Beyond ‘I Don’t Like It’: 4 Rules for Effective Creative Feedback
Feedback.
It’s one of those things that most people don’t want to do (despite what they say), unless it’s to big C Creatives. Designers, videographers, writers, marketers, the list goes on. Everyone it seems thinks that they’re creative (little c) and as such they absolutely know best. I’ve yet, in my many years of experience, come across a C-level individual who didn’t think they knew better than one of my art directors or product designers. It’s an unfortunate fact of the industry, and all of us who have been around for a while have a story to tell about it.
But that’s not what this is about. This is about how to give feedback to Creative teams. There’s an art and a skill to it. I’ll give you the skill bit, but for the art it’s all about years of putting the art into practice. I’ve made my career around being the translator between Business and Creative, and while I won’t give away all of my secrets (I’d like to continue to find work after all), here are a few tips to hopefully make everyone’s life a little easier.
Be Specific
“It’s just not very good.”
“I don’t like it.”
”It’s not what I was thinking of.”
I’ve heard these three pieces of feedback, or some variation on them, more times that I can count. Creative teams aren’t mind readers. They can’t determine exactly what you want unless you tell them. Even something as simple as “I’m not a fan of that blue, can you try something a little darker?” will get better results.
Be Kind
I really don’t know why I have to say this, but Creative staff are people. Try to never say “That’s bad.” Calling back to “Be Specific” bad is super subjective, not to mention insulting. I’ve actually had one executive say “well that looks like garbage” on a review call with my staff. One of the very few times I’ve fired a client and I don’t regret a second of it.
Bring Solutions, not problems
This is one that’s often overlooked but I find pays huge dividends. In truth it’s one that I’ve stolen from parenting but is no less effective in the professional world. That’s to always bring a few solutions to any given problem. Equally important is to not be emotionally attached to these solutions because they’re actually not solutions. What they are is prompts to get your team unstuck. Your crappy wireframes or slapped together design suggestions aren’t supposed to be the answer, they’re supposed to free your team up to find the answer.
Be Sure
Note: Be sure of yourself, not arrogant.
My mentor had a saying that I’ve held close, “Be highly opinionated but non-dogmatic.” You should always have conviction in your feedback, but realize that you’re not the Alpha and Omega. Always approach things like you know what’s best, but be ready to accept a better idea when it presents itself. People often tend to be more willing to think creatively if you lob a few ideas out first. Being a leader means being ready to throw out some stinkers just to get your team thinking more freely,
That’s it. At least that’s a good beginning. There are, of course, many other things to think about when you’re providing feedback to anyone, especially Creative teams. But I’m going to start with these four for now.