Sample Programs

Power of Creative Strategy

Energize and train everyone in the creative process how to think more strategically and work with their team more effectively to develop inspirational creative briefs that result in great work.

We tailor this program to meet the needs of each unique agency and client environment and is ideal for Account and Creative teams, and their marketing/business partners.

Objectives

• Use collaboration to streamline the process of getting good work and increase the value of the account and creative teams
• Explore techniques for developing more effective creative strategies
• Create a strategic approach for handling different types of jobs

The approach to accomplishing the course goals will involve using your organization’s creative strategies as a springboard to look at ways to:

• Improve input into Creative Strategies
• Know what questions to ask and how to ask them in developing communications strategies
• Clarify roles: who provides input, when and how? 
• Improve collaboration/communication among team members and across departments 
• Gain alignment as to how to develop effective creative strategies around each team member’s role in effectively creating and gaining approval of strategy, and more importantly, the resulting creative.
  

Creative Concepts

Designed around a series of challenging creative assignments, this 8-week program provides the opportunity for professionals to team up to produce and present innovative creative work. Students gain an understanding of what goes into a strategy and how to get the most out of it creatively.

Students work individually and in teams. Teams collaborate on every step from market insights to taglines. Each week there is an opportunity to present creative work in class for feedback and critique by the instructors.

Instructors use real world examples to illustrate successful campaign strategies and how the creative work brings them to life in broadcast, print and online.

Objectives

• Understand the purposes of the creative strategy and how to translate it into compelling communication.
• Gain appreciation for consumer insights.
• Practice brainstorming, problem-solving and strategic thinking.
  
• Develop and express your point of view.
  
• Connect with Associates from other teams and work groups.
• Develop your teamwork muscle.
  
• Increase skills, confidence and build your branding capabilities.
  

Evaluating Creative

How do you measure creative success? Creative evaluation is an important part of the communications process. It is essential to getting the best creative solutions possible. Done right, it reveals how well a piece of creative work resonates with its intended audience. It provides valuable lessons that impact future work.

Evaluating Creative is a seminar designed to benefit anyone who involved in the creative process. Led by a brand marketing expert, with insights from a panel of experts representing Account, Creative and Marketing points of view, you will learn how to sharpen your skills to evaluate creative, including…

• Why, when and how to evaluate creative work (and how not to!)
  
• Understanding and valuing roles
  
• A fresh approach to comparing creative work against set objectives
  
• How to ask the right questions
  
• How to give productive feedback
  
• Innovative tips and techniques

Presenting Creative Work

This seminar places emphasis on teaching agency/account executives to substantially improve their success rate of selling creative the first time around and dramatically improve a client’s trust in the account executive’s expertise and judgment.

This program is very hands-on, with over 20 specific actionable tools taught and practiced by participants. Your issues create the agenda for the day. A range of subjects can be addressed, in addition to learning over 15 specific techniques for selling an idea to a client in under 60 seconds.

Delivery Skills

• Communication skills (verbal and non-verbal)
• Remote computer, jpeg and Power-Point™ presentation skills
• Increasing persuasiveness
• Skills to “work an audience”
• Increasing group participation and involvement
• Bringing life and vitality to one’s performance

Organizational Skills

• Knowing in what format audiences want information (listener analysis)
• Structure that sells versus only tells
• Persuasive outlines for short (5” – 15”) and long (15”+) presentations
• Techniques for creating a single-minded focus for all presentations
• Techniques for “blueprinting” your presentations
• Flow, transitions and theme development techniques
• Techniques on opening and closing that win audience approval

Presentation Aids

• Types and their effectiveness
• What to avoid and their solutions
• Techniques to bringing life and pizzazz to a presentation
• Storyboard techniques to developing aids
• Making them work to persuade audiences to one’s position

Questions and Objections

• How not to handle
• Techniques that satisfy the questioner
• Techniques for thinking quickly on one’s feet
• Techniques for turning negatives into positives
• Maintaining credibility
• Keeping the peace