Creative Marketing: ADK's Jean Liew Talks Creative Satisfaction
As a creative head, Jean Liew leads the ideation, copy and design functions at ADK Rage, Singapore. Having worked in design, content marketing and advertising capacities, Jean has extensive experience in copywriting, editing, SEO and UX writing, content strategy, and creative storytelling. A happy contributor to making good creative happen and working with like-minded folks.
LBB> What does creativity mean to your brand?
Jean> To the brands we work on, creativity often means telling genuine stories and crafting authentic brand experiences with the best of today’s marketing technology.
LBB> And more broadly what does creativity mean to you - outside of work, outside of the sphere of advertising and marketing?
Jean> To me, creativity is letting my mind run wild—with ideas, with challenges of the day, with observing life around me, with whatever I’m reading or watching at the moment. Anything can be a source of creative inspiration, and often the really good ideas come when you’re not forcing yourself to think “creatively”.
LBB> What was the moment or experience in your career that really helped ferment the importance of creativity in marketing?
Jean> Not a specific moment, but often when clients and teams find it challenging to reconcile marketing effort and creative work. The regular consumer is being bombarded with so much information and messaging that they can tune out ads altogether. And since there is a limit to how much resources a brand can pour into their marketing to compete, one of the most effective ways to stand out is through creative work that connects visually, emotionally, and personally to the consumer. Marketing is creative work.
LBB> What have you learned is the key to nurturing fruitful relationships with your creative partners?
Jean> Good communication; speak up and listen with an open mind. There needs to be a space for both sides to safely share ideas and thoughts or feedback, to celebrate wins, and to learn from failures—without any fault-finding or finger-pointing.
LBB> Which creative campaigns from other brands (past or present) have inspired you most in your career and why?
Jean> I’ve always found Nike and Dove campaigns, through the years, to be constantly inspiring with the way they speak to human truths and bring together insights through creative and imaginative storytelling.
LBB> What campaign that you’ve worked on has been the most creatively satisfying and why?
Jean> From my experience, the campaigns I’ve found to be most creatively satisfying were the ones that also spoke to my interests. I’ve had a great time putting together internal campaigns for Citibank teams, crafting 3D/AR-driven activations for clients in the retail space, and more recently, experimenting with AI for future possible campaigns.
LBB> Of all of the puzzles facing marketers right now, what’s the topic that’s perplexing your team the most right now?
Jean> The prevalence of AI and machine learning, and how it can figure as more than just another tool in the creative process. In this emerging AI environment, how do we keep creating unique brand experiences that spark human connections through digital marketing?
LBB> What areas of marketing are you seeing the most exciting potential for creativity?
Jean> We’re just seeing Web3 and AI start to really take off, and these technologies hold a great deal of creative potential for some of our global clients. With emerging tech and a rising new generation of consumers, we’re going to have to figure out how to shift to new touchpoints like virtual worlds and gaming platforms when it comes to staying ahead of the curve.
LBB> You must see so many ideas pitched to you - and have had to sell so many ideas to the rest of your company. So what’s the key to selling a great idea?
Jean> A team that truly believes in the idea. There needs to be internal buy-in before we can even hope to convince clients to buy the idea. Every team member needs to weigh in and test the idea for soundness: Does it address the brief? Are the insights spot on? Is the strategy solid? More than anything, is it solving the marketing or consumer problem? Once everyone recognizes the potential of the idea and is invested in seeing it succeed, it’s half the sell.
LBB> In your experience, how can marketing teams drive creativity throughout the rest of an organisation?
Jean> To begin with, there needs to be a culture of creativity and innovation in the organisation. One approach that has proven successful for us to get everyone on board and involved in driving creativity. When a team takes ownership of a specific project, for example, every member becomes more invested in making sure our ideas are as successful as possible.
LBB> How do you encourage creative excellence among your team?
Jean> Everyone expresses creativity differently. So it’s a matter of finding out what they’re good at, then how they can become great at it. Sometimes they need a mentor, or to get exposure to other great creative work, or a challenging project to work out their creative knots. I also encourage my teams to break out of their silos and collaborate across departments as it often leads to new perspectives, alternative approaches, and new ideas.
LBB> The big question. We know creativity is effective but when you’re assessing an idea that’s totally original and new, how do you figure out if it’s brilliant or indulgent?
Jean> Who is to say it can’t be both? A brilliant idea arrives at a creative solution to a business problem or communicates a message effectively. And while a creatively indulgent idea may appeal to a select few, this select few gets it and would be all for it. That’s a call we then make as a team–if we should indulge a little.
LBB> Tell us about a time you’ve really had to fight for a creative idea - what was the idea, what was the obstacle and why was it worth it?
Jean> There have been a couple of good fights, but one that stood out was for the Night Noodle Markets, presented by Citibank Australia. We were approached for a few simple adaptations, instead we went back with a different creative direction: custom font, more playful tone of voice, sexier food shots. All of this was outside the client’s brand comfort zone, but we truly felt it would make a difference in the marketing of the event. The client saw value in our idea, and we ended up doing the social media creatives as well as the event graphics for both Sydney and Melbourne. The result was a huge uplift on all performance parameters.
LBB> What one piece of advice do you have for marketers at the beginning of their career who’re still figuring out how to drive impactful creative marketing?
Jean> Don’t be afraid to experience new things. Go out there and be curious about everything, and not just creative pursuits. It’s your unique lived experiences that will give you an interesting take or insight when you’re tackling a creative challenge.
