As a creative I felt frsutrated, as a consumer I felt violated..

I think everyone working in advertising has this feeling. But I think the cost and simplicity of doing your own ideas can in fact be quite rewarding. I have done some side work for smaller companies before and I think it helps keep your mind in check and not too restricted.

Its also interersted that he put his money where is mouth was and paid for a lot of it.

How to you really sell ideas outside of your speciality

bp. Photobooth Walkthrough from Zeus Jones on Vimeo.

How many times have you seen an idea pop up that you had. Please see the video attached. I had this one in the very early stages of digital photography with a client around 6 years ago. It was as simple as girls take photos in the outfit and print them out. (client look after cameras and photo printers).
We also had the exact same idea about three months ago for another entertainment client.
But there truth is we never made them happen.

I have always been interested in selling ideas, making them happen and understanding who does what. What if you are a PR agency and you come up with the most interesting online technology idea. But the client looks at you funny because thats the digital agency's job. So it helps lead to the question

How do you really sell thinking outside your speciality ?

There is a lot of of back and forth at the moment on what the role of strategy people are from different business types. To who is a creative, to who should control the brand. But in theory a good idea should be a good idea. But it never seems to work that way. Which sux

Short Cuts to getting ideas

Book Worm, originally uploaded by boopsie.daisy.

I read an interesting article in contagious this quarter about some quick cheats on how to break the mold a little bit. Some of these you probably do naturally but to aid in getting teams and groups of people or even more junior people to break convention. I think these are a great place to start.

Reverse Engineering:
This is about getting to the end result and working backwards. I quitelike this way and it can be a great way to present things. I know the creative agency Krow tend to work in this way with their clients

Sabotage / Reducation:
Instead of adding something new which is the standard way to create an idea you. You in fact eliminate something to make people realise its true value. Crispins in the US have used this a bit with the Whopper Sacrifice and Whopper Freakout.

Fight for a Cause
Im starting to love this one. Brands having a notable cause that relates to their brand positioning is awesome. But on a slightly more superficial level creating a cause like Doritos 'Bring back the Slow Dance' in Argentina which tapped into the growth of social networking but boys fear of getting close to girls in real life... needed an instigator. It is also great to make the audience feel apart of something greater than themselves which is an important trend to address at the moment.

Creative use of the problem:
Making the problem the highlight is always interesting. I think one of the standout examples of this was Guiness's 'Worth Waiting for' tagline a few years ago. But they also talk about Queensland Tourism's 'Best Job in the World' playing on the lack of holidays due to fear of actually losing your job.

It was written by a company in Tel Aviv called mindscapes which works with agencies to help create more specific processes around creativity.

Thankgod we can stop using the Obama example for the UK

Although it is unbelievable. I am getting a little over seeing Obama as the only great casestudy of this bottom up style world that digital is allowing us to create. Especially as it is very American (sorry but clients want local examples). So it is a bit early. But there is a great grass roots idea that is happening up in Manchester to try and regenerate an old area of the city through group participation. Its called Cutting Room Experiment and is about creating ideas for flash mobs and different events to create interest and conversations around this old area.
Im loving the idea of getting people motivated around an old area of the city. As opposed to just throwing money at it or having lots of parties to developers to try and suck up to them. Or that it is not just for a brand but for the love of the local community. Im going to keep an eye on this one