Next level collaboration to get to the best creative

Its long been acknowledged that the most effective work, is the work that gets into culture, generates conversation and creates change. This is the north star for any client looking to develop impactful work for their brand. That being said, there isn’t one simple, never done before answer on how to achieve this. Instead, it’s about bringing everything we already know together so that, ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.’

Putting the client at the heart of everything

As an industry, we recognise that our clients will always know more about their brands than we do, yet as creative ‘experts’ the industry often holds the client at arms-length requesting the problem so that they can deliver the solution. At The Mill, we work the other way around, putting the client at the heart of the process and working collaboratively with them to get to the best solution. Using their knowledge to get to standout work that is true and unique to the brand.

Again, as an industry, we understand that often the best creative work takes time, however all too often the creative and production process is squeezed, making great ideas difficult and costly to execute. Building a relationship with our clients through taking the time to genuinely understand them and their business from the outset of the relationship means at The Mill we take every opportunity to work with them further up-stream, identifying creative opportunities earlier and maximising the chance for delivering ‘next level’ work more consistently and cost effectively.

By working in this way and having input into the strategic side of the project also means that we better understand the client’s business imperatives, and what success from their POV looks like. That in turn means that from the briefing stage we are working collaboratively to bake these KPI’s into every aspect of the project rather than trying to accommodate them, once we get to the production phase.

Working with brands to tell their story

To generate interest and conversation, communications first and foremost need to tell a story. In today’s world, the ability to tell these stories has never been greater, due in part to the proliferation of media channels that are now at our disposal. There are now so many different touch points to engage with audiences, and integration again is nothing new, but really taking time to recognise that true integration is about using channels to their own best advantage, to best tell different parts of the story rather than just creating matching luggage is often forgotten.

The situation is further compounded by the type of channels that are emerging. New creative technologies that drive experience, or data-driven channels that allow us ever more information with which to get to know audiences are often employed simply because they are the latest thing and with not enough thought into what part they play in engaging audiences in the strategic message or creative narrative.

Creating Next Level work you can be proud of

At The Mill delivering ‘Next Level’ work with our clients, is an amalgamation of all of these points. The outstanding work we pride ourselves on across all of the different channels, comes not just from how our artists craft the final product but from how we work with our client partners to best understand their business, craft the brief and focus on how and where to tell the most relevant, engaging story.

Get in touch with the team and take your project to the Next Level, or for anything else – we’d be happy to speak with you.