Building your Creative Ladder Programme with Fireworks, Sparklers and Campfires
Starting a Creative Ladder project for a new client can be a tense time as my inner voice can ask uncomfortable questions - does the Creative Ladder only really apply to a limited range of clients in specific industries? Was it designed for a moment in time that has passed? Will its fundamental principles still work in an environment for which they weren’t designed? These can be useful suspicions, as long as they don’t curdle into panic.
Currently I’m halfway through an engagement for a client who amplified this sense of anxiety more than most because they operate in an environment fundamentally different to all other Creative Ladder users I know of. In those situations all you can do is surrender to the odd truth that the client might see the value in what you are offering more clearly than you initially see it yourself.
It’s these engagements that are precious as they force me to truly think about my offer and my value. Like the teacher who identifies an ability in your child you never saw yourself, it offers the priceless gift of alchemically reframing not just the potential of our babies, but also our own role as stewards.
I can’t tell you more about this magical client just yet as we’re mid-flow, but I thought I’d share some of the process I’ve used in case it might help your own Creative Ladder thinking.
As a previous post noted, many teams can start to use the generic version of the Creative Ladder straight away to have more consistent discussions about creative output (There’s a link to that generic version HERE). But the last decade of the Creative Ladder’s existence has proven that a wider ecosystem is needed to maximise its impact and avoid organizational ‘organ rejection’. That eco-system is based on the ‘Sparklers, Fireworks, Campfires’ communications model first introduced to me by Marta Garcia Alonso - my client on the original Heineken Creative Ladder project a decade ago (I’ve known few marketing operators more canny than Marta - she now runs Heineken Mexico, one of their biggest markets). I’ve gone on to use this model in every Creative Ladder project since. Here’s how it works, along with a few pictures of my current project to illustrate - with some details blurred to keep things confidential for now.
Equip with SPARKLERS: practical tools in every hand to use every day. This is not only the Creative Ladder itself, ideally personalized with a language and design adapted to your team, but also a Playbook to help your teams understand the Why, What and How of optimal usage.
Inspire with FIREWORKS: the live moments of shared experience to onboard teams to the Creative Ladder. Think of these as workshops that bring the Playbook to life so people can ‘try on’ its thinking.
Sustain with CAMPFIRES: the year round rituals that keep the conversation going after the fireworks have faded. Includes ‘Creative Councils’ to evaluate and benchmark work using the Ladder (hit the same link above for a description of these), regular communications to share usage tips, and awards that celebrate the right behaviours.
On a previous post I offered a free no obligation Zoom call to answer any questions you might have which led to some fascinating conversations with teams embarking on their own Creative Ladder projects so I’d love to do that again. Just get in touch.
