WorldCreativityandInnovationDayis heldonApril 21 eachyearby
theUnitedNations.Accordingtotheglobalorganisation,creativityhas
becomea “truewealthofnations”inthe21stcentury.
TheCreativeEconomyreport,WideningLocalDevelopmentPathways,
co-publishedbytheUnitedNationsEducational,ScientificandCultural
Organisation(UNESCO)andtheUNDevelopmentProgramme(UNDP),
highlightedwhyculturalandcreativeindustriesshouldbepartofeco-
nomicgrowthstrategies.ThereportstatesthesesectorsgenerateUS$2.25
billioninrevenueand29.5millionjobsworldwide.
Formarketersandadvertisers,creativityis essential.Theriseintech-
nologyanddigitaladvertisinghascreateda seaofsamenessleadingto
morethan90%ofadsgoingunnoticed.
Forrestersayschiefmarketingofficers(CMO)nowhavethefast-
est-growingtechspendintheC-suite,whichisprojectedtogrow
between9%and11%from 2017 to2022.Thisis comparedwithonly2.4%
foragencyservices.
Initsreport,TheCostofLosingCreativity, ForresterrecommendsCMOs
“moveportionsofyourmarketingbudgetoutofcommoditisedareasof
technologyandintocreativeresourcestoproducepowerful,differenti-
ated,brandedexperiencesandcommunicationpoweredbytheright
technology”.ItsaysUS$19billioncouldbeshiftedfromtechnologyto
creativity,yieldinga moreproportionate approach for marketers.
Atransformativepower
WhenitcomestochampioningcreativityinAustralia,thereisno
greaterambassadorthanPwCpartnerandchiefcreativeofficerRussel
Howcroft. Speaking at the Interbrand Best Global Brands 2019 event
inSydney,theregularonthe
A BC’s Gruen programmadea
pleaforbrandstoapplycreativity
throughouttheirbusiness.
“Weneedthecreativebrand
toabsolutelybeatthecoreof
business,”hesaid.“It’saround
brandpurpose.It’saroundthe
proposition.It’saroundwhatwe
doeverysingleday.
“Ithinkthoseofusinthemar-
ketingservicesbusinessunder-
standthatforourselves.We’vejust
gottogetoutthere.We’vegottoget
a wholelotbetteratgettingour
clientstorecognisethatit’screativ-
itythroughouttheorganisation.”
In1995,Australiasatat 57 on
theeconomiccomplexityindex
(ECI).Todayitis93rd.Japanis
numberone.Howcroftbelievesa
lackofcreativityis toblame,call-
ingAustralia“constipated”andin
needof“collectivelaxative”.
“Here’s the problem with
thecreativeword,”hesaid.“Inthe
Australiancontext,peoplethink
creativityisaboutthearts.You
say creativityarounda political
table— inparticular,witha right-
wing conservative government
— they don’tseeit asaneconomic
word.It is aneconomicword.
“We’vejustgottofinda wayto
getthecreativewordoutofarts
andintobusinessbecauseif you’re
notcreative,howdoyoupossibly
comeupwithwi-fi?Howdoyou
comeupwithplasticmoney?It’s
anotherAustralianinnovation.
Howdoyoucomeupwithpenicil-
lin?That’sprettygood.”
ToHowcroft,everyoneis crea-
tive.Atthetalk,hespokeabout
the“threeCs”ofcreativity:small
C, professionalC andbigC.Small
C creativitycanbefoundinevery-
one,whileprofessionalC is attrib-
utedtothosewhohavemadea
careeroutofit,includingthosein
marketing and advertising.
Around95%offive-year-oldshave
geniuslevelsofsmallC creativity.
By thetime they’re 15, it sits
around25%because,asHowcroft
putsit,“weteachit outofpeople”.
BigC creativity,ontheotherhand,
isreservedforthefewwhoare
truecreative geniusessuch as
PabloPicasso.Despiteaccounting
fora smallechelonofsociety,it is
oftenconsideredasthe bench-
mark for creativity.Media agencies weigh in on the role creativity plays in their work today.
PHDstrategydirector
RemiBaker
Whenwethinkofcreativityin
mediaagencies,somemayjump
tothoughtsofcreativeflighting,
tradingandtargeting.Yes,while
thisistrue,creativityplaysa
muchbiggerrole.Improvedtech
capabilities,accesstodataand
morediversetalentpoolsmean
thatmediaagencieshavethetools
andthetalenttocomeupwith
moremeaningfulandeffective
creativeideas.Ideasbasedonan
in-depthunderstandingof people
and their behaviour.
GroupMchieftechnology
andtransformationofficer
CameronKing
It’stemptingtoimaginethatinstinct
andartarelostatthehandsof
dataandtechnology.Therobots
aregoingtowin,right?Notquite.
I believetechnologyenhances
creativity.It givesusdetailabout
consumerattitudes,preferences
andneeds.It automatesthe
communicationsprocessandallows
ideastobetestedandrefined.It
givesfeedbackabouthoweffective
greatideaswereatinfluencing
hearts, minds and wallets.PublicisMedia
ANZheadofcontentand
sportPatrickWhitnall
Mediaagencieshavealwaysbeen
a creativesourceforbrands.The
growthofchannelsandtechnology
hascreatedanexplosionintheneed
formorecreativityandassetsacross
customerjourneys,client-owned
assetsanddevices.Mediaagencies
arebestplacedtoadapttothis
speedanddemandincollaboration
withmedia/techpartners,whichis
seenacrossSEO,mobile,six-second
ads,long-formwrittencontent and
personalised digital ads.http://www.adnews.com.au| March 2020 29