|
|
|
 |
 |
| |
|
| |
|
As Creative Director of ad firm TBWA, Trevor Beattie is responsible for some of
the country's most high-profile campaigns. Here, he gives lifebyte his tips about
how to get into the business he's dominated for the last decade. |
|
|
|
|
|
Make a fuss. Create a stir.
GET NOTICED. Or as he might put it on a bad day, GET NOTIDEC. These are the watchwords
of top ad man Trevor Beattie, who sold us FCUK, Wonderbras ('Hello Boys'), Pretty
Polly bras, PlayStation, Weetabix, Liquorice Allsorts, Flakes, the list goes on...
Not to mention the government, for clever Trevor has landed the contract to market
the Labour Party.
And above all – you've heard this before – don't give up. 'Never take
no for an answer. Never, ever give up. Your ambition should be single-mindedly
to get
a job in advertising – not to "'have a career" in advertising
– and when you get in, your belief in what you've created is going to be
tested every day.
'You have to defend yourself 24/7 against the slings and arrows, against people who don't like your hair, your accent, or your ads; who think they're offensive, who are jealous of your work, and against other agencies, other clients. You've got to defend all the time – so you've got to totally believe what you're doing.'
Advertising attracts thousands of mainly graduate-wannabe-Beatties a year for
the 250-odd places in top agencies – and they sometimes go to extreme lengths
to catch his attention. 'I've even been sent a live pigeon through the post,'
he says, 'but I'm not a big fan of colleges and courses – I don't believe
in studying advertising, I believe in studying life.
'Don't learn off dickheads who work in advertising, there's no point learning how some wanker in 1980 did an ad; sit on a bus for a couple of hours, then you might learn something about selling to people who go on buses…
'Don't get wrapped up in the way adverts have always been done. I don't want people to study how I do it: study how you're going to do it. Look at ads you like and work out why they work – and why the ones you hate don't – and write YOUR version of a really crap ad, take it to the agency who did it, and say here's my work. .
'The future belongs to people in their 20s. They've got 20 years to change the world, I haven't: and the more we can get rid of the old dickheads at the top of our business, and bring young people in, the better.
'So don't give up. Badger people. It's the best job in the world.'
— John Morgan 24.11.00
Click
here for more about the man.
Click
here for more info about getting into advertising.
Click here
for the website Get Out There. |
|
|
