The Pitch

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  • #31
    Re: The Pitch

    All good points, Harbinger. But one isn't always true--

    Originally posted by Harbinger View Post
    And HOW IN THE HELL is it a good idea at the end of a Pitch to say we're not here to pitch our ideas to you we're here to sell our agency.
    In every pitch you're selling a partnership first. Realistically, when you bring campaigns to a client, sometimes they'll want heavy changes, want to start over, or finally know WHAT they want after seeing stuff they DON'T want. In a pitch you get one round of work. One agency might do better work on the first round but be a terrible fit for the client overall.

    Don't get me wrong, you want to have the great idea when you pitch. But if you sense from the client's reaction that you didn't nail it, it's fine to remind them that this would be a collaborative relationship and you're still a good fit for their brand. Because a pitch isn't always "Who has the idea I can go to market with right away?" but rather "Who gets me and would be good to work with long term?"

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    • #32
      Re: The Pitch

      Last night, last episode. Client: Marriott's Autograph Collection

      Arggggh. I worked on staff for an agency that specialized in the hospitality industry. I've written more hotel/resort campaigns than I want to remember. Both of those campaigns presented ideas we produced last century.

      In fact, when I saw the client was Marriott I thought, "This should be good." Because the "well" of hospitality concepts has been milked dry by now.

      All high end hotels are beautiful. The only thing that differentiates them is service and amenities and location. And when the customer makes a decision on a luxury hotel it usually comes down to which one gives them better service, preferably "free" amenities, and the rewards program for frequent guests. The lovely rooms they expect.

      When I used to go on a "fam" trip to a new hotel client, I'd mosey around and ask guests what they liked about the hotel. You'd be surprised by their answers, "200-thread sheets." And their complaints, "Room service is too slow."

      The agency that won Agency of Record -- close-up shots of food, sports, etc., with a pithy headline. Done to death. And usually more for resorts where you spend most of your time on property.

      The agency that lost -- goodlooking couple meeting in an elegant lobby setting. Done to death. A horse well beaten.

      My biggest bone to pick is Marriott (I've done work for them -- on staff and freelance) coining their hotels: The Autograph Collection. This is because every hotel chain, for over a decade plus (perhaps two decades), has had a "Signature Collection," including Mariott, for what is usually called "boutique hotels." Another misnomer. With the word, signature, so overused, they come up with this autograph thing. Ugh.

      The CEO of, Jones, the losing agency that sunk a lot of money into a bad commercial, is an example of the egos of agencies. He pays a staff, a braintrust, then he uses them to simply execute his own off the cuff, bad idea. And he refuses to even consider alternate ideas. His partner was right: the golden rule -- never go with your first idea. Ever.

      The winning agency - forgot its name - their CEO and his staff <eyeroll>. Sure, CEO rejected bad idea after bad idea. But when the clock ran out he suddenly approves the last bad idea. It's amazing how bad ideas suddenly look better when the deadline looms. Once again they won by default.

      This show has let the public peek behind the curtain and discover what a number of clients have discovered for themselves: too many agencies are faking it while charging a lot. There are still some great agencies doing interesting work, but many of these midsize (to small agencies) shown in this show I suspect have been launched by people who couldn't get hired elsewhere.
      Last edited by sc111; 06-14-2012, 06:12 PM. Reason: misspelling
      Advice from writer, Kelly Sue DeConnick. "Try this: if you can replace your female character with a sexy lamp and the story still basically works, maybe you need another draft.-

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      • #33
        Re: The Pitch

        i really like Bandajo's video pitch. it was much more inclusive of the clientele they're trying to reach and not just rich business men. music industry, media stars, pro-athletes who travel a lot have big bucks too.

        at first i thought Jose was going to blow it b/c his approach was like, "your website sucks and blah, blah, blah" and the delivery was harsh... but they realized* they needed it. and then he blew them away with that video.


        *somewhat like what the women did with the C.Wonder campaign, but they just did too much and didn't hit hard enough with the specific marketing pitch.

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        • #34
          Re: The Pitch

          And so ends The Pitch. I'll admit, I'll miss watching it with my agency. It's just so full of ridiculousness.

          Originally posted by sc111 View Post
          The CEO of, Jones, the losing agency that sunk a lot of money into a bad commercial, is an example of the egos of agencies. He pays a staff, a braintrust, then he uses them to simply execute his own off the cuff, bad idea. And he refuses to even consider alternate ideas. His partner was right: the golden rule -- never go with your first idea. Ever.
          Totally. He deserved to lose the second he walked into that conference room when he got back and said "I have the idea, let's move to execution."

          So, you don't even want to give people the opportunity to challenge your thinking? No gut check? Really? That was astonishing. I was happy he lost.

          But once again, the other agency stunk it up as well. Like you said, last century ideas and better suited for a resort. And the creatives that presented "Sex Curated" should have been fired. I can't believe that happened. But it did lead into the best line of the series:

          "Is the three way throwing you?"

          And they actually had to censor the ad for TV. Classic.

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