How did your agency adjust/adapt to the marketplace in 2021 (new strategies, resources, technology, health/safety expertise) and what is the most relevant business and/or creative lesson you learned in 2021 and how will you apply it to 2022?
After 2020, we had high expectations for 2021, and it has not disappointed. 2021 has been a very successful year, but it has presented its own unique challenges as we swung from the early promises of vaccinations and a return to “normal” to the reality of variants and surges, further cementing the fact that there is no back, and only the need to continue to evolve and move forward.
We pride ourselves on being nimble and adaptable, and so we’ve continued to refine our processes, leaning further on technology for project management, screen sharing, and remote viewing, but most importantly we have doubled down and re-invested in our people.
2021 was a year of expansion for Zambezi as we continued to grow our integrated media division, our Social division (School), and the continued success of our studio capabilities (FIN Studios). But as the volume of work increased it became clear that we needed to make sure we were taking care of our most important resource.
So, in 2021 we put extra focus on our People Department, devoted not only to identifying and resourcing top talent, but specifically to listening and responding to the needs of our devoted staff and frequent freelancers. We’ve seen an immediate impact on the health and happiness of our teams.
Moving forward, we will continue to balance the demands of providing attentive service and making premium work for our clients, with the overall health, safety, and satisfaction of the people who are creating and helping to shepherd that work into the world.
How are the events of 2021–from the pandemic to the call for diversity, equity and inclusion–impacting the content you create and/or the way you work?
From our roots as a formerly Black owned business (co-founded by Kobe Bryant) and our current status as a female owned agency the call for diversity, equity, and inclusion is a never ending pursuit. It’s not like we fill a quota and check it off the list.
Ultimately, the more diversity in our staff and partners, the better our work reflects the varying voices and points of view in the world, and the better we are at speaking to and engaging with more people.
The continuous challenge is the chicken and egg conundrum of experience (whether it’s portfolio, reel or resume) and making sure we are open to different voices and people that might not have certain levels of traditional experience. We understand that great talent can come from different places and might not fall into the typical way things have been done in the past
And while the pandemic and remote work has been challenging for training and mentorship, we will continue to bring in diverse talent at varying levels in all departments so that we can help add to more education and inclusion in the industry as a whole.
What are your goals or New Year’s resolution, creatively speaking or from a business standpoint, for your agency or department in 2022?
Our goals for 2022 are pretty simple
- Create great work for our clients
- Seek out great partners who want to collaborate on great projects
- Make sure to balance the demands of making the best work with taking care of the health and wellbeing of the people who make the work
- Have an open mindset about the way we do business and the impacts of how we exist in the industry and in the wider world
Gazing into your crystal ball, what do you envision for the advertising and/or entertainment industry–creatively speaking or from a business standpoint–in 2022?
We see the advertising and entertainment industries continuing to both expand and consolidate – not an easy trick.
If nothing else, 2021 showed us that the need for content is never ending. People want to speak, be spoken to, engage, or simply be entertained in various places and on multiple platforms. And so we need to build responsive teams of engaging storytellers that can communicate in a host of different ways and in different media and mediums, each with its own unique language and style.
So as we, and the industry as a whole, continues to adjust to these new needs we expect that there will be some casualties along the way. Some businesses will get acquired by larger networks in order to keep up with the varied demands of clients, some will continue to adapt and expand their offerings internally/independently or through acquisitions of their own, and some will simply not be able to keep up.
For us, this is an exciting time, and we welcome the challenge of “evolve or die”, as that is how new ways of working evolve and where creativity lives.
Tell us about one current commercial or branded entertainment project you are working on for early 2022.
We have been hard at work on a new content series for The Tennis Channel: “Warm & Fuzzy” is a show that came about as a reaction to the pressures of the pro tennis tour, and is meant to show the lighter, more personal side, of some of the biggest pros, and introduce audiences to some of the next generation of tennis stars.
We are also completing 8 episodes of our first podcast series “Undaunted: presented by Choose Unity” in collaboration with Spring Green Media. On the podcast, our hosts talk with young influencers and activists about some of the most pressing issues of our times, offering new perspectives and solutions to these problems. With guests like Rachel Cargle, DeRay McKesson, Rainn Wilson, Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Penn Badgely and more. It’s a very different (and exciting) project for us.
We will also be in production on new work for DIRECTV as they head into 2022 with renewed purpose, for Traeger Grills as we gear up for the 2022 grilling season, and we are finishing up a host of spots and other content for Taylormade Golf, just in time for the winter thaw and a return to the golf greens.
