1) 2019 is the year that all the promises of creative being freed up by technology has finally happened. With increased bandwidth and easy to use interfaces our industry is doing things faster than ever. I’m not sure that it is the best thing for all projects but it is certainly brought to bear on most of the work we are doing. Given the democratization of technology we find that creative ability is firmly in the forefront (thankfully).
3) None of the work we did this year was up for any of the major awards, but the biggest lesson learned from a very busy year is that it is more important than ever to define scope of work upfront. We work quite a bit with brands directly and we often find the final deliverables are considerably more than originally bid. To some degree this is a result of a wealth of riches resulting from a great shoot, but it also is true that there can be many cooks in the kitchen and we often find ourselves addressing creative and strategic concerns from all levels with brands.
4) I can’t project for the whole industry but I can speak about the San Francisco market with some specificity. SF continues to be a hot market, with a combo of Agencies and Brands providing work for companies like ours. This trend should continue into 2020, with a premium placed on companies that can scale up as needed to accommodate the needs of the job.
5) Big ideas rule. While we are proud of all the work we do it seems like it is the higher concept stuff that wins out. To my mind this has always been the case and I see no reason that it should/will change.
6) As an editing company we are dependent on building talent from within. From our client services folks all the way up to our senior editors we want to have people who are dedicated and immersed in the field. We always seek to find the best talent first but of course we also have an eye on diversity. We have always sought to make sure our company represents the community in which we live but in the past couple of years we have also found that our clients are demanding it. Free the Bid is a real thing and there are plenty of instances where we are asked by our clients about our policies regarding diversity are. This is a welcome trend.
