In-House Teams Need External Ideas To Avoid Becoming a “Smurf”: Liana Dubois

External creative influence is “incredibly important” to ensure brands remain distinctive, and don’t overindex on in-house capability, according to Liana Dubois, the newly-appointed regional managing director of ANZ Entertainment.

“I have never seen a wholly in-house creative outfit capable of continuing to evolve and innovate and create new stories,” she said.

“You need new inputs, otherwise you will become a smurf ... And new ideas aren't born.”

She added there can be a “terrible, terrible leaning towards in-house”, and the balance between in-house and external influence was something she learned Nine didn’t have “right” when she was CMO at the media company.

“I think we erred far too much on the in-house capability, which can be very much a media owner thing, because you have content creators that exist inside an organisation because that's what you do for a living.”

Liana was speaking alongside fellow marketer Kathryn Illy -- former Destination NSW CMO, and an advisor to the Australian Centre for AI in Marketing -- and Neale Horrigan, ECD at DO. Agency, on a webinar moderated by DO. Agency MD Paul Coles. The session focused on whether the role of creativity in marketing has changed.

Neale added deciding how to structure creative capability was not a case of the “right model”, but the right people.

“I think in-house teams are great at speed, [and] external agencies are really good at a fresh perspective, and AI is greater volume. And for me, brands need all three.

“I would say that maybe the right model or a structure is actually the wrong question. For creative excellence and brand growth, the right question should be, ‘Who is best placed to challenge the brief and and push the work forward?’”

He argued “creative growth doesn't come from structure”.

“It comes from people in power to challenge, and rethink, and reimagine and … if you kill that, I don't think there's any model as such that will save you.”

Kathryn added there’s no “traditional structure” to creative teams anymore given the influence of AI.

“Where AI can play a massive role, certainly in [the] marketing world, is around how you have the speed, the scale, and how you can actually go to market and create.”

She said while AI creates a level playing field, those who leverage it for good rather than evil will see an acceleration in how it amplifies their creativity.

AI should enhance value creation in brands, not replace roles, she continued. If consumers expect “hyper personalised, hyper tailored” messaging from brands, marketers should strategically use AI for that goal, and continue to prioritise human creativity.

“You need to upskill yourself in what AI can actually deliver and how it can actually enhance [and] amplify your business, your role.”

Neale added although tech is a “superpower”, it shouldn’t be “the brain”.

“The creativity in human thinking is of much more value and that should be praised, not feared.”

Liana agreed, adding “a bad idea delivered at the speed of light” remains a bad idea. Once businesses move beyond the “efficiency play” of AI, she said, it becomes “very interesting when [we] think about the application of it creatively”.

The webinar extended upon the theme of creativity as a driver of growth covered at a roundtable as part of LBB and DO. Agency’s first CMO lunch, held in September.

Selling creativity is a “courage problem”, Neale said yesterday.

“I would say that it's far riskier to play it safe and spend a load of money on something that nobody remembers, than it is to do something slightly polarising.”

Liana agreed it's important to remember, especially for data and technology-focused C-suite execs, that an emotional connection which drives behaviour change is at the heart of powerful creative ideas.

“People aren't realising that the impact of creativity is actually much more broad than making a beautiful and highly emotional and distinctive piece of work.”