​We see it a lot. Younger people enter the creative-services workforce, and are invariably disappointed when they don’t get to express their full genius on every assignment. Look at their killer portfolio! Look at the awards they won in school! What gives with the real world? 
 
In this article, we’re going to focus in on some of the (seemingly) most creative-crushing assignments, with an eye toward helping your client succeed. And our parenthetical comment above is spot-on, because if you believe there’s no room for creativity in that assignment, you’ve already painted yourself into a corner. 
 
SEO... as creative?
 
We worked on an assignment recently, featuring a slew of social ads aimed at executives in a particular vertical; let’s say it’s “logistics.” And we were told—it was a mandatory—that we had to feature the word “logistics” in the headline. 
 
Mind you, these are social ads. As we’ve written before, they’re a lot like freeway billboards. In that there’s hardly any room for copy. You get a few words, max. 
 
And now you’re telling me that I have to use the word “logistics” in the headline?
 
It’s enough to frustrate any creative pro. 
 
But there’s a sound method to this madness. And there is most certainly a creative solution to this challenge. 
 
First things first. If this ad, on a cluttered web page, is targeting logistics executives, it needs to cut the clutter of all the other ads that don't. Yes, you can show a picture of a long-haul tractor-trailer (and likely should), but nothing says "logistics” like, well, “logistics.” 
 
It gets worse. Or, depending on your perspective, better. We were also told—another mandatory—to get the word “exec” in there. We’re targeting logistics executives, right? 
 
Execs are a special, elite group. Again, think about it. You’ve got a genuine logistics exec, looking at some cluttered web page. He or she sees the word “Logistics” and takes notice. But there are tons of offerings in the world of logistics; it’s like manufacturing or insurance or any other huge vertical. 
 
But then you add the word “exec” to the ad, and it’s undeniably focused. This is what we might call “the SEO approach to creative.” It’s using the kinds of words that the audience would search on, to populate creative elements such as the headline. Which might read something like this: 
 
Logistic Execs: Boost LTL Throughput Now! 
 
Exciting, huh? Well, maybe not to you.
 
And therein lies the rub. This is what so many of the new-to-the-workforce creatives fail to grasp. You’re not trying to score points for cleverness. You’re trying to help your client make money. Simple as that. 
 
Deeper geekery
 
Notice the mention of “LTL” in that made-up headline above? It stands for “less-than-truckload,” which is an acronym that’s very specific to logistics. So while you would never use an obscure, and undefined, acronym in a headline to the general public, here, in this case, it slices through the clutter even more sharply. It tells that logistics exec, “We know what you’re up against.” It tells them that you speak their language, both literally and figuratively. 
 
Sounds crazy, but little ads like this work. We’ve jammed in some intense, industry-specific jargon, and whereas it would be death at, say a cocktail party, it works quite well when you need to cut through the clutter toward a very focused and time-constrained audience. 
 
So where on earth is the room for creativity here? 
 
If you’re in the tightly-constrained realm of a social ad, think of your remaining elements, besides the headline: 

• The subhead 
• The layout 
• The key image
• The call-to-action/button 

 
Not much, but it’s there. What if you did something like this: 
 
Logistic Execs: Boost LTL Throughput Now! 
ABC Enterprises Helps You Keep On Trucking
 
[Button:] 
 
Accelerate Your Performance
 
And what if there’s a totally outrageous, grabber image, such as a tractor-trailer... with a rocket engine and wings? The heat from the engine could even be scorching the call-to-action button. 
 
Well whaddya know. All of your college portfolio work paid off after all. 
 
The important thing—the discipline—is to know when and where to add the creative “spice” to an assignment, vs. letting the “untouched ingredient” stand on its own merit. The qualifier here, as always, is what the end-client/prospect/customer will respond to. Viewed through that lens, the decisions get much clearer. 
 
Need help with these kinds of assignments? Contact us. We’d love to answer the call. 

​Quick question: You’re building your new website, and you have limited space to message that mobile-first audience. So which offer do you lead with: 1) “Download our information-packed eBook,” or 2) “Book your complimentary business analysis”?
 
This isn’t an easy question to answer. It’s the exact question that a client of ours faced recently.
 
There’s enough to this question, in fact, to fill an entire article. Like this one. 
 
So let’s dive in. 
 
Sales Funnel 101
 
You’ll see this graphic all the time. It depicts a funnel, wherein all these zillions of people enter at the top, and the vital few become hot new clients of yours at the bottom. Sound familiar? 
 
We’re not crazy about the concept, but it’s admittedly convenient for the purposes of discussion, and the title of this article. Basically, the definition of the sales funnel includes three tiers or levels, depending on the stage of the journey at which the sales prospect resides. The thinking goes like this: 

• At the top of the funnel, there are people who aren’t aware of your business at all. They’re just floating around out there, zillions of them, who need to be made aware of your business. Some of them, someday, will become actual clients.

 

• In the middle of the funnel are people who are now more engaged with your business, to the point that they know about it, are learning more, and need your products or services. There are fewer of these people than those at the top of the funnel, but they’re more valuable. 

 

• At the bottom of the funnel are the people who are pretty much ready to pull the trigger. You need to sales-qualify them (can they afford you? will they pay?), but they need your services yesterday. Their hair is on fire. 

 
All three levels of the funnel are arguably important. But this “eBook vs. audit” question speaks directly to different levels of the funnel. Who do you prioritize? 
 
What would you like?
 
Bear in mind, there is no “right” or “wrong” answer to this question. It’s a matter of what you want. But consider the context: 

• The eBook prospect is definitely top-of-funnel. They haven’t a clue about what you do. They need to learn. They’re still shopping. The prospect of an eBook intrigues them. They have the time and the inclination to download and read it. (Should you “gate” this content, by the way? That is, should you require that the site visitor submit their contact info in order to get it? That was de rigeur not too long ago; today, we’re seeing more and more clients simply give this stuff away for free—and still profit from it.) 

 

• The ”business audit” prospect is lower in the funnel, perhaps—and ideally—near the bottom. They know they have a problem. They need help—now—finding out where it is, and what they can do about it. They’re way past the academic/browsing phase. They need help yesterday, and they know it. Is their hair on fire? One can only hope! 

 
The easy (read “cop-out”) answer to the eBook-vs.-audit question is “Both!” But remember: Space is limited. Only one fits above the fold on a cellphone screen. So which do you choose? 
 
For our client, who was faced with this exact question, we argued for the lower-funnel option. In this instance, our client was not only launching a new website, but a new business. They needed to get revenue going ASAP. Thus the choice of the lower-funnel option was, in our eyes, a no-brainer. Make that phone ring! 
 
As far as the eBook crowd, they weren’t ignored or forgotten. The eBook was still there for them. But we simply had our client push it off that precious above-the-fold space, moving it down further on the page. If you’re an eBook shopper, you’re a reader. You’ll find it. No problem. 
 
We once read that when Apple was designing its first retail stores, the team got into a heated argument about which shade of blue should be used for the background of the rest-room signs. We think that that’s pretty extreme. 
 
But taking the time to weigh the pros and cons of your high-funnel vs. low-funnel priorities—even when the end result is one button high on the page vs. another button low on the page—is totally worth it. When you put that kind of thought into all of your marketing decisions, the end result is synergistic. It makes you more money. 
 
Need help strategizing that next website or campaign? Contact us. We work on these types of challenges all the time.