Calculating risk.

We all have our comfort zones – what’s easy, what we’re good at, what we hope to gain. Risk is relative, defined by our perspective. Anything beyond what we know feels, well, risky. But as obvious as it seems, it helps to be reminded: creating good advertising isn’t about us. It’s about resonating with our target audience, and that target may come from a different point of view than we do.

If we work hard to understand a given audience, and put ourselves in their shoes, what we initially define as risk will often turn to “no-brainer” when we take the viewpoint of our target. The hard part, of course, is setting aside our own perspective – which involves risk of the more personal kind.

The ideal place for risk to live is just outside our own comfort zone – where the personal risk is mostly offset by the rewards of sound strategy.

Of course, it never hurts to keep the Tums on hand and chew with gusto.