By Paul Shearer, chief creative officer, Impact BBDO
Dear advertising friends,
Hope all is well in your world.
Apologies for the intrusion. But I have a worry and it’s not going away.
So……
I am writing to ask that we all support the Lynx festival next year and all the years to come.
Being from the UK I know how important a festival is for our industry.
And to be honest I worry that we in the Middle East are forgetting how lucky we are to have our own dedicated celebration of what we do.
A celebration that reminds us of who we are.
Yes, Cannes Lions – like all award shows – is a business.
But they don’t really need to host the three days of education and innovation that we have before the show.
I am sure they could get away with just the awards and show.
So, what am I saying?
I am saying that we all need to support this incredible gift we have and encourage everyone we know to go and take part.
Bring all the positive vibes you can muster and show the organisers that we appreciate and value what they are providing for us.
Why? Because one day it might not be there.
One day we will be just like a lot of other regions. Without a true identity.
I don’t want to be dramatic. Just giving you my humble opinion on something I see as important to the people who are eager to learn and improve.
Let’s face it. We don’t train our young starters enough. We don’t really give them a chance to fall in love with what we do.
We have so little time that growing our skills and developing our understanding is almost impossible.
And here we have a dedicated festival. Three days of fresh breathable advertising air.
To stretch our minds and embrace our culture.
And, more importantly, remind ourselves why we are doing this job.
So please make a real effort to attend.
Bring the whole agency if you can. Bring clients. The more the better.
I know it’s tough getting out of the office. So, go there and work from there.
Have meetings. Turn it into your office. Just be there.
I especially would like to ask the senior people out there to go.
There is nothing more encouraging for young ad folk than to see the CEO and CCO turn up and get stuck in.
It shows the way and shows your commitment.
Anyway, thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts and I wish you all the best.
Most of all I hope to see you at the Lynx festival at some point.
I promise you won’t be disappointed.
