Creative Briefs and Working with Advertising Agencies 17 th February 2012 ACE Seminar Jen Orkis
Creative Briefs and Working with Advertising Agencies
17th February 2012ACE Seminar
Jen Orkis
So you want to develop a campaign…
A method to the madnessAnalyze
DataDevelop Creative
BriefSelect Agency
Program Staff Program Staff, Partners
Program Staff, Partners
Develop Creative Concepts
Test Creative Concepts
Develop Executions
AgencyResearch TeamAgency
Pre-test Materials
Stakeholder Review
Produce Final
MaterialsResearch Team Program Staff,
Partners, AgencyAgency
What is a creative brief?
Research
Creative
What is a creative brief?• The beginning of the creative process• A road map to inform and inspire the
creative team• Informed by research, the
communication strategy• A “creative contract” agreed upon by all
partners
Same same…but differentCommunication Strategy
• National or project level
• Comprehensive• Longer-term• Long!
Creative Brief
• Campaign, activity or material level
• Specific deliverables • Short-medium term• One page!
Who should be involved in writing the creative brief?• Everyone who will have a say in
approving the creative – Program staff – MoH, HEU, NACP, TACAIDS, RCHS– USAID– Service delivery partners
What’s in a creative brief?• Purpose • Target Audience• Communication Objectives• Barriers• Benefits• Tone• Channels
Creative Brief: Safe Motherhood Campaign
Purpose Develop a campaign to empower pregnant women and their partners to take the steps necessary for a healthy pregnancy and safe delivery
Target Audience Primary: Pregnant women
Secondary: Partners/spouses of pregnant womenBirth supporters (aunties, mothers, in-laws, friends)
Communication Objectives
Increase the % of pregnant women who: • Attend ANC within the first 16 weeks of
pregnancy• Attend ANC at least four times during
pregnancy• Test for HIV together with their partner• Enroll in PMTCT services if HIV positive• Receive 2 doses of SP for the prevention of
malaria in pregnancy• Sleep under a treated net every night • Make a birth plan• Deliver at a health facility with a skilled
provider
Barriers • Culture of secrecy around pregnancy• Fear of the evil eye• Belief that you should not interfere with God’s plan• Unaware of need for birth plan, its benefits or components• Believe they’ll be viewed as a coward if they deliver in a health
facility, especially after the first child• Do not see need to go to the clinic or take medication if not sick• Fear the side effects of SP • Low male involvement • Distance to health facilities and associated costs of leaving
home/work and/or using money for transport
Benefits • To have a healthy baby• So the mother and baby survive• For peace of mind, no worry• To feel supported by others during pregnancy• To be able to communicate with your partner about pregnancy
Tone Empowering, emotional
Channels TV spots, radio spots, press ads, outdoorTV and radio programs, song and jingleSMS Community outreach
Selecting an Agency• Establish a proposal review committee• Identify agencies• Issue an RFP• Hold a bidders conference• Score submissions • Invite short-listed agencies to pitch• Adjust scores• Final selection, notification and documentation
*Optional
Components of a RFP• Terms of the contract• Technical proposal requirements
– Capability statement– Proposed staff– Samples of previous work– Strategic thinking and technical approach– Initial creative ideas– Sample media plan and schedule– Proposed timeline
Components of a RFP• Cost proposal requirements
– Estimates for typical communication products
– Budget justification• Creative brief • Deadline and instructions for submitting
proposals
Things to Consider• Staff size• Current clients• Number of years in existence• Agency ownership and affiliation• Agency billings • Experience with health/social issues• Agency resources
– Creative, media, PR, research
Agency 1
Agency 2 Agency 3 Agency 5 Agency 5 Agency 6
Reviewer 1
7 4 8 5 7 6
Reviewer 2
8 3 7 3 8 7
Reviewer 3
8 5 7 4 7 6
Reviewer 4
9 6 8 5 8 7
Reviewer 5
6 2 5 1 7 5
Average 7.6 4 7 3.6 7.4 6.2
Scoring Matrix
Meet with the Finalists• Meet proposed account staff• Agencies give oral presentation of their
proposed approach and creative ideas• Clarify and discuss ideas• Consider going to their offices• Do them all in one day • Adjust scores • Selection, notification and documentation
What’s a concept?• A big idea• Based on a strategy/creative brief• Embodied in headline, a tagline and a key
visual• Works for all messages, calls to action• Will work on TV, radio, print• Can continue to roll it out in different ways
What is a concept?• May demonstrate different benefits
– Beauty vs. good health• May use different approaches
– Celebrity endorsement vs. audience testimonials
• Could use different tone– Romantic vs. humor
Why do concepts?• There is no one solution• Not sure of the most appealing benefit• Need to see how the campaign will work in
multiple media• Need to see how the creative ties the whole
campaign together• Testing concepts gives you a better chance
of effectively reaching your audience
A concept is NOT…• Different colors or fonts• Different models• Different informational messages• Different calls to action• Illustrations vs. photographs
Couples HIV Counseling and Testing Concepts
Couples HIV Counseling and Testing Executions
Malaria in Pregnancy Concepts
Safe Motherhood Executions
We’re not what they’re used to…Commercial Accounts
Public Health Accounts
Hire an agency to promote…
A product or service
An idea or behavior
Have a budget that’s…
Huge Small
Are approved by… Few people Everyone
Are handled… In days/weeks In months/years
Measure results in the…
Short-term (sales)
Long-term (burden of disease)
Tips for working with ad agencies• Identify a single contact person• Hold regular meetings• Document key decisions• Come to a shared understanding about
the review and approval process• Go back to the creative brief• Health ≠ boring!