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Features

Don’t bother presenting it. Chuck it in an email.

So what is the best way to put your latest spark of creativity in front of a client? In the days before email it was rare to see even a business card design exit the creative floor unaccompanied. But these days we’re not quite so protective....

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Live the dream

I was introduced to a big-shot client the other day as being a ‘creative type’. It’s not the worst thing I’ve been called over the years. But it was the look the client gave me that stopped me in my tracks. It had me wondering...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

No pressure: The designer who has Bowie as a client

By John Fountain With a new album soon to be released, a stripped down remix of 'Sound and Vision' on air for Sony and a must-see exhibition at the V&A, it seems that after 10 years of next-to-nothingness, the enigma that is David Bowie is back. And...

Posted by: Creativepool
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8 Great Books for Copywriters

I don't know about you but I've noticed that an increasing amount of people are chucking in their day jobs to embark on a career as a freelance copywriter. I'm not entirely sure why so many fancy their chances. I guess they believe they can write a...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

Always pin your ideas to your office wall

When I first started out, I was always encouraged to pin my ideas to my office wall. I used an A3 layout pad and a fat black Pentel marker and just scribbled down whatever came into my head. Once I thought that I had something, I’d draw a...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Leaders

Can there be too much entertainment?

I don’t know if you caught Joanna Lumley on TV the other night. She was there to talk about a new movie that she’s made with Martin Scorsese which she was understandably thrilled about. Now I’ve always liked Lumley. I like the fact...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Leaders

Creative outsourcing. Welcome to the on/off creative department

Many creative agencies face a growing dilemma. And as usual the dilemma is about time management and profit. In the current economic scenario, running a creative business is getting tougher by the day. To stay competitive in the market, many agencies...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

Could you help this copywriter find work in Chicago?

The Creativepool network spreads far and wide and maybe you could help a fellow creative in need of help. Damien James is a US copywriter who has spent the last three years with his wife and children working in Krakow, Poland. Last week the time...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Leaders

A creative person without a sense of humour has a serious problem

In his book ‘Damn Good Advice (for people with talent)’, the legendary art director George Lois says, “A creative person who is humourless could never produce consistently great work in communicating with warmth and humanity to the...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

A lesson from Abraham Zapruder

The most viewed film of all time is Abraham Zapruder’s footage of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. It lasts just 28 seconds and it’s full of technical errors. There are camera shakes, the framing is poor, and the hand held footage is...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

The design agency boss that went back to design school

By John Fountain Here’s a widely sweeping statement but in the main I think it’s true: Creative people are not so fond of training. Think about it. I bet most designers, illustrators and art workers are self-taught on the Mac. In fact...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Leaders

Digital is not delivering on its promises

By John Fountain In the world of advertising, the concept of doing what you can to piss-off the public is rarely regarded as a good idea. We live in a world where consumers have millions of places to go and billions of messages to ignore or...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Are we selling the benefits of graphic design hard enough?

by John Fountain. Here's something that I read this during the week and it impressed me so much that I thought I'd share it with you. Lord Smith, former Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pointed out that - with 1% of the world's...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Designers - Do you have the courage to show hand drawn concepts?

by John Fountain. There's an art director that I know who has a pretty impressive portfolio. Plenty of big-name clients, some beautifully designed work and one or two pieces that have appeared in awards annuals. When she shows her work I'm sure that...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Sorry, you're too creative.

by John Fountain. A few months back I was helping a friend review some CVs for a copywriting position. There was the usual mix of applicants and all of them from different writing backgrounds including b2b, pharmaceutical, PR, blogging, journalism,...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Are creative people undervalued?

by John Fountain. Welcome to 2013 and to the same old furies. Have you seen the survey on industry salaries published last week in Creative Review? What gets my goat is the findings. Particularly with the question "Are you earning the right...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Best of the web

by John Fountain. Looking for a bit of creative inspiration over the festive season? Yep, me too. Never mind, let's make do with some weird, wild, crazy, funny and stupid stuff that I've tracked down on the web. Take a bunch of random comments and...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

5 Minutes with...David Dalley, Creative Director and Fine Artist

by John Fountain. Following a successful career as an award winning creative director, David is now a successful fine artist. Here he talks about his career, his travels and how things have changed over the years. So how would you describe your day...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

CP Loves... Odd things you find on the internet.

by John Fountain. Here's some articles, videos and websites worthy of further exploration... Kirby Ferguson. Embracing the remix. Kirby Ferguson is a film-maker from New York. He has a point of view that I guess many of us believe there is some...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

5 Minutes with... Sarah McCartney - Copywriter and Perfumer

by John Fountain. Head writer at Lush from 1996 to 2010, Sarah is now Head of Ideas at the writing agency Afia. As an author she has penned 'The Fake Factor', 'Online Marketing in 7 Days (for people who can't avoid it any longer)', and '100 Great...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

5 Minutes with... Marc Bessant, Real World Records

by John Fountain. Marc is the in-house designer and creative director at Real World Records, the label founded by WOMAD and Peter Gabriel. Over the past 12 years he has been responsible for over a hundred CDs, vinyl sleeves, T-shirts, flyers,...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Clay Marzo. Creativity in a 6ft wall of water.

When it comes to surfing, Clay Marzo is unique. He has revolutionised the sport and taken it to a whole new level. In fact, he has pioneered moves so original and complex, that other surfers simply look on in wonder. The "Marzo Reverse" is one such...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

Have Obama supporters created the most insulting ad of all time?

by John Fountain. Reading the comments, it seems that quite a few people think the Obama ad that repeats the line 'Wake the Fuck Up' is pretty funny. Many are saying that for the first time someone has made a political ad that they get, and like,...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Features

How to... Write a great radio ad

by John Fountain. Tony Hertz is an award winning radio producer. Over the past 40 years there have only been two D&AD Black Pencils for radio and Tony has won both of them. Today he runs Hertz Radio, but many years ago he ran a company called The...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Did you make the right choices at the start of your career?

by John Fountain Do you remember what it was like when you started out? If you were anything like me you probably focused on getting the basics right. Becoming good at the key elements of the job. Making sure that you were employable rather than...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

CP Loves...Gerry Anderson. The movie director that never was.

by John Fountain When I was a young lad one of my greatest joys was screened on ITV on Saturday mornings. It was an action-packed TV production with high-octane plots, daring dos and heroics that young boys, raised on a diet of Bobby Moore, Scooby...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Why do creative agencies all talk the same?

by John Fountain I'll wager that if you visit any creative agency's website and go to the "About" page you'll find that, though the pictures and design might be poles apart, the words themselves will all be pretty much the same. Which is weird when...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Copywriters: Are you Mac or PC?

by John Fountain A few months back I started a new full-time job. Now, I won't get myself into trouble by naming the agency, but it didn't quiet work out the way I would have liked. So after 10 days into the job, I quit. The problem was that this...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Should creative people live with creative people?

by John Fountain Cast your eyes over to the right hand side of this blog and you'll notice something called "Date a Creative". For all the time that I've been writing blogs for Creativepool, I admit I haven't given that web banner very much...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions- Are client amends a daily kick in the teeth?

by John Fountain If there's one thing that creative people and account handlers have in common it is that neither are telepathic, telekinetic or have the power to read minds. Yet it seems many clients think otherwise. Work that has been carefully...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - What does the future hold for an old creative?

by John Fountain Like it or not, the industry we work in is youth biased. They don't tell you this when you first start out on your career, but the fact is, when you reach about 40 years of age the trajectory of your career will change. Unless you...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - The voice over artist

by John Fountain Successful voice-over talents often earn thousands in session fees and residuals, and more frequently than not, in less time than a half hour of work. Becoming a successful voice-over talent for television and radio commercials,...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Brand GB. As seen from USA

by John Fountain I was in the US during the entirety of the Olympic Games. As I wasn't able to secure any tickets to any of the events I couldn't see any particular reason for sticking around. So me and my mob headed in the opposite direction to...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Inspiration

Opinions - The sensory overload inside American ad agencies

by John Fountain During my career I've had to come up with ideas in all sorts of shabby environments. For a year I worked out of a garage in Paddington. While in Singapore my office was on the second floor of a very dodgy shopping precinct. And...

Posted by: Creativepool
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Workshop

Opinions - Graphic design and art direction. Do you know the difference?

by John Fountain Though the work does have overlaps, being a designer and being an art director are different roles that require different skill and mindsets. I've worked in both design and advertising agencies and I've seen for myself that the best...

Posted by: Creativepool

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