Since strategy is inherently a pre-creative step, its function and importance are not easily understood. However, strategy is a roadmap held by both the customer and the creative team.
The strategy prepared for the client shows the barriers and opportunities to communication. For the creative team, it guides where to start, what benefits can be used and how the perspective should be when evaluating findings.
The Strategist’s Ability to Gather Findings Does Not Prove That He Is a Researcher
The strategist’s mission to gather findings is sometimes unfortunately misunderstood and the title of investigator is attached. Of course, there are big differences between a strategist and a researcher. These differences may even be the subject of another article, but a strategist is basically expected to answer the following questions;
- Who are our targets?
- How did our brand and communication style have a place in the perception of the target audience?
- What is the competition for the brand in consumer and target audience perception?
- Where does my brand want to be in perception?
- What is our promise to the consumer, is there a BIG IDEA?
- Do we have supporting evidence, if so how can we submit it?
- What is the tone of the ad?
While the strategist prepares a creative brief or makes a presentation to our customers, he asks these questions to himself, obtains his knowledge and analyzes. After this work of the strategist, a creative brief is expected. So how is a creative brief prepared? Although the creative brief cannot always be written on paper in fast-flowing business traffic, we always get the outputs of the brainstorms made by the team. In our agency, the team of writers and the strategy team work together so that they can make these heated brainstorms more comfortably. As a result of the creative brief, both we and our customers receive the answers to the following questions;
Why are we doing this communication work? Is problem can be solved by communication, or is it due to the dynamics and internal communication of the brand, what exactly is the problem, etc.
What’s the problem the ad will solve? After the prepared campaign, which problems are anticipated to be solved, how much the solution created with the expectation of the customer matches, are answered at this step.
How will the customer benefit from the advertisement? The answers to the questions about the direct benefit of the advertisement, which purpose of the brand will appeal to, are explained at this step.
How will consumers benefit? Although this step alone may seem complicated for our customers, it actually has a very simple expression; What is the benefit we offer? As an agency, we put benefits at the center of all our work. This benefit may be emotional, functional, ego satisfaction and social benefits. Creative brief also gives us the answer to this question.
The Strategy Team Ensures Good Jobs and No Communication Accidents
To summarize; when the strategy team, responsible for the preparation of the creative brief and analysis, comes together with talented writers, it ensures brilliant work, protects our customers from communication accidents and prevents them from losing their way.
Dwt Mandalina / Nurettin Yay / Head of the Agency
