Our agency, Feed, recently hosted a breakfast debate on the subject of craft. It’s a topic close to my heart and remains at the core of what we do. Coincidentally, Cannes Lions announced a new award for digital craft last week.
But I believe craft is no longer about a pure aesthetic. The graphic design apprenticeship I followed from 16 through to 22 provided not only a craft, but also a good work ethic and the tools and ability to radically transform your life and, hopefully, community and society as a whole
A craft is hard to earn. They say it takes a dedicated 10,000 hours to master a skill, which equates to five years of 40-hour weeks. For me, it easily took 15,000 to become a competent designer. That’s 15,000 hours just to get to day one, where you stop thinking about the basics, your instincts take over and your mind is free to perhaps create something special. Knowing your craft means you no longer have to do what you’ve always done. It means you have the expertise to do what you’ve never done, but the confidence to know you’ll do it well.
What excites me is how collective creative, strategic, technical and service crafts come together as one. It means we can shift and adapt to clients’ needs. We can be
flexible and expert enough to tackle any challenge, in any medium and anywhere in the world. But over the past 10 years, the world has changed. We have to do what we’ve always done but faster, cheaper and bigger.
Feed has grown from an intimate team to a large, intricate organisation with lots of moving parts, clients and teams. Our self-expectation regarding the quality of our craft has also grown. It’s worth considering how a creative business keeps true to the values of craft in an ever-changing and fast paced market – and how to deliver craft at scale.
Our experience has allowed us to focus on creating as much efficiency as we can: through our processes and tools; through the automation of repetitive tasks; and by creating what we believe are best-in-class client services. This ensures that we keep solving problems, keep our focus on craft and keep creating incrementally better work. This overall customer experience is what has allowed our business to thrive more so than any other factor. It’s become a new way of looking at the value of craft in the modern age.
Consumers want seamless and consistent experiences. They don’t buy the best; they buy the best overall service, the best overall feeling and the best overall experience of a brand. Craft alone isn’t enough; it needs to meet with your customer expectations and those expectations are always changing. We live in an era of disruptive business models where the customer experience is king. It’s important we understand this and adapt.
The lesson in all of this? If you can keep doing what you love while continually meeting your customer’s needs, then your future will be very bright.
Matt Lynch is managing director of Feed
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