Presenting, who should do it?

The question is presenting, who should present creative work?

There are plenty of mixed views about this scamp believes that no creative should present. Where as Yutaro (DYR) and Ivy (Dentsu) both believe that creatives should present the work.

Here's argument for presenting to the client. As a creative you are pretty much resigned to the fact the client always has to add his 2 pence worth to your creative no matter how solid you may feel it is. Presenting to the client is my way to get first hand what the client wants.

I think the reason creatives aren't allowed to present is the fear that account handlers have of us questioning or trying to get reasons for amends from the client. Perhaps it's more of a trust thing (I suppose acting like creative never wins you any points on the mature meter), but regardless of this the questions that need to be asked are still valid as it may effect the integrity of the overall creative.

There is also the arguement a client will find it hard to feed back on creative he/she doesn't like as the creative is the one presenting it. In my opinion that's bollocks, this is a business; if your client doesn't have the balls to communicate feedback properly then it would be a surprise you could get anywork done on time with all the work that get un-signed.

The polar opposite of this is that worry that the creative will not take rejection very well. This could be true in the case of juniors or graduates but lets be honest people that have been in the game for 5+ years would've been shot down by account guys, creative directers etc. If you're a sensitive creative then I would simply tell you to grow some balls and deal with it.

Simply for me I prefer to present my own work, it's more of a trust issue for me. I don't trust account handlers to present my work as they may not understand the thinking behind it, I also don't belive they will answer the correct questions to get the feedback I require.

This is not true of all account handlers but we can't all work in a business where you have a team that is 100% top grade account men in the agency (or can we?).

The final thing I would say on this matter is also 'confidence' , if you're not confident at presenting then don't, you'll only make it worse for yourself and the agency.

The client wants it red