Written by Francesca Barber
Copywriter
We are stuck in the comfort zone. And it’s not just B2B.
According to a new Cannes Lions report, just 13% of companies say they take a risk-friendly approach to marketing.2 A report by Better Briefs shows that marketers are, on average, proud of just 36% of the work they’ve been involved with across their careers.
Why? On the surface, there are thousands of reasons. We’re exploring quite a few in a series of posts called ‘100 ways to kill an idea.’3
For one, literal thinking murders magical work. Many reviewers worry that their audience won’t understand anything but the obvious – killing fun in the name of factual accuracy.
At the same time, 89% of agencies and 84% of marketers say that personal opinion is shaping feedback. In other words, we lack a solid framework for assessing ideas. Plus, according to 57% of agencies, the right people don’t always sign off the work.3
But how do we stop this happening? And how can you convince others to run better work?
It’s a pretty complicated issue, caused by some complex problems below the surface. But there might be some simple solutions, too.
Complex problem 1:
Subjectivity does and doesn’t matter
I’ve seen it myself, plenty.
An idea is presented. Everyone smiles. Clients, stakeholders, agency people. But, over time, we second-guess our instincts. We let logic erode what we liked in the first place.
Our audience won’t think this hard. They won’t analyse. They’ll stop, they’ll enjoy, they’ll act.
On the other hand, we’ve all dealt with ridiculously subjective feedback from a stakeholder. “I had a nasty aunt called that, so we need to change the name.”
The conundrum is that personal feelings and gut instinct do matter. We want our audience to feel something, after all. But at the same time, subjective reactions should come with three very serious health warnings:
- You don’t have the eyes of an outsider
It’s about your brand – and we all care a lot about ourselves. The audience, on the other hand, doesn’t think twice about you in the average day. They care mainly about themselves, like everyone else. - You are only one data point
And you may be an outlier. There is no guarantee that other people (i.e. your audience) will share your viewpoint. - Good ideas make you feel nervous
If you’re a little scared to run an ad, it’s because you know it’s unusual. Which is the whole point. If you love it, but are worried others won’t, you should probably publish it.
Complex problem 2:
Most people are right about what they like, but wrong about why
It’s hard to get a clear picture of which creative will resonate, even when you ask potential customers. Why? Because only specialists are good at rationalising or explaining their own opinions.
In fact, non-experts often give more accurate preferences when not asked to justify them. For example, one study asked a group of tasting experts and a group of the public to rank strawberry jam from top to bottom, according to specific measures. The experts and the public gave very similar answers when they numbered the jams and gave no explanation. But the public gave very different responses when asked to rank the jams and explain their opinion. The experts, on the other hand, had a sharp grasp of technical language and much more experience. They awarded the jams consistent ratings, regardless of whether they were asked to explain themselves.4
The same issue applies to most stakeholders in the feedback process. Unless someone lives and breathes creative work, they are likely to give misleading reasons for their preferences. And they might change their mind, when they try to rationalise things.
Simple solution 1:
Support magic with logic
You’re presenting creative work to stakeholders who don’t live and breathe creative. And you’re trying to promote bold work that doesn’t just name rational benefits. What can you do, to win the day?
- Prove the power of magic, at every point
The numbers are there, so use them. If you’re showing funny work, find stats and examples to prove the power of humour before you do so. And wheel out data about what provokes emotion, from trusted sources like System 1. These guys don’t ask audiences what they think of an advert. They measure emotional reaction in facial expressions instead.5 - Frame everything around one clear audience insight
Great work is founded on a universal truth that you’ve never heard before. So, make this insight very clear. Scour Reddit. Quote customers. Prove that potential buyers really feel this. Make it hard to deny. And don’t water down the insight with too much else.
Simple solution 2:
Put ‘wow factor’ first
Work that doesn’t excite or interest the viewer is a waste of money. But this often gets forgotten. Here’s what you can do to make entertainment top of mind when assessing work:
- Set the bar before you review
Play three or four great ads. Point out how simple and single-minded they are. This reminds everyone what really good work looks like. And it shows people that a punchy insight seems a lot less provocative when it’s about someone else’s brand – not yours. - Ask the most important questions first
It’s easy to forget the big picture. Give reviewers clear questions to consider above all. These should include: is this interesting? Does it make me smile? Whenever someone requests a change, stop to ask: does this make the work more interesting? - Use a universal scale, but don’t get stuck in explanations
Create a scale for creative work that’s clear and easy to interpret. Then, get stakeholders to rate ideas according to this scale. But don’t get stuck in long explanations of why a stakeholder thinks something. Non-experts are likely to give an accurate preference – but erroneous reasoning.
Courage is non-negotiable
Giving good creative feedback is hard. It’s even harder to get good work past tens of other stakeholders. That’s why we think the pointers in this blog are so important.
But here’s one final thought, to finish.
You can explain the importance of magic, logically. You can show that the most effective work needs a core insight, a bold stance, a leap of faith. But you can never spare yourself the leap.
If you want a little magic in your work, courage is non-negotiable.
We make the complicated simple.
- This blog is indebted to the great Rory Sutherland. As he says, “To be brilliant, you have to be irrational.”
- Cannes Lions, State of Creativity 2025: A call for confidence
- Better Briefs, The BetterIdeas Project: global report, 20
- Study by Jonathan Schooler and Timothy Wilson, featured in: Gladwell, Blink, 2006.
- https://system1group.com/test-your-ad