From touring Andrew Lloyd Webber’s theatres to promoting idyllic kitchens in less than alluring ways, our Creative Partner and Head of Copy, Lucy Logue, sits down to discuss career highs and lows, the advice and the work that inspires her, and the importance of shifting narratives to match a mood…
1. If you could go back and relive one day in your career, which would it be?
Probably watching Andy Murray on Centre Court at Wimbledon in 2015 having spent months delivering IBM’s ‘I am the data’ campaign. IBM is Wimbledon’s tech partner and we had to tell its story to fans around the world who literally wouldn’t experience The Championships in the same way without it. Watching it all come to life, with a Pimm’s in hand and the clients who trusted us to do it, was pretty cool. Or, when we rebranded Andrew Lloyd Webber’s family of seven theatres to LW Theatres… because it meant getting backstage tours of each and every one.
2. …Now tell us about the day that still gives you nightmares.
In my first agency job, one of my tasks was writing local area copy for Surrey-based homebuilders. Brochures, ads, radio scripts… that kind of thing. It was the early 2000s and every kitchen was ‘exquisite’, every location ‘exclusive’ and every village ‘boasted an idyllic green’. (You get the idea.) Anyway, one day my Creative Director marched over and said the client had been on the phone complaining about a typo that had gone to print in the local paper. A bullet point that should have read ‘Turf to front garden’ had instead gone out as ‘Turd to front garden’. I literally nearly died on the spot, but thankfully the copy turned out not to be mine and the client found the whole thing hilarious. Anyway, strong lesson learned that day – re-read your copy at least 10 times, because somewhere between the 9th and 10th read, the turds are lurking.
(Another day that gives me nightmares? Hmmm, maybe the day I interviewed my now husband for a job…)
3. Who gave you the piece of advice you still live by – and what was it?
‘Just ask the damn question’. Starting out, I was always too hesitant to ask the question that risked making me look like a plonker. Until someone took me aside and told me people wanted to hear what I had to say – that the ‘obvious’ question is often the one that stops something slipping through the net later, that mixed opinions spark better ideas, and to never take things personally (not easy) because pretty much everything in this industry is subjective anyway. OK, so that wasn’t really one piece of advice, but it all boils down to speaking up with confidence.
4. What piece of work done by someone else are you truly jealous of?
This is an oldie, but Cadbury’s Gorilla ad still gets me. Firstly, the track – as someone who took music lessons up until 18, I properly appreciate what that track is doing… building tension bar by bar until it explodes. Secondly, the hook – it’s a masterclass in holding back to hold attention… Why the gorilla? Why the drums? WTAF is going on? The combination is an emotional powerhouse of an ad that blew me away the first time I saw it and honestly explains a lot about how I ended up in this job. Because the parallels between music and copywriting are genuine – the emotion words and melodies carry, the way a well-placed beat of silence or full stop can create drama and anticipation, the rhythm of a riff or slogan which makes it stick. By the way, I’m well aware there are loads more recent examples I could include here, but it’s the one that always pops in my head when asked a question like this.
5. What’s your advice to someone getting into the comms industry for the first time?
If you’re getting into comms then you’re signing up to be a great communicator. And great communicators can generally read a room pretty well and adapt accordingly. It’s a brilliant skill to have whether that room is full of clients, colleagues or friends. Picking up on subtle cues takes awareness, emotional intelligence and empathy… it’s essentially being able to listen with your eyes as well as your ears. So if you can shift your narrative to match a mood then your words, your ideas, even your introductions are almost certainly going to land better. And if they don’t – and your idea (which you think is hands down the best idea that ever was) is met with a ‘meh’ face – remember the subjectivity point… embracing criticism and counter opinions really is how you sharpen your brain and get better at your craft.