So far in the “State of the Creative” series, we’ve heard from Chief Creative Officer’s at: Ogilvy & Mather North America, Weber Shandwick, GREY, and 360i. This week we continue to examine what it means to be a creative in today’s world…

 

 

I sat down with Nick Law, Chief Creative Officer at R/GA, to discuss the state of the creative today.

 

In this new era of data and technology, what has been the fundamental change for creatives?

The biggest change has been the growing complexity of media and the opportunities that this affords.

What does it mean to be a creative today?

In our industry creative was once primarily about telling stories. Now that the media at our disposal is networked software, creativity now includes a range of systematic skillsets. Perhaps most importantly being creative today means collaborating with a wide range of other creative thinkers.

How important is it for a creative to understand data?

Creatives work should be informed by the knowledge born from data. Often this means working with people who can decode what data is telling us. Regardless, good creatives take wildly intuitive leaps off this knowledge.

Is it harder to be a creative today in this world now?

It’s always been hard. It takes knowledge, obsessiveness and courage to conjure something from nothing. The process has become more variable and less predictable; and so more challenging.

In the market today, what does it mean to be the best, and what does it take?

This may sound crushingly obvious, but you’ve got to care about the final product to be the best. The only people who I truly admire in the industry are those with a body of great work. There are plenty of smart and insightful people with fancy titles. There are far less people who have consistently done great work. In my experience, the best are never happy until they’ve made something great, and put it out in the world.