Spike Jones at Brains On Fire in Greenville, SC reminds us that great creative doesn’t mean a thing if there’s no way to sell it in.
If you’re going to be successful partnering with a new client, you HAVE to have an internal advocate for your cause. Without one, no matter how good your ideas are, how phenomenal your creative is or how smart your strategy is, you’re doomed.
Internal advocates are the men and women that will stand up and fight for your cause (which should be also for the greater good of the company). They let you know what REALLY happened in that boardroom meeting, how to navigate the political waters, who’s ego to stroke and who to stay the hell away from. An internal advocate feels like they are truly a member of your team (and you should treat them as such). They are priceless. And few and far between.
I think one could say the same about having internal advocates inside one’s own agency, particularly the large, multi-layered units of international holding companies.
