
–

Zachary Linquist
Director of Interactive Media

________________________________________________________________

Hey Becki:

I hope things are going well with your appliances. I was just sitting here pondering an important question: Twix: Cookie or Candy? I thought that, with your background in cake design, you might have some insight on this.

Would you mind doing some primary and secondary research on the subject? It’d be great if you could post a formal survey on your Facebook page and ask all your Twitter followers.

Please compile your findings in a detailed report, along with at least 22 related web articles and a summary of your final conclusions, by EOD today.

Thanks,

Jack                                                                                                                                                                           Associate Creative Director

________________________________________________________________

Hi Becki,

I need some consultation about an area of your expertise. American Idol, while obviously the most annoying and mentally insubstantial show ever to have disgraced the screen, is somehow the most successful show in history.

Is the success of American Idol due to it being a meritable reality program or a string of self-obsessed publicity stunts and scandals?

Topics of discussion:

• Paula Abdul and young boys
• Paula Abdul on drugs
• “Coke” cups: promotion or insinuation?
• Gay guys finish second
• Ryan Seacrest

Please advise.

Thanks

Brandi Hensler
Copywriter

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Conclusion: Did Becki deliver on these requests? No. Was the combined 15 minutes spent on this a waste of company time? Maybe. But the award-winning campaign that was concepted later the same day says otherwise…

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I think I can speak for the Keathley crew when I say that we all love our jobs. Sure, there are those days when the snooze button is a bit overused but, for the most part, weekday mornings are a breeze when you’re walking in the office to amusing, gifted people…and in-office espresso. The NorthCoast 99 award simply proved what we’ve all known for a while – Keathley Advertising is one of the 99 best places to work in Northeast Ohio.

This award was bestowed on those companies that demonstrated merit through a grueling application process that involved dozens of questions on culture, innovation, success and training. We stood out in the area of employee growth; Inside Business magazine wrote an article on our own Brandi Hensler, who has carved out the opportunity to shine as our social media maven in her first few years as a copywriter.

Tie that in with agency-paid training, team building retreats, flex hours, and the option to bring your dog to work (oh, have we mentioned the rooftop patio?), and you’ve got a workplace culture that inspires extraordinary ideas every day.

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Having a successful agency takes a firm dedication to understanding clients’ needs and delivering solutions that offer return on investment. But, to make that happen, it’s critical to foster a culture that’s positive, and at the end of the day, fun. Amazing creativity only comes when people can see the possibilities. That doesn’t happen when they are stuck in a negative space. All work and no play makes Jack uninspired.

In our culture, fun and inspiration come in many forms: roller-skating, rock climbing, ATV adventures, a puzzle hunt pub crawl, birthday parties arranged by award-winning PR event planners, and softball championships, just to name a few.

Download the full story on how our culture translates into big benefits for our clients.

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