Los Angeles, February 15th, 2023

Born in London but now living in LA, Ben Kay is a freelance writer, creative designer and executive creative director. He first worked at AMV BBDO in London, then joined Media Arts Lab as the European ECD and finally moved to MAL’s LA office to be their Global GCD. He then started an ethical agency and is now a freelancer.

In an interview with TIA, Kay went through his career path so far and gave examples of recent projects he has been involved with. He explained how he decides what product features to prioritize in the creative process, detailed his routine when working in a new project and anticipated a growing momentum for AI in agencies.

To kick things off please can you describe to us where you are from and where do you live now?

I’m from London, but moved to LA in 2014. The one thing I’d recommend you do here is go to Jitlada for Thai food. It’s one of the best in the country, and offers silk worms on the menu.

For those who aren’t familiar with your career, can you provide an overview?

I worked at AMV BBDO in London for eight years, then started a second London BBDO agency called Lunar BBDO. Then I wrote and published my first novel, Instinct, and joined Media Arts Lab as the European ECD on Apple’s advertising. In 2014 I moved to MAL’s LA office to be their Global GCD. In 2017 I left and started an ethical advertising agency called Invincible Unicorn. I now freelance and consult for various companies around the world. I’m also the advertising columnist for Creative Review in the UK.

How has the Covid-19 pandemic affected the way you work?

Working from home has allowed me to manage my time better. I like to work in the evening, so it’s easier to do that, and to combine work with being a dad (which really means being an unpaid Uber driver for my kids).

Tell us about a recent project you’ve worked on that you’re proud of. What particularly brought out the best in you?

I ran a pitch for Jack in the Box (fast food restaurant). Sadly we lost, but less sadly the client preferred our creative work to that of the eventual winners. It was a huge job managing the work, working out the presentation and delivering that presentation, but also managing some of the tactical aspects of what to give the client at what point in the process. I think my experience helped me to make a big contribution.

In your opinion, what’s the most important factor that leads brands to create successful overseas experiences and to engage at a global scale?

I did exactly this in my six years working on Apple. I’d say attention to detail is important because one wrong move can make you appear in an unintended way to your new market. Second, be nimble, and be open to changing your perspective based on how culture shifts in each market.

Can you go into some more detail on the creative process for a brand. How do you prioritize which product features to keep or discard?

That usually happens before I get involved, but the creative process is the same: how can we communicate on behalf of this product or service in a way that makes the brand famous? Then there are a million answers depending on the brand and market.

Do you have a routine when you start working on a new piece?

I look in D&AD’s online archive, which is free and brilliant. It’s not so much for ideas, but for opening the mind to a huge range of topics, images and other creative pathways. You might start with a blank page and go Singapore, guitars, Herb Ritts, Americana, woodpeckers… All just by flicking through a few categories.

Can you discuss an effective way in which a creative team might approach the problem of secondary effects and unintended externalities that their work might create, as you outlined in your Website?

Sure. Think about yourself as a person talking to another person. If you were that person you would be unlikely to be lazily sexist or deliberately awful for the environment. Instead of hiding behind the questionable reputation of a corporation, resolve to change them for the better, even in a small way.

At Invincible Unicorn, you tackle the role of an ethical agency and how to be a B-Corp company, could you elaborate on these concepts here?

That’s a wider answer of the previous question: what if you only did things that were good and helpful for the world, on behalf of companies that are good and helpful for the world? If every decision you make is viewed through that framework, you start to become far more conscious of the effects of your actions, and all actions have consequences.

When looking at the technological landscape today, what makes you think “wow”?

The first time I used Chat GPT I thought “WOW’. It blew my mind, and what blows my mind further is the idea of how much better it could be and how that will change the world (for better or worse).

What trends do you foresee in the battleground to retain relevance for 2023?

AI will definitely be more and more a part of what we do. Agencies will have to offer it, and work out how to monetise it when everyone knows it’s free. We’ll be working out its limitations, then it’ll improve and we’ll need to reassess. Gonna be a bumpy ride.

What’s your most memorable experience from AMV BBDO?

My boss took me to the office of Richard Curtis, who organized Live 8. We sat down amongst maybe 15 people and Richard said, ‘Right, what’s going to be the last song sung at Live 8? It’s going to be Paul McCartney, George Michael, The Who etc.. What are they all going to sing together?’ The answer was Hey Jude. Everyone can go na na na na-na-na-na forever.

You are a big fan of David Abbott, aren’t you? If he joined you for dinner, what would you ask him?

Good question. Like me, he was a big movie fan. I’d ask him for his all-time faves and go from there.

Which unusual skill do you pride yourself in having?

I do a really good mediocre Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.

How do you explain what you do for a living to a child?

You know those things on TV between the programmes? I do that. Kind of.

Anything else you’d like to add?

I am delighted at what Arsenal are doing this season.

Thanks Ben!

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