They say genius steals, right? So welcome to 5 Questions with… an edited version of 10 Questions on Advertising, a weekly feature on The Drum driven by our very own Group Marketing Director, Matt Williams.
10 Questions on Advertising takes people in the industry Matt admires and asks them all the 5 same opening questions and then 5 questions bespoke to them.
And because Matt admires everyone in Smarts (honestly) and simply can’t choose between them for The Drum’s series, he thought it would be fun (and politically smart) to ask all Smarts leaders the opening 5 questions, and publish them monthly on this very site.
So stay tuned for words of wisdom from across the Smarts group. What career days do people most want to relive… and forget? What’s the best piece of advice they’ve received – and who gave it? Which work are they jealous of? And what’s their elevator pitch for the PR industry?
And if you’re going to kick off a new series, you do so in style. Matt went right to the top and posed the questions to Smarts’ Global CEO Pippa Arlow. Here’s what she had to say…
1. If you could go and relive one day in your career, what would it be?
Meeting the incredible designer Alexander McQueen in 1997. We invited him to judge the Northern Ireland heat of the Smirnoff International Fashion Awards, which was a student fashion event. It was a long shot, but the ‘troubled’ Belfast intrigued him and he said yes – he came with his muse Isabella Blow and showed his notorious Highland Rape collection. It was before his own makeover, and he partied harder than anyone that night.
As part of the agreement, he insisted on spending an afternoon with the students, and he demonstrated how to cut cloth – he was clearly a genius and invited one of the students to spend the summer at his studio to learn more. We got our knuckles wrapped a little by the global Smirnoff team as he turned down the New York event to come to good ole Belfast – told you he was a genius!
2. Now tell us about the day that still gives you nightmares...
I ‘mislaid’ a client during a 4-day golf event in Portugal – I saw him at dinner and then he went incognito for 48 hours. He later turned up as though nothing had happened, but I’d already informed the local police, so he had some explaining to do!
3. Who gave you the piece of advice you still live by – and what was it?
My Dad – “If you don’t ask, you don’t get.” We’ve got on pitch lists, got Bushmills on a bank note, got Concorde to come to Belfast and so much more simply by asking. You’re not always going to like the answer, but that’s ok too.
4. What piece of work done by someone else are you truly jealous of?
Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty, which first launched in 2004. Not just because it’s one of the most iconic campaigns of the century, but because it challenged traditional standards and stereotypes – something I think Smarts has always done, and I hope will always do…
5. What’s your elevator pitch to people thinking about getting into the advertising industry for the first time?
Do your homework and ask yourself ‘is this the life for me’? If you don’t like rollercoasters, I’d suggest a re-think. It’s still a competitive market and getting a break is harder than it used to be, so throw yourself into everything and do all you can to make yourself stand out.
I always recall a story from many years ago when we were recruiting for an AE – we’d loads of applications. Someone wanted to personally give me their application, but of course couldn’t get past Elaine. They sat in reception for over an hour before leaving, only to return with a sandwich and coffee – the exact sandwich and coffee I would have chosen. How did they know? They nipped over the road and asked the coffee shop guys how I took my coffee and what my sandwich of choice was. Did it get my attention? Absolutely. Creativity and insight in abundance. Did they get a job? Absolutely.