Age Matters

As the oldest person in the office, I occasionally find myself explaining quirky phrases or social references. Sometimes this leads to a link to great Saturday Night Live skit, sometimes it's a "you had to be there" moment. It's fun to think back on the iconic images and behaviors from when I was growing up, and to hear from the 30-something and the 20-somethings in the office about what they remember.

I write this thinking about the title of a presentation I'm giving with Mark Faircloth for the Virginia Bankers Association in March. We wanted something a little catchy and creative. As we came up with titles, we had to think about our audience - would they get it or just be confused? Would some get it and those who don't still understand what the topic is about? Or are we just trying to be too creative when it's more important to communicate clearly?

These are issues we struggle with every day for our clients. We want first and foremost to communicate clearly. Then we move to the mindset of the audience - is there some iconic thing or phrase that would help get the message across and remembered? It's a fine line to walk, but we sure love doing it!

Peace (OR) Peace Out (depending on your age)

Wishful Thinking

The great thing about this business is that it's often subjective, the challenging thing about this business is that it's often subjective. On Friday, Megan and I presented some great concepts, which we (along with creatives Ben & Jason) felt were strong and addressed what the client was trying to communicate. Somewhere along the line, we missed a key image that the client felt strongly represented their differentiation. Unfortunately, not even the client can agree on what that image should be. We're now locked in an epic internal struggle to try and interpret what they want to communicate. This is the great part of our work - pushing creativity and thinking to the limits, all the while making sure what we communicate is clear, direct, understandable and actionable. Wish us luck - and stay tuned!

Communication

So I spent the weekend with a good friend and business associate - I'm on her company's strategic advisory committee. Turns out she's been frustrated trying to find the right marketing company and just happened to mention it in the course of casual conversation. For the 8 years we've known each other, socially and professionally, I've felt confident she knew what MBM does - turns out I was very wrong. So lessons for today are (1) Never assume someone else knows what you know and (2) just because you do a good job marketing your clients doesn't mean you do a good job marketing yourself. I'm sure there's a lesson (3), I just haven't processed it yet....