Neil French talks about ‘scams’
May 23 2011, 9:39 am | | 13 Comments
Neil French is asked about scam ads all the time. Here he gives his personal opinion. Look out in July for Neil’s forthcoming autobiography, which is somewhat gnomically titled ‘Sorry for the Lobsters’.
NEIL TALKS ABOUT SCAM
13 Comments
Finally SOMEONE talks the truth…at least he isn’t a hypocrite like some very well known creatives and owners, who openly criticize proactive work while having a heap of it emerging from their agencies and in their very own portfolios.
Good answer. I’ll buy that.
Wow. Crazy. He’s talking about scams.
That’s brilliant. And he is right of course. We’ve all done one or two, and good luck to us.
Let me preface this by saying like most copywriters I’ve admired Mr French’s work since I started. However, there are a few serious flaws in his argument.
First of all, ‘concept’ cars. An obvious one. These cars are presented as ideas, never with the intention to be sold to the general public. And the high fashion he refers to is a celebration of an artform, not something you’ll see on the rack. The difference with scam is that is sold in under the guise of work that actually engaged with a consumer. That was never the intention of the examples he used to support his argument.
Secondly, by supporting juniors who do whatever it takes to get scam through, you’re breeding a generation of creatives who understand advertising, and not much else. Personally, I like producing work that actually has an effect in the real world. And great creative work does that. It’s just much more difficult to realise. That’s what makes it so much more rewarding, and the creatives who believe it in, so much more employable.
@7.10am u need to feed yourself before you can do work that has an effect in the real world. that is why even NGOs staff are given salaries still. besides most creatives balance their karma by providing ad hoc services or does small side projects not in relation to work. just a simple method of choice whether u wish to do it or not.
Agreed entirely 7:10
216.
Mm..little bit of a flaw in your thinking there. IF all the ‘scam’ work were done for super worthy causes – and done to balance the creatives karma – and the intention was first and foremost to raise money/profile of the charities/be effective for the small businesses even – then you have a point.
But I think we all have to admit 99% of the initiative work done worthy clients have one real goal: awards for the needy creatives?
Which is fine ! if that’s your bag, but lets not dress it up as a saintly effort to save the panda/shark or whatever
If you want to be creative, do a short film, paint, sculpt, but don’t take a trusted client’s brand and f**k with it. Sorry Neil. Love ya, but you didn’t make a good case.
The biggest and best brand NF ever built was his own.
It far eclipsed any agency or network he ever worked with, never for.
The trouble is that many lesser talented and thinner skinned wannabes thought that they could follow suit.
But none could do it with the style and loveable flourish which only he has in spades.
I for one, can’t wait to get my hands on his forthcoming book.
I have no doubt it will incense, irritate and inspire all who have been through the doors of a big bad agency, lusted after fame or just enjoyed a good bonk, fine meal and a good laugh.
NF was a man, nay-a giant of his time.
Plug the book Neil, but walk away from the indefensible soapbox of justifying scamps.
It’s no good for our business in any shape and form.
And it insults the ones who actually work hard for their three square meals.
The quarry beckons.
Still stuck in the ‘concept car’ and high fashion’ groove, I see. He’s been there for the past 5 years now. Amazing really, the #$@# a guy will say to flog a book that 99.99999% of the world will not even know or care about. But getting back to his argument…
Who build concept cars these days….Jaguar, Mercedes, Mclaren etc.
But the one thing French conveniently forgets to mention is that they also build a damn fine product for consumers. (The same could be said of Gucci, Issey Miyake and the late Alexander McQueen.)
Which highly awarded agency in Asia makes what you could call a fine product for consumers….NONE. Consumers get rubbish while agencies produce self funded work for award show that is unencumbered by the demands of the marketplace, the client or the consumer.
That is why no client in asia can be really sure of getting really good work just by picking a highly awarded agency…that must unsettle them a bit.
Because when clients pick a Wieden or a Goodby ar a handful of others, they know that over there award winning work is created on everyday briefs….not as part of some creative’s career enhancement plan.
I shall not be buying Neil French’s book….his defence of scam endears him to his fan base but make Asian advertising look like a joke.
921.
All over the shop?
“Consumers get rubbish” –
Can’t be the scam work though? By definition scam is the stuff that never really sees the light of day and never gets close to real consumers?
So the rubbish the consumers are getting must be from all the other agencies not producing scam…the non ‘highly awarded’? So that is the other work going about things the correct way in your eyes: work made of big proper briefs, from sound strategies and insights , work approved by the system , having nice big powerful clients stewarding the work and approving the work, having healthy research budgets to make sure that it’s all appealing just so to the consumers, having consumers tell the agenices how to tweak the ads.etc etc
11:17
Severe logic fail. The rubbish the consumer gets is from the SAME agencies which produce scams for juries.
The gap between what appears in the award books for – say – Ogilvy, and what appears on the street is huge.