Most Creative Marketers: Simon Gunning

“Do something borderline illegal and win yourself a Lion.” This was Simon Gunning’s opening gambit to Adam & Eve/DDB’s Ant Nelson and Mike Sutherland, his creative collaborators in 'Project 84'. It was a brave installation for the male-suicide prevention charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), which, in partnership with ITV and male grooming brand Harry’s, installed hooded sculptures at the top of the broadcaster’s building to signal the number of men who end their lives every week.

Internationally renowned artist, Mark Jenkins, was commissioned to create the sculptures, with help from friends and family members of the deceased in the creation process.

“The statues had to be made by bereaved families. They had to be totemic, and they had to be a lesson. They were produced by people who had been there and didn't want anyone else to; otherwise we were at risk of sensationalising other people's misery. But the human spirit of those affected by tragedy can be an incredible power for change,” Gunning says. “I walked into the art studio expecting something really quite difficult, but there was loads of laughter. It was a positive thing. I learnt that great people fiercely want to do great things. And another lesson I learnt is that Adam & Eve/DDB are really, really good.”

“Scariest week of my life”

The 2018 work was thrust into the cultural conversation via three days of live daytime TV coverage on This Morning, and gave newsrooms around the world stories watched by 130 million TV viewers. It generated 2.3 billion pieces of social media in a week and resulted in the first Minister for Suicide Prevention, for which CALM wrote the job description.

“Unquestionably, lives were saved. I can't prove it, but I can point to the fact that use of our helpline maintains a 110% increase in lives saved and calls year-on-year,” Gunning says.

And the awards tally to date? Eight Lions, seven Clios, a MediaWeek Grand Prix, eight Campaign awards and eight Gold One Shows.

“It was the scariest week of my life,” Gunning says, but the thing about creative marketing, he explains, is that it’s a “high-wire act which is only exciting if you really trust the person in charge of the safety net”. Without the knowledge or the categorical advice that they were doing the right thing, Gunning doubts he would have experienced the thrill of the creative output in the same way.

Having previously graced the corridors of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, Bacardi and the BBC, Gunning is a fan of sparky exciting people and seeing ideas get refined until they’re “scalpel sharp”. Currently designing his garden room, or ‘shoffice’, Gunning is refining his own ideas and has already spent a day and a half on the beer fridge. “I'm spec-ing it up like Elon Musk, then taking everything out again,” he says. Just don’t ask him how much it’s costing because he’s frightened of spreadsheets, having been subjected to far too many in the past, and would rather pretend they don't exist. Instead, he likes being around people who enjoy “jumping about with pens in front of whiteboards”.

A child’s-eye view

“Gut has to play a huge role in the creation of ideas, while science needs to be applied to ensure those ideas result in the actions intended. Clever tricks aren't always the right way to achieve goals, and great marketers never stop thinking about how their audience will respond to their ideas,” Gunning says. For him, creativity is about hooking humans with something fascinating, and producing the killer pass that achieves the objective. “That sense of wonder you get from activating bits of the brain that make you react like a child seeing something for the first time. Or a dog on a trampoline.”

Agencies, he says, need to have a deep understanding of the business objective, and generosity with the development of their ideas, plus likeability. “You've got to get on, or it's never going to be brilliant. At least, that’s my experience,” he says. “There needs to be a mutually creative expectation of excellence, coupled with the freedom to disagree on both sides, as long as it leads to better outcomes, is brilliant. And a credit card behind the bar doesn’t hurt.”

As to the future, the possibility of building back better excites Gunning. However, he believes we’re on a precipice – without a safety net.