Earlier in my career I was flying high from an epic show I'd just put on. Iconic venue, spectacular production, tons of buzz online. Then I picked up an angry call from the artist.
"Everyone is talking about the production, not my new album."
He was right.
Just like a company, artists have brand goals. If ours had been to prove he could put on an unbelievable show, we nailed it. But our product was the new album. And we outshone it.
I carry that lesson into every show I do now.
Spectacular execution has its own gravity. When something looks, sounds, or feels extraordinary, people talk about it. But every conversation about your production is a conversation that isn't happening about your product.
I see it in brand activations where the stunt goes viral and nobody remembers the brand. I see it in campaigns where the creative is so award-worthy that the product is an afterthought in its own commercial.
Most agencies will call that a win. Look at the impressions. Look at the engagement. Look at the press. But credit isn't the goal. Impact is.
The question I ask at the start of every project shouldn't be "what can we create?" It's "what needs to happen for the brand to call this a success?"
I got that lesson for free from an angry phone call.
Most brands learn it the expensive way.