10 Questions on Advertising... with The Liberty Guild CEO Jon Williams
“Things will never be how they used to be. There are no rules, no Haynes manual. In ambiguity lies the biggest opportunity we’ll ever have.”
Our CEO & Founder, Jon Williams, calls it as he sees it in his new 10 Questions interview with Matt Williams at The Drum.
Straight talking. Future facing. He dives into why freelancing is the main event, why in the age of kittens driving tanks it’s still the idea that matters, and how the concept of Nazar keeps envy firmly at bay.
(A 4-minute read with an iced latte)
From the chaos of AI to the rise of freelancing, Jon Williams has strong views on where advertising goes next. In this week’s 10 Questions, the Liberty Guild founder talks nightmare flights, City fandom, award show battles – and why ambiguity might just be the industry’s greatest opportunity.
Jon Williams is a man of firsts. He was the first ‘digital native’ to run a traditional advertising creative department. He created the first interactive TV ad ever broadcast, and the world’s first crowdsourced, co-created long-form spot. And he created the world’s first native brand app for the iPhone, in the form of the brilliant iPint.
A multi-award-winning creative leader, Jon was interactive creative director at Publicis Groupe and Harrison Troughton Wunderman (now Wunderman Thompson) and BMB London’s head of digital (where he created the aforementioned iPint for Carling). He joined Grey in 2008, where he stayed for a decade, initially as chief creative officer of Grey London and then CCO of Grey Group EMEA, before going it alone with The Liberty Guild.
So yes, Jon’s well qualified for the 10 Questions hot seat. But beyond his track record, we wanted to speak to him because he has a genuine point of view on the future of creativity (which isn’t always the case nowadays). Few are better placed to have a take on awards and on creative freedom and on freelance creativity and on the impacts of AI to it all… and even fewer have put their money where their mouth is and set up a new form of creative company in that mold.
Jon has certainly done it with Liberty Guild – and it’s with that, plus a Q&A that took us from the concept of Nazar to the concept of Manchester City, that’s provided an illuminating 10 Questions on Advertising…
1. If you could go back and relive one day in your career, which would it be
Brilliant question. Forced me to review and relive a long and frankly privileged career. I’m going to ignore all the metal and the ‘on stage’ glory. And gloss over all the enduring friendships and late-night shenanigans. You know who you are. And go to one day. Well, the end of one day, when after the grind of a workshop, 15 of us went out for dinner on an island in the Bosporus. And the world stood still. Yes, the cliché is real. My eye locked on a certain creative director sitting opposite and that moment really happened. The hairs on my arms are standing up as I write this. That creative director is now my wife. And that is a day that plays on repeat in my memory. It’s not all business is it….
2. …Now tell us about the day that still gives you nightmares.
We had to go and see a client in Lebanon, New Hampshire in the US. Flying into Boston was fine, but the client gave us the choice on the transfer of ‘the school bus’ or a flight. We took the flight. You would, right? Wrong. Think 30-year-old damp caravan with wings.
At the check-in they even weighed us, as well as the luggage. And then told us where to sit based on how lardy we were. And then the storm rolled in. Think 56 minutes (and I counted every damn one) of sheer terror. It was like being in a tumble dryer hurtling through a dark cloud, with occasional unexplained plummeting. How I kept breakfast down I will never know. Lovely client though, and we spiked their sales by 32%. So worth it. Kinda..
3. Who gave you the piece of advice you still live by – and what was it?
David Sable, who’s now the vice chairman of Stagwell Group, used to run EMEA for Wunderman while I was there. He told me, “Jon, you need to be comfortable with ambiguity.” I remember it wasn’t particularly helpful at the time, but over the years it’s resonated more. He was right, we all have to be comfortable with it. Things will never be how they used to be. As this business beaks down and reforms in unexpected ways, there are no rules, there is no Haynes manual, and really we can build anything we want. You just have to crack on. There is huge opportunity in ambiguity.
4. What piece of work done by someone else are you truly jealous of?
I’m not going to cast that karma. My Turkish wife (see answer one) has introduced me to the concept of Nazar. That blue eye thing you see all over the eastern Med. The eye is protection against someone giving an envious glare. To declare jealousy or envy would cause misfortune, injury or bad luck to the person it is directed at. I’m afraid I can’t be responsible for that. This gig is hard enough for all of us anyway.
5. What’s your elevator pitch to people thinking about getting into the advertising industry for the first time?
Well, first up, the generation before us got to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and robbed it blind. If you’re expecting the cherries to line up… they won’t. At least not in the old way. It’s a rapidly changing business and much of it is in chaos.
But in chaos there is massive opportunity. Don’t go to a legacy agency; start something yourself. Look at where the cracks are (and there are many) and partner with AI and the creator community to build something new that people actually want to exist. Your hustle and entrepreneurialism are as important as your creative skills. Nurture them.
6. “AI won’t steal our jobs, but augmented creatives who can use it natively will.” You’ve been talking publicly about adding AI artists to Liberty Guild’s roster – how do you find them, and what particular traits are you looking for?
Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. When literally anyone can make a movie of a kitten driving a tank. You need to look for the idea. It’s the thing that differentiates. Always has been, always will be. A good-looking generation will beguile for a while… then you need some substance.
We’re in the incunable period of AI. Literally the cradle. Where everyone is experimenting. And true potential is constantly evolving. But we tend to find that directors, or photographers or classically trained creatives have an innate understanding of composition, and the ability to prompt from a position of craft. Camera angles and f-stops are still important. And when it’s all about the prompt, then copywriting is bloody crucial. But then not always… that’s the fun part. How do you find them? You come and ask us.
7. How have you seen the mindset towards freelancers change – both from how they’re viewed by agencies and how they’re viewed by clients?
Even eight years ago when I started this gig, freelancers were viewed pejoratively. We’ve very publicly battled against that all along. The prevalence of freelancing in the creative sector is driven by factors like project-based work, the need for specialized skills, and the flexibility that freelancing offers.
Post covid, it just keeps rising. It’s now 32%. That’s really significant. And it’s growing. The need of the talent drives it, but now there are also 10 million creative souls in the ‘creator economy’, which clients really, really want access to! Shit’s changed. Creators are going to clients without needing an agency in the middle. As are AI artists. Agencies need to evolve their view or risk obsolescence.
8. You talk a lot about Liberty Guild focusing on working with people who have won ‘the mega awards’ – but as award shows come under more and more scrutiny, how has your attitude towards award shows and their role within the industry changed?
When I ran EMEA for Grey there was no scam. We’d kill it at every creative council meeting. It was a recurring problem like whack-a-mole at the fair. And when I used to chair award shows, I made a lot of enemies. In Moscow I remember, it was strongly suggested that it would be safer if I got on the plane the night before the ceremony.
Because any jury I’ve ever chaired has only awarded work that works. I passionately believe that. Always have done. Scam is damaging to all of us. But I believe in the shows just as passionately. They give us a benchmark. And yes, our crew are proudly elite. To us, it’s a quality assurance mark. Not a target or an ambition. It’s about perspective. I use my personal Lions as door stops around the house. On display but grounded. Literally.
9. You grew up right by Old Trafford so naturally picked Man City (before they were who they are now!) because ‘you’ve always loved the underdog.’ Give us your favorite underdog story.
Still City. Everyone loves to kick us. We’ve just had the worst season in 10 years, which made everyone so damn gleeful. We collapsed, apparently. There was mass schadenfreude. This is the end of City. Guardiola’s leaving…blah blah blah. Whatever. But we still came third in the League, won the Community Shield, got to the FA Cup final, and were going strong in the Club World Cup until... yeah Al-Hilal.
10. Favorite movie soundtrack? (Yes, we know his first name is spelled differently.)
You’re hilarious you are. Ok. Music is emotional, isn’t it? It takes you to a place. The soundtrack for Betty Blue (37°2 le matin), by Gabriel Yared, does that for me. I can literally feel the sun on my skin, smell strong espresso and taste the acrid tang from a Gitanes from the first chords. About the time it came out, I was limping round the Camargue in an old Ford Transit. Camping, laughing, eating, smoking, drinking… sweating. Literally 37 degrees in the morning. And this cassette was on a rotation along with a couple of others. For me, it’s very much of that moment. Béatrice Dalle exploring the thin line between creativity, madness and self-destruction. Which is a little bit what we all do for a job…
Artwork by Georja Romano
