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Low growth fuels fear – Loeries judge

Durban - Companies scared of making the wrong decision in an environment of low economic growth lack bravery, especially when marketing their brand, according to a Loeries judge.

“We are in a recession, there’s no doubt about that,” said Loeries judge Pepe Marais, who is the chief creative officer and partner at advertising agency Joe Public. “We can fluff about it, but the market is not even flat, it’s declining.”

South Africa’s GDP slowed down to a 1.3% increase year-on-year (y/y) in the first quarter of 2015, down from 4.1% y/y in the fourth quarter of 2014.

“What happens when the economy is in a sort of recessionary state … (is that) the agency goes into fear, because the clients go into fear, and everyone goes into fear,” he told Fin24. “When fear happens, there is a lack of bravery.”

Creative brilliance versus limited budgets

Marais measures his creative year from Cannes to Cannes, which is the international creative week that takes place in June. “We come back with massive inspiration and want to do really great stuff … and honestly to serve the growth of our clients,” he said.

However, reality quickly sets in and agencies have to find solace in “hard working ads”, often concepts that don’t have the full creative potential due to limited budgets.

AUDIO: Interview with Joe Public executives Gareth Leck, Pepe Marais and Xolisa Dyeshana


Sleepless nights

“What gives me sleepless nights, is how to convince people that are working against numbers, targets, (and) ticking boxes that what truly works is the stuff that connects with consumers, that makes people talk about your brand at another level,” he said. “You don’t shop with your head, you shop with your heart.”

Gareth Leck, who is another Loeries judge and CEO of Joe Public, told Fin24 that the conditions were tough to deliver truly creative concepts.

“It’s quite hard in the conditions to give that work, because you are often told to do the hard working ad,” he said. “You’ve got these constraints you’re fighting and you’ve gotta kind of work with those constraints … and do the best.”

Joe Public seeks to create powerful ideas that emotionally connects and which are quite down to earth. “We just want to do real work that is powerful,” said Marais.

Connecting the dots of traditional media and new media

The best content in the world comes from that traditional way of conceptual thinking and it’s just moving into new spaces, Marais said.

Xolisa Dyeshana, who is also a Loeries judge and is the executive creative director and partner at Joe Public, said it was crucial to have specialists to manage the various channels and ideas.

“You all congregate around this central idea, but I don’t think it’s just a matter of just transforming that idea into different mediums,” he said. “It’s about taking that central idea and interpreting it for those mediums.”

The Loeries Creative Week is currently taking place in Durban and will see over 2 900 entries from across Africa and the Middle East being judged in 21 categories by over 160 of the best local, and international minds in the creative industry. It will culminate in the Loeries Africa & the Middle East Awards on Saturday and Sunday.

Tweets from Loeries judges from Joe Public:


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