There are two versions of every plan, the big picture version and the detail version. Assuming the big picture version is realistic and carefully thought out, the detail version should come together nicely.
Try as I might, I can almost never get through a presentation of the big picture without someone interrupting to ask about a detail. Our creative director, Mike, who isn’t known for beating around the bush, says this is like asking a construction foreman about the color of the bathroom wallpaper in a house that doesn’t have a foundation yet.
People like details. They’re as important in advertising and direct marketing as they are in selling a house. They’re just not all that important to the people who are building the house. If the foundation, structure and utilities are right, you can have any color wallpaper you want.
So let the builders work.
We’ve gone through some of this in previous posts, but, just in case you missed them, here’s a summary.
All plans begin with Background. There are different terms for this but they all mean Background. Somewhere in the Background, there’s a simple rationale for why you’re involved in this effort in the first place. Continue reading …

