introduction to account planning

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INTRODUCTION TO ACCOUNT PLANNINGross cidlowski4.16.13

Thursday, April 18, 2013

10+ years advertising & innovationSan Francisco, New York, Boston

HI. I’M ROSS

Dad-to-beSneakerheadTarheel

Source: NYC Photo Chris Ozer


SOME CLIENTS

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I F#$%@#^ LOVE PLANNING

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SO WHAT EXACTLY IS ACCOUNT PLANNING?

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PLANNING WAS INVENTED IN THE 1960S

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"The account planner is that member of the agency's team who is the expert, through background, training, experience, and attitudes, at working with information and getting it used - not just marketing research, but all the information available to help solve a client's advertising problems." - Stanley Pollitt

“Planners are in a unique position in their jobs because they have an understanding of the audience through research expertise AND an understanding of how it will be applied within their own business, thus they provide a crucial bridge.”- Merry Baskin

PLANNING IS

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PLANNING......

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•Gets people into the conversation

•Helps the creative work and work harder

•Makes the agency smarter

•Is a tool for new business

•Gets people excited about thinking in a new way

•Is where you start


PLANNING IS

9source: farrah bostic


PLANNING IS ABOUT INCREASING YOUR SHOOTING PERCENTAGE

10Source: M!


Effectiveness

PLANNING SHOULD BE BUILT ON 1 THING

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ABOVE ALL ELSE, A PLANNER’S ROLE IS TO ENSURE THE WORK ACTUALLY WORKS

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I. Empirical not theoretical •Intuition only gets you so far; strategists must rely on knowledge through observation & validation (otherwise you might as well be guessing)

II. Embrace complexity•The world won’t suddenly start simplifying itself; great planners radically simplify the big into small•Tackle with modern strategy techniques - collaboration, iteration, ecosystems

III. Judge when to lock & unlock•Planners must call time on an idea that is plainly not appropriate for the task or most likely to work•Planners need to understand when decisions can ignite others and advance the ball


HOW PEOPLE PERCEIVE PLANNERS

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? WHAT DO PLANNERS DO?

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WE WEAR MANY HATS

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Makers

Sociologists

Researchers

Explorers

Storytellers

Culturists


HOW THE HELL DO WE GET PEOPLE TO EAT A CANDY BAR UNCHANGED SINCE THE 1960s?

WHAT WE DO - EXPLORERS

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HOW DO WE PUT WONDER IN A CAN?

HOW DO WE REGAIN TRUST WHEN WE ARE A MEME FOR BAD?


RESPONSIBILITY PROJECT

WHAT WE DO - STORYTELLERS

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WHAT WE DO - CULTURISTS

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WHAT WE DO - RESEARCHERS

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WHAT WE DO - SOCIOLOGISTS / PSYCH


WHAT WE DO - MAKE STUFF

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WHERE WE FIT - CONTROLLED FRICTION

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Account

Creative

Planning

Source: Gareth Kay


WHERE WE FIT - CONTROLLED FRICTION

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Make the advertising happen

Make the advertising good

Make the advertising work

Source: Gareth Kay


THE PROCESS TO GET THERE

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Defining the problem

Building Insights & Strategies

Inspiring Creatives

Selling the Work

Measuring Impact


PLANNING PROCESS

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I. DEFINING THE PROBLEM

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Most of the time something is wrong --> enter the agency

•The target, the competitive set, the benefit, the proposition, not enough information, etc

The other half of the time, the problem isn’t clearly defined enough:

•Telling your agency your brand lacks awareness is like telling the doctor something hurts


Insights are profound human truths specific about people, categories, products, businesses, and brands that are presented in a fresh stimulating way

II. BUILDING INSIGHTS

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ISNTKids like to build stuff. Parents like when their kids build things because it keeps kids busy and teaches them how to problem solve.

ISParents believe that children who are creative problem solvers will do better and achieve more in their personal and professional lives.

ISN'T / IS

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DIFFERENT TYPES OF INSIGHTS

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(When talking about convertibles) “everyone thinks beach and sun, but at night its like you’re in a space ship” - Lance Jensen

GOOD INSIGHTS CAN LEAD TO GREAT WORK

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DON’T JUST REFLECT REALITY

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“It’s illuminating & romantic”


Brand History / Equity / Values•Mission Statement•Brand Tracker•Stakeholder Interviews•Brand Clouds•Brand Equities•Content Engagement

GETTING TO GOOD INSIGHTS

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Business Brand

ConsumerEngagement Cultural Context / Attitudes / Motivations•3rd party data•Quantitative Surveys•Qualitative Research•Social Listening

Market Share & Competitive Data•Competitrak•Financial Analyst Reports•Sales Trends•Category Trends•Annual Sales Data

Behaviors / Media / Purchase•Experiential Research•Customer Journeys•Qual & Quant Research•Syndicated Data•Blogs•Forrester & Iconoculture


WHAT WAS THE INSIGHT?

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INSIGHTS ARE THE BASIS FOR ALL MARKETING

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Insights

Positioning

CreativeMediaContent

All Marketing Efforts

insights become foundation for all marketing

Source: Rowena Alston

Belief

Behavior


II. SETTING THE STRATEGY

35source: mike aruz


GOOD STRATEGERY

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TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE DISCUSS INTERNET DRINK SLEEP GO AWAY TALK TALK DEBATE 37

III. INSPIRING CREATIVES


Our Main Deliverable. Distillation of all research, thinking & discussions. Serves multiple functions.

BRIEFS

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Write the brief Get some account and media suggestions

Simplify the problem

Get away from the idea

Come back & crack the idea

Feed bits of inspiration

Give them something helpful everyday

Build your strategic fortress

Source: Heidi Hackemer

Rewrite the brief


Come Correct •Building Sessions•Be Positive•Start with the good parts•Keep bitching to a minimum

CREATIVE GUIDANCE STRATEGIES

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It’s not easy being a creative•Intense pressure•Weird hours•Each works differently


IV. SELLING THE WORK

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•Bring the idea to life in any way possible

•Sell early and often

•Don’t accept the client’s frame of the problem. Reframe in the terms that are

surprising but make your answer inevitable and inarguable

•Tell a story: the power of an idea, the problem, an even bigger problem,

catalyst for change, how we know we’re right



You made it, now get to work!

•Old world - wait for 3/6/12 months sales data•New World - real-time measurement & reporting for 24/7 optimization

•Work can always be made as culture and consumer’s behavior shifts

•Planners work with media & analytics to:•Define program goals•Develop learning & measurement plans•Generate fodder for new insights

V. MEASURING IMPACT

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Test

Measure

Learn

Optimize

•Analytics•Brand Tracking•Engagement Measurement•Buzz Metrics•Brand Index•Copy Testing



HOW TO WORK WITH PLANNERS

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BE A WOLFPACK

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PlannerCreative Media Account Production

Source: Heidi Hackemer


Planning takes time, good planning takes more time

GIVE PLANNERS THINKING TIME

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Planners are never not working

They’d love to bounce ideas,

chat, or imagine the future

Talk to them

BRING YOUR IDEAS EVERYDAY

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“Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative”- Oscar Wilde

DONT BE AFRAID OF FAILURE

46Source: Gareth Kay / Mark Lewis


New business scour on blogs & social media, etc

POTENTIAL DAY IN THE LIFE - JR PLANNER

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Competitive Dig for Market Analysis

Write tactical brief for Dunkin Donuts Summer Promotion Biscuit Breakfast

Sharing stimulus in creative briefing

Developing hypotheses & initiatives for go-to-market launch strategy on Cigna

Get Organized for day and week ahead


WANT TO BE A PLANNER?

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IDEAL PLANNER DNA

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A good intellect & innate curiosityCapable of daring leapsHumanity and empathyA dose of anxietyWeird wiringGeeking outAbility to performBraveEgo-lessAlways onNumerateTeam player


READ THIS

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Gareth Kay

FOLLOW THEM

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Mark Earls Russell Davies Heather LeFevre


Feed & Fuel Creativity

Be Objective & Optimistic

Be present & talk often

Be additive, not interruptive

Be Curious

DO THIS

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QUESTIONS / THOUGHTS / COMMENTS

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THANKS

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[email protected]

Lifefilter


http://about.me/rosscidlowski#show_twitter_1

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mailto:[email protected]

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