"While the principles of direct marketing remain the same, one of the major evolutions has come from how big a part data and technology can play in this category."

Judging for The One Show 2020 and the ADC 99th Annual Awards was just about to begin, with hundreds of creatives from all across the globe coming to New York and Puerto Rico for several weeks of deciding the most Pencil and Cube-worthy work of the past year.

COVID-19 had other plans.

Never ones to be deterred, we at The One Club for Creativity quickly put together a course of action that allowed for the majority of the submissions to be debated and discussed online, while a small group of New York-based creatives viewed work in person. Our goal has been to maintain the integrity of our two main awards while erring on the side of safety, and our phenomenal judges have been more than accommodating.

Each year, we like to share some of the judges' views coming out of the various jury rooms. This year, however, those rooms are virtual.

Karl Waters, Creative Partner at JWT Folk Dublin shares his experience with us judging the Direct Marketing discipline for The One Show 2020, discusses the marketing trends of 2020, and talks to us about how he is staying inspired while working remotely.

How is Dublin holding up these days– how are you and your family doing these days?

There are really two sides to everything that’s going on these days.

In Dublin, on one hand, we’re happy that things are slowly getting back to normal. On the other, it’s a worry that maybe things are moving too quickly.

It is the same with myself and my family. I’m delighted to be able to spend more time at home with my young family, and not for one second do I miss the daily commute. But there’s also a part of me that misses the daily face-to-face interactions with colleagues, because often it’s those interactions that can spark great ideas, even inadvertently.

My daily routine doesn’t differ too much from life pre-Covid, except for more Zoom calls and possibly even more focus. I definitely spend more time in the make-shift office in my spare bedroom. It’s all good though. My agency has been great at adapting and we’re still firing on all cylinders.

Direct marketing has come a long way since fancy envelopes in the mail– what has intrigued you most about its evolution over the years?

While the principles of direct marketing remain the same, one of the major evolutions has come from how big a part data and technology can play in this category. After all, direct marketing should elicit a direct response– data can help identify who to reach out to, while technology can get us to those people. Getting to mix creativity on top of this leads to some of the best work in the world, and that is what is exciting about direct marketing in 2020.

What marketing trends did you notice in the category this year?

It’s not a new trend, more a continuation, but purpose-driven work is still dominating. It can be difficult to separate the genuinely impactful purpose-driven work from the work that is purely designed as award-fodder– doing good can be hard to measure in advertising. It’s on juries to spot the ones that are aren’t genuine though, because really this type of work is not doing our industry any favors.

“Purpose-driven work is still dominating. It can be difficult to separate the genuinely impactful purpose-driven work from the work that is purely designed as award-fodder– doing good can be hard to measure in advertising.”

If you could pick one piece of work that you judged that you think is the most creative of all the submissions, which would you choose?

It’s really hard to choose, but I will. The Punishing Signal from Mumbai Police. It is a perfect mix of purpose and fun to help solve the incessant beeping of car horns in Mumbai city, proving that creativity can turn up anywhere, even in traffic jams and traffic lights.

How are you and your team at JWT Folk Dublin staying inspired these days?

We keep looking at the world around us and we keep talking. Again, there are two sides to this. On one hand, we’re not out there interacting with as many people as we normally would be. Conversely, we have more time to process what we do see. So, as long as we keep talking and keep discussing things as a team, the ideas will keep coming.

What do you think will be the main take away for agencies after the Covid-crisis?

The main one is that people can do their jobs from anywhere. That’s agency staff, clients, external partners. Everyone. There was some suspicion about working from home from some people before all this happened– that’s all gone now. In theory, this can make it easier to build better, more diverse agencies, as we can draw on pools of talent from different places and that’s exciting. I’m looking forward to seeing which agencies make the most of that. Even crises can present great opportunities.

The 2020 One Show WINNERS are HERE!

ONE SHOW WINNERS