You have a conservative client resistant to change. How do you introduce them to a daring marketing concept?

This is where magic happens - the tension, even friction between risk and reward, the status quo and pushing boundaries. It would help if you erased words like daring and replaced them with daunting if you showed the results others realized from standing for and standing out. Fortune favours the Bold!

I was able to persuade almost every client I had over 30 years to eventually take a risk that ended up boosting sales and winning awards. IBM, RBC, etc. The only client I could not persuade was a certain Canadian Telco with an affinity for red. Their culture of fear just refused to budge forward. Their solution? Find another agency. As one great creative director said, and I quote, “You begin to lose this business the moment you win it.”

It depends on context & culture. I've learned the hard way that in very conservative markets - do not even bother to pitch an innovation or daring new concept unless the stakeholders ask for it. But even then - make sure they are all aligned or the agency winds up getting thrown under the bus due client politics. A client very resistant to change means they have deeper underlying cultural issues that an outside consultant or agency cannot solve for them. Change cannot get any traction unless it comes from topdown and inside with their whole team aligned.

It's all about the "Why?". It's not enough to be bold or do anything at all unless you can clearly show "why?". If it's too hard to see the "why?" - then the idea isn't right. However, sometimes you have to accept that you can have the best idea, for all the right reasons and it still won't fly because of a client that just won't be brave enough. But you still keep bringing the good thinking. You do it because it's the right thing to do for your brand. If that same client never moves an inch...then you ensure you work to find other clients who can benefit from your genius.

In my opinion, showcasing benefits is key when presenting a daring marketing concept. Highlight how it meets specific needs and objectives better than traditional methods. Use simple language to emphasize advantages like increased engagement or new demographics, creating a vision of success that resonates with their aspirations. ??

When presenting a daring marketing concept to a conservative client, emphasize the specific benefits tailored to their needs and objectives. Explain how the new approach can outperform traditional methods by addressing their unique challenges. Use clear, simple language to highlight advantages like increased engagement, higher ROI, or reaching a new demographic. Paint a compelling vision of success that aligns with their aspirations, making the innovative idea less intimidating and more appealing as a strategic move to achieve their business goals.

Presenting new visuals for a logo rebrand to a committee, I chose to present six visuals - four that I felt were fairly 'safe' developments suiting their business sector, one livelier logo that would modernise and give them strong future flexibility, and a 'crazy' visual that I expected would be too much for them. After showing the 'crazy' visual, the committee selected the lively logo as I had hoped. Success!

I start with making media that delights, entertains and inspires, usually in the form of a video or presentation. The ideal story will have movement and momentum, data and backup for its rationale and a clear call to action or reason for sharing its specific POV. By showcasing a new idea in media quickly and easily everyone gets a chance to digest it together in just a few minutes, reducing the time between receiving a new idea and friction/inquiry with the ideas presented. Motion graphics, storytelling and meaningful purpose give a sense of grounded logic that can combine creativity with the organizational end goals, sharing a story that everyone can get behind. Find the story where everyone in the organization can get a win.

The risk goes both ways. Most business leaders only mention the risk of going big and bold - how it might flop, might waste their money, might not have the impact they're hoping for. But they rarely think of the risk of NOT being big and bold. And how it might invite competitors to pass them by. Might lost customers who still can't get your story clear in their minds. Might waste all the demand gen money that's getting no aircover via creative storytelling around it. Have your client consider both sides before concluding it's better to be "safe than sorry". Which way is safe exactly?

Es bueno que cuando se hace una propuesta a esta vaya unido un plan de contingencia, sobre todo si se trata de perseguir objetivos que requieren de un gran esfuerzo de tiempo y dinero. Plantear diferentes escenarios y ofrecer soluciones distintas o complementarias en cada uno de ellos es una solución que genera más tranquilidad y seguridad.

In my experience, mitigating risks is crucial for conservative clients. Present a detailed plan with phased implementation, controlled testing, or successful case examples. Addressing concerns proactively eases fears and makes bold concepts more manageable and less risky. ?????

-Revisit the brief. -Look at the work through the lens of the brief. -Ponder potential objections. -Consider objective counter-arguments to said objections. -Have a respectful, adult conversation with the client, who is themselves, a mature, educated, experienced professional.

Mitigating risks is very important and the answer to the best strategy lies in research and data mining. Investigate how the previous campaigns affected the bottom-line, propose different rollout options with checks and balances at every stage.

I align with the values of my client. If they are conservative and risk averse. Then I don’t offer them a higher risk, more exciting opportunity.

Básicamente dando a conocer que ese concepto transmite de una manera creativa y cercana los valores de su marca. Comunicando desarrollar creatividad estratégica, donde más que solo buscar reconocimientos creativos, se busca una conexión emocional con el target,

I believe aligning the daring concept with your client's core values is crucial. Show how the new idea enhances and modernizes their message without compromising their identity. Drawing parallels between the strategy and their timeless principles reassures them that the fundamental ethos remains intact, blending tradition with innovation. ????

Yes, there is always a way of developing a daring marketing concept still tied to the core values and brand identity. I always practice wild, tame, and mild as three creative or strategic options. Tame and mild are very close to each other and perfectly on brand, but wild options are always outside the box.

Pour s’aligner sur les valeurs d'un client, commencez par comprendre en profondeur leurs principes et objectifs. Assurez-vous que vos propositions et recommandations respectent et reflètent ces valeurs. Adaptez votre communication pour montrer que vous partagez leurs préoccupations et aspirations, et démontrez comment votre approche contribue à leurs objectifs à long terme. Enfin, restez attentif à leurs retours pour ajuster vos actions en conséquence, garantissant ainsi une cohérence continue avec leurs valeurs.

In my opinion, providing evidence is essential. Share success stories from other contexts, highlighting how similar strategies revitalized brands or captured market attention. Use qualitative anecdotes and industry trends to help clients visualize potential success and alleviate fears of uncharted territory. ????

Creo que este punto es muy importante porque la mayoría de los clientes son menos propensos a rechazar una propuesta si les muestras los resultados obtenidos en casos similares. Volver "tangible" algo que muchas veces se limita a ser conceptual ayuda a que sea más fácil proponer una idea como dise?adores y a aceptarla como clientes.

One thing that may be helpful is to discuss the approaches that both other brands internal and external to the client are taking. Once you understand the level of risk tolerance an organization has you can discuss a spectrum of creative approaches from conservative to edgy.

Conservative clients often value concrete data and tangible results over abstract strategies. By presenting them with clear, direct outcomes and measurable data from the strategy, you can build their confidence and trust in the process.

Acredito que todo projeto de comunica??o deva conter evidências relacionadas ao desempenho e ROI, embasados na constru??o de um planejamento que sustente o objetivo da marca em speeches espontaneos. Esse é o nosso maior aprendizado.

Introducing a bold marketing idea to a traditional client means respecting what’s already working for them while showing the exciting possibilities of trying something new: "Think of a family-run business, like yours, hesitant to change but deciding to try a new strategy on a small scale. They didn’t just keep their loyal customers—they gained new ones and saw great growth. Let’s start with a low-risk, small project, with clear steps and full support, celebrating every success along the way. This not only stays true to your values but also sets your business up for long-term success"

Know your audience - the mainstay of marketing of course, but often not considered enough at the creative pitch stage. More specifically, knowing their preconceptions and cultural views can really help. For example, I’ve worked in cultures where skipping over some of the smaller details of a campaign in favour of first talking to the big concept can be a distraction and impact the overall receptiveness of the audience to the big idea. Frustrating as that may be to your classic pitching format, often the style and order of your idea sharing will be the make or break of where you go next.

Ask yourself who this is for, the client, or your ego. If the former, you'll get there. If the latter, you're why marketers have a bad rap.

Turn up in fancy dress. The more colours the better. By going WAY BEYOND what is expected and even more 'daring' than the ideas you're trying to experiment with you should absolutely bamboozle the poor sod into saying yes to anything / everything. I remember one time many years ago where we wanted to send out a direct mailer to some targets and the idea that we'd come up involved sending a stuffed toy in a superhero outfit. As you can imagine when we surfaced the idea to some of the SLT they were uncertain. But when I turned up in the office one day with my underpants outside my trousers and a spangly cape, they soon realised that we had to try the campaign. Oh and the campaign? It worked. Too well.

It’s quite simple: dull is dangerous, boring is less effective. To do something close to what everyone else js doing makes it less likely you are going to get their attention, or if you do get misattributed to a competitor. A short cut to a powerful idea - ask these: 1. Does this reframe the category on our terms? Must be a yes. 2. Could, would anyone else anyone else say this? Must be a no. 3. Could anyone else back this up? (Ie. You need to actually be different in your products and services). Must be a no.