When cutting edge creative fails to make the cut, what does?
Jayshree Sundar Executive Director, Leo Burnett

“I want cutting edge creative”

“Please think outside the box”, “Get me something Hatke”, Authentic client statements at every briefing session. Déjà vu.
And the agency is in the chase mode. In quest of the elusive cutting edge idea.
Who defines what is cutting edge creative? The Brand manager with all of two years experience? Many a breakthrough idea reaches the dustbin, before taking shape because some ‘smart alec’ rationalises the situation to death, or worries too much about what his boss will think. Somewhere, does anyone wonder what the consumer will feel?

So what is cutting edge creativity?
Let’s start with Mahatma Gandhi, possibly the most creative Indian ever. At the core of his message was an emotional connect which maybe the masses never fully understood, but completely related to.

Peel away the layers of the independence struggle, the passion for rural development and the several volumes of writings and you’ll discover the core of his being was something as simple as the search for truth.
The same search for truth a creator of cutting edge advertising displays. The execution can be humorous, sad,sexy or anything in between but the willingness to portray the truth shines through.

Years ago when a large steel major showed the world how endearing a “cold” category like steel can be in the famous “There’s a little bit of SAIL in everybody’s life”, I wonder if the impact could be predicted in advance. Probably the most celebrated example of cutting edge creative in the last decade - simple steel objects in surprising connect with simple everyday people. A baby’s diaper pin, a colonel’s medal, a doctor’s stethoscope. That was the simple truth. Yet it took a brave client to buy the idea-one that did not show steel rolls and bars and huge construction sites. And it took an agency the guts to bring down the idea to it’s simplest, most truthful form. Steel touches your life in more ways than you can think of. Not only did the campaign sweep all the major awards, it created a major image shift for the company that took up the share price and money poured into the fixed deposit schemes.

So really, this is the definition. Cutting edge creative is advertising that is not only refreshing in its category, but is suprisingly relevant to the consumer and the culture of the times. And most importantly effective in the market place.
So cutting edge work is truly like a masterpiece by Van Gogh or any other great for that matter. Eternally brilliant. However there is one difference. Here the artist has to keep a buyer, consumer and critic in mind. No matter how brilliant or “cutting edge “the creative, it’s useless if it does not cut ice with the consumer.
So what happens when it fails to make the cut? What helps?
To begin with - if the client is still around - an honest appraisal of the “inner voice” of the communication. Does it have a voice to begin with? Is it the voice of someone else? Does it bow to fashion or to common sense?
Like Gandhi, a creator of cutting edge creative is willing to go against the flow. A Nike basketball commercial is always pitched to a basketball fanatic - perhaps one per cent of the target audience at best. Never to every male 18+. A majority of Hutch consumers do not live in the world of cocker spaniels, and lyrics that go “you and I, under the sky”.
This creator does his homework. Whether it’s trusting his gut or figuring out a relevant platform for the message-the latter being eight-tenths of the job.

Secondly, Is the message focussed? Does the truth shine through? Or is it hidden in fashionable layers that reward the client or agency’s taste more than the consumer’s needs?
Evaluate: Is it disruptive? Does it go against or rise above logic? Does the consumer say “I never saw it like that?” The Dandi march surely was all those many years ago but it created fresh ground in the category of protests, one that is held up as an example till today.
Next, does the idea have strong legs? Non-violence to fight oppression was an unmistakable idea. Breakthrough…cutting edge. And one that was sustained for years. Likewise, is the creative idea extendable or a flash in the pan?

And before I venture any deeper, here is a premise that must be laid down clearly. There can a very marked difference between great advertising and great advertisements. It is necessary to spell this out at this point. Why? Because advertising is a sum total of a number of factors. The marketing brief, the creative, the media and the production. It could be one or all these factors that make cutting edge advertising. Though it is widely believed that creative is the only element that can be called cutting edge. The faster we recognise this, the more wholesome the output could be.

Here is an example of a cutting edge marketing brief. Two years ago, a gigantic FMCG major was to launch a hair wash that would be exclusive to the rural market. The brand manager swung into action briefing the agency, getting concepts ready, the works. At this point in time the CEO called for a review of the plans. On being shown the work, he commented that the work was solid and hardworking. But perhaps the brand manager needed to sell the ‘concept’ of hair care to farmers first, and then take on the onus of selling hair washes. Cutting edge shift in brief? Perhaps one that would work.

Similar examples can be found across media. Cutting edge breakthroughs should be sought there too. Launching a car a few years ago, the medium used to create anticipation were mannequins perched up on lampposts saying ‘I will not come down till I see the hottest little thing”…The hottest little thing in this case was the teaser approach to the positioning the car. The public and the media went crazy trying to figure this one out. A simple media idea got a breakthrough response. Emerging from a brief given by the Managing Director of the company: “For one full week, the city must only talk about my new to-be-launched car,” not “Let’s sell a record number of cars on launch.” And, by the way just that happened. Most records were broken in terms of bookings and sales.

The point I am trying to make is that exciting briefs lead to cutting edge work. Also that cutting edge work is sometimes not expensive to carry out. And can be delivered through cutting edge vehicles. So evaluate the freshness of the brief and if all elements of the marketing mix represent this, and not only the overburdened creative team.

That brings me to the most important point of this discussion. Understanding the consumer is vital to creating cutting edge work. If your work has not got the results re-appraise your understanding of the consumer. Whether you like him or not, you have to build an intimate relationship with him - one that ties your brand to him with a strong brand bond. Masculine freedom is the brand bond the consumer shares with Marlboro. Born in the 1930s, it is still very alive, relevant and wins awards till today.

There are instances where a sharp understanding of the consumer produced the cut. Where advertising was ferociously straightforward. It may not have been award-winning creative but was cutting-edge in terms of strategy - figuring out the consumers anguish with the status quo. The example of the Congress “Aam Aadmi” campaign had empathy, humanity and most of all, it connected with people. The advertising had a tone of voice which said to the deprived consumer ‘I am on your side’. It represented a unique attitude. It connected. It worked. It aided a nation to change.

Also what really works is for people to stop saying ‘I want cutting edge creative’. Sometimes that sets in the ridiculous. Don’t say it. Don’t ask for it. It creates in-ordinate pressure. Cutting edge does not need cutting edge tension. Somehow in that situation the best cannot flourish.

We have also established that cutting edge creative no longer stands for just press ads, television spots and billboards. It’s been sometime since the induction of the term 360 degree, and cutting edge ideas can lurk in any of these facets. Let’s look for them. Yes, refreshing consumer truths that connect with the consumer.
In the long run, the consumer is the sole and ultimate judge of cutting edge creativity. Not the client, not the agency, or award juries in five star hotels.
Nonetheless, cutting edge creativity requires guts. Can we please see some of that? Risk taking? Let’s not hide behind perennial research data. A creative person, winner of many awards, told my favorite quote on this to me. “Research is like the sun. It shows you light…too much of it scorches you.”
Finally, cutting edge creativity will fail once in a while.A risk taker, a revolutionary a true leader will never fail to have a 100 per cent strike rate.