"Creativity should always carry an element of effectiveness:" Desmond

In a special series on Spikes Asia 2009, Campaign India brings you a series of interviews with jury heads of each of the categories: Craft; Design; Media; TV/ cinema, print, outdoor and radio; Digital, Direct and Sales and Integrated. Last week, we interviewed Piyush Pandey, head of the Craft jury at Spikes Asia this year. Today, Campaign India brings you an interview with Laura Desmond, CEO, Starcom MediaVest Group (pictured), who is chairing this year’s Spikes Asia Media jury. In a chat with Campaign India, she talks about how the world can learn from India in better leveraging storytelling in brand communication and the quality of work coming out of India today.

In the current economic context, will there be a heightened emphasis on effectiveness as a parameter while judging the media category at Spikes Asia this year?
In the media categories, effectiveness becomes more important every year -- but of course, the need for effectiveness is particularly top-of-mind this year in light of the global economic situation. My personal opinion of creativity is that it should always contain an element of effectiveness. When it's done right, creativity should be focused towards solving a problem. If the idea doesn't solve the problem effectively, it may be considered imaginative, but I'd argue that it might not qualify as truly creative.

Could you share with us the qualities that you will be looking for as jury president, in the media category?
Two headlines:
Human Truths, in simple, crisp and understandable terms. We sometimes do ourselves extraordinary injustice by complicating, burying and overly rationalizing our work.
Human Experience, which delights and surprises.

‘Integrated’ is an often-used word in media award shows. Could you share your thoughts on how far that is true/relevant in today’s context?
Integrated media has always been relevant because it allows us to reach our consumers at multiple touch points, but it has never meant more for consumers than it does now. Today, true integration is the intersection of experiences we can offer on behalf of our clients with their consumer's willingness to welcome those brands into different parts of their lives.

Could you share some thoughts on the work that you have seen come out of India in the Media category in the last few years? Is there any particular campaign that struck you as being exceptional in thought and results?
I've seen some really brilliant creative media come out of India in recent years, and the best of it is reflective of the country's powerful storytelling culture. Storytelling is so crucial to expressing and understanding human experience, which in turns empowers agencies and marketers to create really effective brand experiences. We could really learn a lot from India in terms of  better leveraging storytelling in our brand communications.

That said, there are some particularly compelling cases that come to mind, including a multimedia campaign we orchestrated with client Aircel to tell a really powerful story to consumers in an unexpected way.  People started their day reading The Times of India – but the masthead was changed to Move on India. In radio, a roadblock was created, where the whole station identity reflected Aircel’s brand story. This was all supported  by outdoor presence and online efforts. The day ended with a TV message on  leading entertainment channel Star Plus, where characters from popular soaps announced the brand launch and welcomed Aircel. Advocacy for the brand was strong, and delivered with credibility thanks to some truly creative media partnerships. Also notable are the Nokia N97 launch, which used magazine and widget innovations to drive brand conversation, and Telecom's work with Vodafone Zoozoos where storytelling spawned a truly viral phenomenon.

How has Asia fared, in general, at global Media award shows, in your opinion?
Creativity has no nationality or geography. It does, however, have a single purpose: to inspire people to think or behave differently. This is the standard upon which all creativity is judged. And yes, we have seen some really remarkable, inspiring work from the Asia-Pacific region. Asia had almost twice as many Lions at the Cannes Festival this year, compared to 2008. And this year's Grand Prix came from Japan.
Of SMG's 19 shortlists at Cannes this year, 25%  came from the Asia-Pacific region. The results speak -- or rather, shout -- for themselves. This region represents incredible diversity and richness of culture, ideas and talent, and is not to be underestimated.