Why I'm doing this

This is going to be a very simple blog - that I'm hoping will eventually be a very useful book.

20 Planning shapes that can help you sell any idea to a client.
Backed up by 20 case studies that show how the shape has been used. And 20 lovely anecdotes that should help keep the attention of your audience.

I'm hoping that it becomes a bit of a planning tool kit.

The kind of thing that you pull off the shelf once in a while and say "This calls for an Adopting Bonnie Rait strategy"; or "Let's explain why they need to be planting marigolds rather than buying roses"

Both of those are models that I'm gonna throw out for comments. But as this is entry one, allow me to be self indulgent for just a second and explain how this came about - think of it as the foreword and if you're the kind of person that skips forewords skip it.

As a planner you're in the business of 'stealing with glee' - or rather in the business of adopting and adapting the models out there to help better explain what it is that you're doing.

A nice shape on a chart is always a good thing (planners do have a thing for shaded arrows) as it allows you to do the presentation trick that evades many account people.

A good planning shape buys you time to explain your concept. This is a good thing as the temptation in this powerpoint templated world (does anyone else now turn their paper landscape when starting on an idea?) is to throw down a couple of bullet points, fill in some sub-bullets and then try to speak faster than the crowd can read. This of course makes you a monkey - as any fool can read what's on a chart.

However when you go Benny Ninja on their asses and 'throw a shape' you have the opportunity to explain what it means - making you more than monkey, you're now 'the guy that gets it'

So first thing we need is THE SHAPE.


The problem that we often encounter in meetings however is that while we grasp the concept in the abstract ("What you need to do is create the phenomenon, that will create a cloud of PR vapor off which the campaign will feed') the client is looking for something more concrete. This tends to lead to frustration all around. You go back to the agency and mutter darkly about how they don't get it, they return to their subsidized cafeteria wondering why you're more interested in jargon than selling things.

Of course in your head you have a wealth of examples of what you're talking about. Bravia! Lynx Pulse! But of course what's in your head isn't much use until it's been used to sell the idea. John Bartle, a man who knew a thing or two about planning always used to say that the job of the planner was "to sell the idea the first time" and that the planner's most powerful tool was "his filing system". I'm in no position to disagree, so every model here will be backed up by a case study that shows how the thinking has panned out in the past and offers a clue as to how it might be used in future.

So you'll also get THE CASE STUDY


And the last thing really is how to make it all stick. In my career, such as it has been, I've always had a reputation for 'colorful description'. There's been a reason for this. I wanted the thought to stick. And in order to make it stick you need to make it either relatable, funny or provocative. Hopefully all three.

So the last thing that we're going to have as an adjunct here is THE ANECDOTE.


Enough of the preamble though.

I'd love to know whether this sounds useful before starting to write around the first model.... MARIGOLDS NOT ROSES

Let me know