Slow cooking in the advertising workshop gives best results

In communications, the dream of perfect delivery is alive and well. Or rather, some still seem to think it's possible. That the communication agency can deliver according to the holy trinity of Fast, Good and Cheap. But as we have learned, this is an impossibility, you can only get two of these parameters at the same time. One has to go.

Are you now scratching your head and wondering why you can't get your brochure or website Fast, Good and Cheap? It's time to think about why this is not possible.

High quality + fast

This combination requires the communications agency to put all its best resources into your assignment. They may even put other clients' assignments on hold. To keep up, staff will probably need to work overtime. All this costs money and increases the price tag. Cheap falls away.

High quality + cheap

Carrying out a high-quality assignment at a lower price requires more time. Since the communications agency earns less on this assignment, it is not justifiable to prioritize it over more well-paid assignments. Not if the economy is to make ends meet. Quickly falls away.

Fast + cheap

This one is pretty easy to accomplish. Actually, you can just ask any AI service to create what you need. It won't take many seconds and it's completely free. But for a person with the slightest sense of communication, this is not a realistic option. Quality falls away.

Time is the most important factor

Of the three factors - Fast, Good and Cheap - which is the most critical? Which one can't be left out? If you ask a creative what it takes to create really good communication, I am convinced that the answer will be Time. This is always the joker in the deck, which cannot be planned in exactness.

Communications agencies don't make nuts and bolts, where you can easily predict exactly how long each step will take. Creativity is not linear, it's a much more complicated process. Sometimes it's even the case that the smaller the deliverable may appear to be, the longer it takes to create.

For example. The time it takes for a copywriter to generate a new slogan/tagline like Nike's Just do it or Apple's Think Different cannot be measured in how quickly you can write two or three words. There are probably thousands of hours of strategic and creative thinking behind these formulations. The simple is often the difficult. So of all the things required, the creator ranks time the highest. Time is the creator's gold.

The point is this. While creating communication can sometimes be quick, it's not an end in itself. Everyone would benefit from a little more slow cooking in the advertising workshop. Think about it, a rich meat stew that has been simmering on a low heat for 4-5 hours compared to flabby instant macaroni ready in 3 minutes. With good ingredients and more time in the pot, the flavors are refined and slowly mature into a real feast. And remember, time adds flavor, even in communication.

Hurry up slowly

Sometimes it is inevitable that things have to move quickly. But if it's a really important communication, there's everything to be gained from not rushing. Let things settle down. Think about the details. This will also ensure that nothing unthought-through slips through. The more time you put in, the more likely it is that what you create will stand the test of time.

I have been writing professionally for over thirty years. I know that with every rewrite, my text always gets a little better. And conversely, the more I have to hurry, the more likely it is that inaccuracies and typos will slip through. The old writer Gustave Flaubert, who wrote the classic Madame Bovary, is said to have said that he would rather die like a dog than speed up his writing by a single second. Because he knew how important it is to let creative processes take their time.

Time = quality

I don't know exactly when things started to move faster in the communications industry, but probably at the time of digitalization. When it became possible to both create and publish things, without first having to go the long way via cumbersome analog work and slow printing presses. In the digital world, it became possible to create and modify communications right up to the second before the deadline.

Fundamentally, it is good that it can be done quickly. It gives more flexibility and freedom. The flip side is that it gives more flexibility and freedom. You don't have to make decisions. You can change your mind at the last minute, which also means that there is sometimes a lack of reflection. Any errors can always be corrected afterwards. But just because it can be done quickly, doesn't mean it always has to be, right?

What if you did it right from the start? Given the project a reasonable amount of time, so that all parties could contribute at their own creative pace. I am convinced that the stress for all involved would be lower, the quality of delivery higher and the long-term results much better. And that's what good communication is all about, right? To strengthen a brand in the long term. To build quality, not to finish as quickly as possible. Or to take cheap shortcuts today that will cost you dearly later when you have to redo the work. If you really care about communication, I suggest you put your next assignment in a lovely slow cooker and let the flavors slowly concentrate to perfection.

Bon appetit!