Give The Client What They Hear & See

I am reminded today of client/talent relations. Many times I find myself not only voicing a commercial for a client, but also writing and creating the concept of the commercial itself. And in these times of less money being spent on advertising, it is tantamount that you give your client exactly what they want.

Now is not the time to be trying to change the world. Now is the time to hold on to what you have, and do your best to develop new relationships however hard it may be. Case in point. I have a new client who is also new to advertising period. He is new to advertising because he is not spending his own money, but spending found government money. Not easy to find, but this type of client is out there spending stimulus money on projects the government deeds worthy.

He also knows what he wants. He can hear it in his head. He is just as much a media advertising expert as the next guy (or so he thinks) because he watches TV and listens to the radio like we all do. We have to remember this this is "mass media." It's out there for everybody to see and hear. Unlike most businesses, where their business is their alone. We have no secrets. So anybody feels empowered to be part of the creative process when it comes to making commercials for themselves.

Let them. You have no other choice. If you want to stay alive in this game you have to bite your tong and become a good listener. Who knows, maybe in the end the commercial will end up being even better than you had initially thought. I know in my case it did.