D&AD Student Pencils / Placement

I've been neglecting this blog a great deal lately, but with good reason. I've had a very busy couple of weeks, on placement at AMV BBDO. More of that later, but big news first.

Olly and I won a D&AD student award for our "EA Peace Day" idea in the Open Brief category. And then we won the award for D&AD Students Of The Year! Here we are with 50% of our awards...

Needless to say we're over the moon, but of course it's as much about the opportunities it opens up as the actual awards. So we're very much hoping to get placements as good as the one we just had, because AMV's system should really be the benchmark.

First of all, they have a system in place - you're looked after by someone outside the Creative department, which actually works wonders. This means that you're not constantly hassling busy creatives for briefs or help - instead, you're making phone calls to Account Managers, Planners, Project Managers - all of whom are invariably happy to help.

There are the little things, too, like the fact that they create an email address for you, and put you on the agency-wide and creative mailing groups. This means that from day one, you actually get emails - and even if they're just telling you that some left an iPhone in the 3rd floor ladies', they still make you feel part of the organisation.

Oh, and they pay placement teams, and there's free porridge before 9am. What more could you want?

Adam + Eve's journey

So A+E have just been bought by Omnicom for £60 million and merged with DDB. I'm not a businessman, but I assume that's a result they're pretty happy with. Not to mention the outstanding creative work and crowded trophy cabinet they've assembled in such a short time.

But what were people saying when they started out?

I chanced upon this blog from 2008, mentioning that the then youthful agency were looking for placement teams. There was quite a response in the comments section - here are some of the highlights...

"A&E, clues in the name."
"I'd be very wary about taking a job at Adam and Eve. They're undoubtedly going to be the new (less creative) CHI"
"Look at the work to come out of rainey's during ben dave and james tenure. utter pile of crap. doubt A&E will be any different."
"All these up-and-coming startups make me laugh"
"Do not, whatever you do, go work for Ben Priest. He can't be trusted, nor can his creative judgement."
"But without a CD or planning director with the gravitas and talent to serve as a counterbalance, A&E will only ever be a first-rate account shop."

To be fair, the blog in general seems to be a bit of a bridge for embittered creatives and wannabe creatives to lurk under, but it's interesting nonetheless.

What I take from it is not to automatically trust the received wisdom on any particular agency. Sure, I'd love to work for a great agency. But I'd equally like to help one that isn't currently making many waves to achieve greatness.

For instance, my team has attracted some interest from an agency with a strong DM background, which is neither my strongest suit nor my greatest interest. But I understand that they are hoping to become a more integrated shop - so perhaps there's an opportunity there to help blaze that trail.

After all, who would you rather be: a White House intern ferrying around coffee and documents, or the guy who interned for Obama back in Illinois and now works in an office 2 doors from the oval one?

Getting book crits? Some tips...

Well my partner Olly and I have been taking our book to a fair few people lately, and although it hardly makes me an expert, it does mean that the experience is extremely fresh in my mind. So, based on our efforts, and stealing a little advice from others, here are my top tips for getting the most out of portfolio crits (and getting them in the first place).

• Any communication medium can be used to arrange a crit - one of ours was arranged via Instagram.
• Don't be discouraged when Creatives and Creative Directors don't reply to your emails. They're busy. Chase up politely after a while, but you can't win them all.
• Be prepared to be flexible and adjust to their schedule - expect last-minute changes.
• Don't just approach the Creative Directors. Junior Creative teams can be the most helpful of all, especially when you're just getting started. They have more recent experience of the application process, and they're more likely to have quality time to spend with you than the CD.
• Keep a spreadsheet with "campaigns" along the top, and "crits" along the side. Then colour the squares green for "loved it", orange for "needs some work", and red for "lose it". Then, you can see at a glance how your projects are going down. You can also use the space to make a note of specific comments or suggestions.
• Never ever go back for a second crit without making significant changes to the portfolio. Push the work further, add in new projects. What they want to see is progress.
• Have something in your book that tells the reader something about you. They're not just hiring the work, they're hiring the people.
• Be aware of the agency you're going to before deciding what projects to put in. AMV BBDO may like to see plausible above the line campaigns for major consumer brands, whereas Mother might appreciate a more slanted, warped approach.
• BUT have the courage of your convictions, too. We met a team who were told by Nick Gill at BBH to drop one of their campaigns. They came back to see him and stuck to their guns, and still got the placement. And then a job.
• And don't try to be all things to all men. (a) You'll never achieve it, and (b) it'll make your book look bland and directionless.
• Remember to end every crit by asking to come and see them again.

And just remember, as the old saying goes: opinions are like arseholes; fun to explore and rewarding to probe.

Unite V (Young Creative Council event)

On Wednesday night, Olly and I went down to this event, and damn it, if it wasn't the most worthwhile decision we've made so far in our careers. At the end of the day we came away with several business cards, a handful of invitations to visit agencies, and an immediate offer of a placement.

The first half of the night consisted of a "Creative Stand-Up" session, with each of the 20 teams being given 2 minutes on stage to do - well, whatever they liked. It's fair to say the results were mixed; those teams who went went for a funny approach tended to either triumphed or bombed. Still, at least they gave it a go - the teams that just showed some work didn't really impress anyone.

We ploughed a middle course, talking about our 3 golden rules of advertising, and plugging our portfolio at every opportunity without actually showing the work. And it seemed to do the trick - we had plenty of industry guys coming over to look at the what we'd previewed, and luckily none of them seemed to think we were all mouth and no skinny jeans, so we just about pulled it off.

My only regret is that because we were so busy manning our corner, we didn't really get chance to network with other students or check out their work - but the atmosphere seemed to be one of friendly rivalry, and I think YCC can take a great deal of credit for the good-humoured nature of the evening. Overall they're just a fantastic organisation and I can't recommend getting involved with them highly enough.