The Romans Explore Advantages of Earned First Creativity with 'Feel the Earn' Report

​The Romans Amsterdam, in collaboration with Crowd DNA, have launched a new report, ‘Feel the Earn’.

The report is based on the hypothesis that ‘earned first’ and ‘getting into culture’ briefs have lost direction. While campaigns that earn attention drive disproportionate value - brands are losing the struggle to achieve it. Backed by insights from CMOs and leading creative minds, ‘Feel the Earn’ sheds new light on where true creative PR can elevate integrated campaigns to help brands find their place - and audience - in culture.

Feel the Earn is inspired by The Romans Amsterdam spotting two trends. The first, a rise in briefs asking the monolithic ‘get us into culture’ question. The second, a decline in PR clients being involved in the key, early stages of integrated briefing. So, they set out to uncover what CMOs really want from the ‘earned first’ campaigns of their dreams - and how to get them there.

"No spoilers - but the survey results were fairly alarming. While CMOs agreed that their ‘earned first’ campaigns weren’t hitting, and that promises to ‘get them into culture’ were falling flat – they were also reporting a stark gap in the creative process for the earned first specialists". says Sophie Nicholson, partner at The Romans Amsterdam.

"We get up in the morning to find ways to be talked about by the right people in the right places. And we believe that real culture happens at the corners of culture – which is why we re-direct briefs there. This report allows us to begin paving a path to where earned campaigns can actually work. Actually, one spoiler: it’s going to take earned first expertise, and it’s all about collaboration."

Partnering with cultural insights and strategists, Crowd DNA, leading creative minds and CMOs were interviewed, to gain a deeper understanding of the role PR currently plays at the integrated table and attitudes to earned first and culture campaigns.

"When The Romans approached us, we thought “this is a research project that needs doing”. The interviews gave us differing perspectives with a common theme, that earned is critical to integrated campaigns and, if earned is part of the creative process at the start, the scalability across channels increases. Therefore, the role of PR in the creative journey needs a significant rethink." adds Maxi Werkle, associate director of culture strategy, Crowd DNA.

‘Feel the Earn’ connects the dots between earned creative campaigns and the critical role of PR, breaking down what ‘getting into culture’ really means.

Download the full report here.