I love a great costume party.

I mean…who doesn’t enjoy getting all dressed up and, for a short period of time, pretending you are someone else entirely?  

But it’s not just on special occasions that people wear masks. In fact, most people do it nearly every day. We put them on depending on who we’re talking to, for what reason, and in which area of our lives.  

For example, we’re usually more understanding and patient with our own children than we would be with adults (or at least the ones who don’t remind us of our six year olds).  

And in some ways, the same can be said for how agencies work with their clients.

The masks we wear at work

While there has been an industry-wide movement to embrace the notion of failure, I would argue that attempts are still being made to mask the slight imperfections we can — and should — attempt to uncover.  

This demand often comes directly from the client, who would naturally prefer to highlight the positive parts of their program performance rather than focusing on what is not working.  

That’s totally understandable. When meeting in large groups, it is common practice to keep the conversation focused on productive solutions due to time constraints. Unless there is a really strong learning to be made from something deemed a “failure”, discussions tend to lean towards what’s going well — things we can build on, rather than the issues that require total tear-downs.  

And in the process, dare I say it, we tend to mask the smaller issues that could help guide our agenda towards an even more valuable place...

Trading our masks for thinking caps 

At BAM, our trademark value of Careiosity drives us to “peel the onion”.  

Sometimes that means looking deeper into processes that are performing well….but it can be just as valuable to peek under the hood of less glamorous moments to uncover insights that may have otherwise been missed, just because they looked quite ugly on the surface.  

These are the micro-learnings that push the brands we work with forward.  

Life (and I guess in this context, each campaign we create) is not exclusively filled with “ah-ha” moments. There’s just as much to gain from the smaller opportunities and, yes, even the failures, than there is from the big wins.

Let’s not be afraid to show our real faces

By being hungry to learn and open to the possibilities that even things that are going well can still improve, we stand a much greater opportunity to grow.  

Instead of fearing the in-between, let’s embrace it — and the multitude of insights we can glean along the way. Let’s not be upset when questioned on an element of our campaigns (or ourselves) that seems to be going well. Let’s welcome the inquiries around sub-metrics. Let’s embrace the idea that there is always room for change.  

Honest reflection is a powerful thing. It heightens the relatability of our brands, improves ourselves as marketers, and it might just be the missing ingredient that’s holding back your marketing strategy.  

So, let’s put down the masks and get real.  

Who knows…it might help you unlock a whole new superpower.