somo creative manifesto

Somo CreativeGet the idea. Make it work.

Creative ManifestoSomo

Creative DepartmentSomo

© Somo Custom 2014 Somo Creative Manifesto 2.0 Page 1

We choose to win by choice, not by chance. We are motivated, not manipulated.

We are useful, not used. We make dynamic changes, not excuses.

We excel with effectiveness, we do not compete. That’s how we create the win.

We express ourselves from a consistent position, underpinned by our core strengths, our shared values and our role in serving our colleagues and clients at Somo.

Our values are distilled from the Somo principles that set out how we do our work. They underpin the culture of Somo Creative.

Our creative ethos: Get the idea. Make it work.

We are the balance between direction and inspiration. We always doing the right thing by the client’s end customer. Not the easy thing, not the popular thing just the right thing.

What we doWe are visionaries, we see solutions At Somo Creative we are obsessed with creating delight, with building in the remarkable, with pushing every envelope from technology through to policy, and in doing so we validate costs. We push these envelopes to transform problems into dynamic solutions, to create a clear vision that will make an impact in the world for our clients.

We are problem solvers We use insight to solve problems; we see things from other peoples’ point-of-view. Thinking, connecting and coming up with ideas, because our most valuable product is ideas. At Somo Creative we make sure we understand the lives of an audience. It’s more than just insight. It’s the ability to tap into human fears, dreams and aspirations. That knowledge guides the creative process and determines which ideas deserve attention and which ones don’t.

We are storytellers We believe that to achieve action out of communication you need to engage people emotionally, and this is best achieved through storytelling. We make good use of technology, but we know fundamentally that a message must lead everything we do. Through curiosity, appreciation and imagination we find and tell stories that engage an audience and make our clients famous.

We are craftsmen and women Great ideas are crafted. More than just making the work look good, a Somo creative possesses a sense of what it takes to connect with people through the work they create. They understand the value of the crafts in the end result and that drives attention-to-detail.

© Somo Custom 2014 Somo Creative Manifesto Page 2

SomoSomo Creative. Get the idea. Make it work.

Somo Award Winning ProcessThe Seven Stages of the Award Winning Process

What is the creative process? The Somo Creative Process in a nutshell: 1) Strategy 2) Creative 3) Production.

The creative process at Somo follows widely understood theories and practices from the creative industries, in that there has to be a preparation stage at the beginning, with some form of processing following that. Then, a stage of ‘joining the dots’ illuminates a discovery, which leads into a verification stage where a proposed solution has to be tested and validated before going into production.

A 5 Step Product Creative process

1) Discover2) Define3) Design4) Develop5) Deploy

A 5 Step Campaign Creative process 1) Immersion2) Digestion3) Incubation4) Illumination5) Verification

So in layman’s terms, we research and generate ideas, then we review the work with the wider Somo team and learn from it. Then we distil and focus on final shortlist of solutions and finally we work up our best ideas.

Above all what we do is all about having a clear creative vision whilst remaining open to opportunities throughout the creative process.



Clarify Problem & PurposeDiscovery & IdeationAsset GenerationDesign & BuildDeliveryFinal Asset ImplementationEvaluate & Verify

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Opportunities to transform• Strategic planning• Media Thinking• Channel Thinking• Platform Thinking• Technology Insight

Roles and responsibilities of Somo Creative are clarified in the context of two areas of creative function; 1) Providing Inspiration and 2) Taking Direction.

Providing Inspiration A creative authority must define and direct the final creative deliverable. When providing campaign inspiration, the domain cannot be decided until the campaign idea emerges, and the campaign idea will not emerge neatly, in logical order in finished form. More often than not, award winning inspiration comes out of a strategy and planning process and is driven by insight. Our creative inspirations focus on providing new, original memorable moments of wonder and awe.

Taking DirectionA creative must be able to take direction of an already defined end deliverable. In the context of taking direction from a product brief, the challenge is focussed on transforming the complex array of requirements and information and making everything simpler and more understandable to an end user. The creative solution is established when all the requirements are met. When we follow direction we focus on providing useful, useable and delightful products and experiences.

Both the paradigms of 1) Provide Inspiration & 2) Take Direction dictate how Somo manifest and write a brief to deploy a creative team

Remaining nimble and highly innovative requires efficient creative leadership. If it is true that creativity will solve all our problems, we need a creative success system that if followed correctly, should never fail to provide outstanding work for your clients.

Collaboration Anyone who has ever succeeded did so with the help of someone else. Achieving brilliant things is collaborative and always will be. An echoing abyss separates collaborations and committees. At Somo Creative, great creative work should be a multidisciplinary process. Creatives are an integral part of it, but the whole function must begin with strategy and be driven by insight.



Creating a culture of pro-action There’ll be a focus towards acting on ideas by making things proactively through structured Somo Creative Hack Days and Somo Proactive Creative Briefs.

What a Creative Director needs to encourage in the Somo creative climate:

Motivations - Challenge & FunEmpowerment - Freedom, Time & SupportDynamism - Energy, Debate & DialogueOpenness - Experimentation, Trust & Risk

An open creative climate means: • Open processes• Open briefings• Open reviews• Open development• Open meetings• Open relationships

The best atmosphere is when there’s an open drawing board - where the creators invite other people to share their thoughts and opinions before the work is produced.

The creative climate at Somo A place where creative minds can thrive because of the positive fertile environment, where we support one another collaboratively in making innovation happen.Where people have the ability, motivation and challenge to imagine and invent something new.

Where we embrace risk and learn from failure. We challenge assumptions through curiosity, appreciation and imagination by asking compelling questions. We brainstorm. We have fun, we play. We experiment. We have energy, we enjoy debate and dialogue.

We verify, verify, verify. We articulate and defend our choices. We’re responsive, resourceful and resilient. We’re open, curious and receptive. Not defensive, intrusive or argumentative. We act on intuition and therefore we’re intrepid. We act on ideas.

We’re fearless.



The seven stages of award winning process A process for award winning work. A process for the people needed to make award winning work.A process through which award winning work is realised.

Go Live Date



KEY (alphabetical)KEY (alphabetical)AM = Account ManagerDP = Design ProductionDEV = DeveloperLC = Lead CreativeLS = Lead StrategistLT = Lead TechnicalIM = Innovation ManagerPD - Product ManagerPM - Project ManagerQA = Quality Assurance TechnicianRM = Resource ManagerUX = User Experience

Phase 1 - Clarify Problem & Purpose

A) BRIEFING• Client Brief / RFP• Kick-off Meeting = LC LS AM PD PM IM

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Phase 2 - Discovery & Ideation

B) CONCEPTS & SCOPING• Write: 1) Somo Brief 2) Statement of Work• Communications planning• Innovation planning IEX / Hack / Lab• Experience planning• Data & Media Planning• Develop Creative Concepts & UX Approach• Creative Review = LC LS AM PD PM IM• WIP Meeting = LC LT AM PD PM IM• Refine: 1) Creative Concepts & Prototyping 2) Finalise S.O.W.• Client Review• Concept & Approach Sign Off

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Phase 3 - Asset Generation

C) PRE-PRODUCTION• Pre-Production Meeting = LC LT LS AM PD PM RM• Asset Acquisition / 3rd Party Art Buying• Data & Media Confirmation• Technical Planning• Engage External Partners

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Phase 4 - Design & Build

D) CREATIVE PRE-PRODUCTION• Creative Pre-Production Meeting = LC LT LS AM PD PM• Visual Design Development = LC LS UX DP• Copy/Messaging Development = LC LS• UX/UI/IA Development & Specifications = LC LT LS UX

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Phase 6 - Final Asset Implemention

F) EXTERNAL PRODUCTION INTEGRATION & DEPLOYMENT• Creative Proofs / Final Edits = LC AM PD PM• Print, Video or External Production = LC PM• Data = LC AM PD PM• Final Tech Sign Off = LT QA

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Phase 5 - Delivery

E) PRODUCTION• Production Briefing = LC LT LS AM PD PM RM• Artwork Production = LC LS PM RM• Back-end/Front-end/Testing = LC LT LS AM PD PM• Artwork Sign Off• QA Sign Off = QA• UAT Sign Off = LT QA AM PD PM

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Phase 7 - Evaluate & Verify

G) POST LAUNCH• Post Project Review ‘Wash-up’ = LC LS LT AM PD PM IM• Evaluation & Results• Maintenance

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It takes a team to build an experience To run an efficient team, you need three people: a Hipster, a Hacker, and a Hustler.The Hipster brings the creative design and cool factor, the Hacker brings their utility belt of technology solutions and the Hustler finds the right way to package it all up and take it to market in the form of sales and partnerships.



Three Person‘Campaign’ Creative Team

DanSherratt

StuartWilson

NajiEl-Arifi

Three person team

Mavens Connectors

Salesfolk

Art Director Copywriter

Innovation Manager Innovation Manager

User ExperienceBrand Architect

HackersHipsters

Hustlers

Three Person‘Product’ Creative Team

RossElliott

ElizabethHansen

BenMagnus

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