Why don't digital and advertising agencies sell their products like other businesses?  Is selling beneath them?  Or are they so close to their clients that they just don't need to bother. Nick is joined by representatives from client-side and agency-side to explore how ideas are sold and bought.   And as project-based arrangements supplant traditional AOR relationships, Nick suggests that now is a good time for agencies to sharpen up their sales skills.

In this episode, Nick explores one of the industry's hot topics - lack of diversity - in the company of Chase's Chief Brand Officer, Susan Canavari, Benita Conde of Create Radical Love, and a host of agency Creatives.  We look at how the issue manifests itself, why it happens, and we ask what can be done.  It's a complex subject and unsurprisingly we do not resolve it!  But in the end, the issue of diversity comes down to a simple question - do you want to have the best talent, making the...

Award Shows are in the news.  Publicis Groupe is boycotting Cannes 2018 and WPP is considering its participation.  So we go back to basics and ask where did award shows come from and do they really add value?  Or are they just self-indulgent?  Contributions come from Mat Zucker of Prophet and Brandon Hampton of Moxie, as well as regulars Steve Harrison and Patrick Collister of The Zoo, EMEA.  Listen for a lively discussion and the worst pun you will hear this year!

Everybody agrees that a great brief is a great idea, but it seems that few people are happy with the briefs they are writing, receiving or approving.  This episode explores the current state of briefing and asks if there is a better way to capitalize on today's climate.  Nick is joined by LinkedIn star Tom Goodwin, Zenith and Moxie CEO, Sean Reardon, and Moxie ACD Brandon Hampton.  Plus additional contributions from Lori Hamilton, Nancy Vonk and Steve Harrison.

In this episode, Nick explores the role of the Creative Director and asks whether CDs deserve their sometimes mythic status.  He questions why nobody trains CDs, and considers how the role is evolving as technology impacts our industry.  Finally, noting the lack of diversity in the world of Creative Direction, Nick promises to revisit the topic in a future episode.

This is the first episode of The Idea.  In it, we explore what an idea is and we ask whether technology is changing our understanding of ideas.  We hear about the range of ideas from traditional advertising to new conversational UI platforms such as Siri and Alexa.  And Nick tells a funny story.