NORTHERN PLANNER

CONFUSED AS YOU ARE

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It hurts more now

I worked on a pitch late last year where we did absolutely nothing wrong apart from asking a fair price for our work (Yorkhsire prices) and not being in London.

I’ve just seen the work they’re going with. With no trace of sour grapes, not a jot of bias, it’s dreadful, 100% wrong for the audience, the market and what the people we met stood for. My blood’s boiling when I think of what might have been. Not just the doing ‘great effective work to be proud of’ bit – more that I really liked them and wanted to see them do well. What a shame.

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10 responses to “It hurts more now”

  1. Rob Mortimer Avatar
    Rob Mortimer

    Any way we can find out who it was?

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  2. Rob @ Cynic Avatar
    Rob @ Cynic

    Mate – I know what you mean, it’s a tragedy I’ve been though a few times but ultimately clients get the work they deserve and as nice as they may seem to be, the fact they don’t value what you are doing means they aren’t as nice as they seemed.

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  3. NP Avatar
    NP

    I’ll tell you next Thursday.
    Fair point, maybe I’m just too nice…

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  4. lauren Avatar
    lauren

    clients get also get the work they believe they deserve. so if they don’t feel that they’re worth spending money on investing in themselves, they would probably be neurotic and insecure to work with too.. you’ve probably been saved from a major headfuck..

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  5. doug Avatar
    doug

    cost versus value NP. it’s a shame some clients don’t know the difference….

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  6. Marcus Brown Avatar
    Marcus Brown

    Am I aloud to swear on your blog?

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  7. NP Avatar
    NP

    Great Carol;-)
    Marcus, say what you like.
    Thanks folks, we’ve probably had a lucky escape

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  8. Stan Lee Avatar
    Stan Lee

    I have a different kind of pitch story, that’s just as frustrating.
    When I was working in London a few years back I was CD on a pitch for a very high profile web pitch.
    There was much internal bickering between agency powers that be and myself over the creative.
    Suffice to say I stood my ground and the pitch was very well received. I had a really good feeling about this one.
    A few days later I was called to a meeting in the boardroom. Sitting at the table were the MD, HR guy and another very senior suit.
    Suffice to say I’d been brought in to be taken to task over my handling of the pitch and the “shit work” that was presented at the pitch.
    I’d had enough of the agency at this stage, so I quit. There and then. Packed my bag and walked away thirty minutes later.
    Later that night I got a call from one of my creative people to tell me we/they had won the pitch.
    Ironic?
    Well let’s just say the pitch work ran pretty much as presented. And this “shit work” went on to make Campaign magazines “Ten most talked about websites.”

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  9. Northern Planner Avatar
    Northern Planner

    Stan, I ended up having to leave somewhere fot standing my ground – but I was never vindicated like that. That’s brilliant;-)

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  10. Marcus Brown Avatar
    Marcus Brown

    sorry, been away. But Stan’s comment pretty much sums up what I wanted to say.
    Fuck ’em.

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