We all come up with good ideas and executions all the time. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t make it in advertising for very long. Every once in a while, good work becomes great work. That’s the work that wins awards, grabs the attention of the media and may even become a part of pop culture.

What factors differentiate the merely good from the great? A lot of variables affect the outcome (client relationships, agency culture, budget, attitude – just to name a few), but two play a larger role in success than all the others: the idea and the execution.

You can have a fantastic idea and an OK execution, and your final product will be good, not great.

Or you can have an OK idea and a fantastic execution, and your final product will be good, not great

You will only have a great final product if the idea and the execution are both outstanding.

Here’s an example. Dolly Parton had a fantastic idea for a song.

Her execution of the song was good, but it wasn’t great.

(I may not have loved her version of this song. But that doesn’t mean I won’t always love Dolly.)

It took Whitney Huston’s execution to elevate the song to new heights.

By collaborating, Dolly and Whitney achieved success that went beyond what each could have reached alone.

This song is a lot like advertising. Except in our field, the person who most often gets all the credit and glory is the one who comes up with the idea. But, as we’ve just heard, the idea is only half of what makes something exceptional. Even if you don’t come up with the idea, it’s important to remember that the execution is just as important. You can  take a great deal of pride in what you can do to transform good into great.

As you get your next assignment, be inspired by Dolly and Whitney. (Just don’t sing to your partner too much. I’ve been told that’s annoying.)

‘Tis the season for holiday advertising. Most of the advertising is retail. Most of it is fairly predictable. How many biggest sales of the season can there be?

A friend sent a link to this ad created by St Matthews-in-the-City Church in New Zealand. Its honest portrayal of real emotions was refreshing after seeing too many contrived jewelry store commercials. (Who has money for a diamond necklace the day of signing on a new house? People who shop at Tiffany? Maybe. But Kay? Come on.)

One of the things that makes this ad remarkable is it takes something familiar and makes you see it in a slightly different, deeper way – a hallmark of great advertising.

No one really knows a lot about Mary. Many of us have heard her story what feels like a million times. But in all the telling and retelling, it still doesn’t feel like we have any sense of what she was like as a person. What we do know makes her seem different and distant. She lived over 2,000 years ago in a country many of us have never even visited. Where’s the common ground?

This ad succeeds because it overcomes differences and finds a common link that connects women throughout the world and history. Any woman who sees this ad, especially those who have experienced a Clearblue Easy moment, can imagine what she’s thinking and empathize with her. I’m going to be someone’s mom? It’s freaky. It’s overwhelming. It totally rocks your world. And we see all that in her expression.

The use of the pregnancy test in this ad doesn’t so much make her seem modern as it makes her emotions feel timeless and universal. The years, cultural differences, distance and unknowns melt away, and we are in that moment with her.

The outdoor board has no copy. It doesn’t need it. It’s just a simple visual solution that, in mere moments, makes an emotional connection with the viewer. And that’s what great ads do. They uncover a universal
human truth. They find common ground. They make us feel something real and true.

Now, if only someone could tell that to Kay…

“Oh no. The hierarchy is all wrong. The roses should clearly be subordinate to the candles.”

Copy: Dione Baker

Art: Beki Gonzalez

Fear is like fire.

Controlled, fire and fear can be tremendously beneficial. Fear can help motivate you to work harder. Prod you to keep trying to come up with just one more idea. And it can push you to try new things.

Uncontrolled, it’s destructive — a self saboteur’s greatest weapon.

Fear and creativity.

As a creative, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve let fear get out of control and allowed self-doubt, self-criticism and indecision ruin the chance to do good work.

Putting it into perspective, I don’t rush into burning buildings to save lives. Or deal with the tremendous weight of life-and-death decisions borne by those working in the ER, law enforcement or on the front lines. In advertising, facing fears isn’t facing life or death.

But it is failure or success.

Which is why over the years, I’ve come to realize that learning how to play with fire without getting burned is one of the most important skills a creative needs to master.

And the only way I’ve learned how to get better at managing or controlling fear is through experience. Every failure, I learn something about myself or business or other people or writing or life in general. Every success, I learn a little something more. Little by little, by living and doing, I’ve become better and better at using or ignoring fear.

I think RuPaul says it best:

“I have one thing to say ⎯ you better work.”

If you’re facing the fear of failure.

Work.

The fear of mediocrity.

Work.

The fear of not being able to come up with a good idea.

Work.

The fear of your best being not good enough.

Work.

The fear of being too old or too inexperienced or too this or too that.

Work it girl.

Because the only thing that reliably works when facing fear is working through it. Doing something. Making something. Trying something new. Thinking. Moving. Building. Creating. Sometimes you’ll fail. Sometimes you’ll aim high and hit it. But every time you face your fears, you’ll get stronger, more resilient and more resistant to the self-eroding, self-defeating effects of fear.

You’re a superstar. Now do your thing.