Meet Kevin Sutton | Writer/Director/Creative Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kevin Sutton and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kevin, do you disagree with some advice that is more or less universally accepted?
I had a boss who gave me this piece of advice on how to deal with managing people in an advertising agency. He’d say, “remember, everyone’s creative.” It’s meant to help us to inspire everyone, in every department and discipline, to help them feel like they are part of the process, to keep our ears open to ideas from anyone. It’s supposed to be egalitarian and inclusive and uplifting. Like a communal feel good. It’s wrong. Yes, a great idea can come from anyone. Quite often some of the most amazing ideas come from the most unlikely sources. But that is not the same as “everyone’s creative.” A good percentage of creatives aren’t even that creative. So, what makes us think that everyone else is? This is not arrogance. It’s not meant to put creatives on some grand pedestal. It’s just a fact. Imagine that attitude in the airline industry. “Everyone’s a pilot. Enjoy your flight.” How good would you feel at a hospital that had the motto, “everyone’s a surgeon”? And this isn’t to say that creatives are more important than anyone else at an agency. Not everyone’s a media buyer. Nor should they be encouraged to be. Not everyone is an expert in client relations. Yet we don’t open that up to anyone who wants to give it a crack. Not everyone is good at approving expense reports, or negotiating talent contracts, in particular creatives. Imagine if we allowed that to happen. When we say, “everyone’s creative,” it cheapens what creatives do. Just like if we said, “everyone’s a media planner” cheapens that specialized discipline. No doubt you would get pushback from some really smart media people. It’s been my experience that when we veer into each other’s lanes is when traffic gets dangerous.Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Being a good advertising creative is being a good listener. It’s not just listening to what problem people are asking you to solve but really understanding why they have a problem and why they want it solved. Being a good ad agency creative is finding the brand truth, finding a human truth, and finding where they intersect.Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
In the middle of the pandemic I’d take them to Fair Park to get vaccinated.Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
It’s easy for creatives to feel that they are the reason they won that award or their work got sold. But it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. For every great idea you sell, some equally great client had to recognize it and buy it. I’ve often said that the ultimate creative director is the client, so make sure you work for a good one. But it’s not just clients. It’s a brilliant planner, smart account people, a well-thought-out media buy, a great producer. Nobody does this on their own. There are too many people whose support and talents helped me to get where I am, far too many to name, and I would be crushed if I left out a name, so I won’t try. I dedicate everything I do to my wife and five daughters. Without them, I’m nothing.

Website: ourkevinlyfather.com

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-sutton-b249017/

Other: whiskeybacon.club