I had a humbling experience last week.
I was at my daughter’s school for her ‘learning journey’ - this is where students showcase their learnings from the term in the form of performances, exhibits, games etc. To my surprise, there was an event where parents were to perform and kids were to evaluate them.
Filled with a mix of nervousness, excitement and a tad bit pressure (kids can be brutal in their feedback), I read through the script. As I finished, I braced myself for a chaotic mix of “Yays” and “Nays.”
But that’s not what happened. Instead, the teacher handed out little checklists. The kids actually had to rate the performance on specific elements - clarity of voice, voice modulation, making eye contact with the audience etc.
Feedback Checlist from my daughter’s primary school
I watched a first-grader raise her hand and say: “I liked the expressions, but I couldn’t hear the middle part because they turned their back to us.”
I was floored. This 6-year old wasn’t giving an opinion. She was giving a diagnosis!
Then, the memory hit me.
I flashed back to a creative presentation I sat in years ago. The agency presented their “Big Idea”. The room went silent.
Then, the “Pile on” began.
The Brand Manager said: “I don't know. It feels a bit slow.” This was followed by rapid-fire comments on how the logo needs to be bigger, the tone tighter, the colors brighter.
The Marketing Manager leaned back and added: “I am not sure. I don’t feel the vibe is right.”
The poor Client Servicing Manager from the agency side looked defeated. She was frantically taking notes, trying to figure out how to make the idea vibe by making it faster, tighter and brighter.
The Uncomfortable Truth: The contrast is embarrassing. The first graders had a system. Us executives just had vibes.
The 5 Reasons Why Feedback Fails
Very often we find ourselves in frustrating situations where it takes multiple rounds of feedback before the agency, a co-worker, or a reportee to deliver what we believe should have been a very simple fix. Why does this happen? It’s not because we are bad marketers, or they are a bad agency. In a large majority of cases, it’s because of how we brief them and giving feedback when they share output with us.
(Note: on fixing the briefs, refer to the last week’s post here → https://themarketingsystem.beehiiv.com/p/5-stop-blaming-the-agency)
In my experience, feedback usually breaks for one of these reasons:
The “Vibe” Check: We give subjective opinions (“I don’t like the tone”) rather than objective feedback (“The tone isn’t in line with our brand personality guidelines”).
The Wrong Altitude: We obsess over execution (fonts / colors) while ignoring that the core strategy is off, and the plan is not in sync with the brief.
The ‘Frankenstein’ Effect: Three stakeholders give three conflicting directions. The agency tries to please everyone and builds a monster.
The Solution Trap: We try to fix the work ourselves (“Make the logo bigger”) instead of defining the problem (“We are failing on brand attribution”).
The Authority Silencer: We give feedback from a ‘High Tower’. We use authority and jargon. The agency team is too scared to push back or ask questions (even if the junior account executive on the agency team did not understand what you meant when you used a five charactered abbreviation to describe your product’s advantage)
To fix this, like the first-graders, we need a system that allows for organic discussion but prevents chaos. I use a two-part mental framework: The 3 Gates (to structure the diagnosis) and The 3 Rules (to guide the conversation).
Part 1: The 3 Gates (The Diagnosis)
Most meetings spiral because we discuss everything at once. To address this, force the discussion to pass through three layers in specific order.
Gate 1: The Logic (Strategy):
The Question: Does this deliver the SIngle Minded Proposition from the brief?
The Hard Truth: If the strategy is Red, STOP. Do not talk about the colours. Do not talk about the casting. You cannot polish a strategic failure.
Gate 2: The Magic (Attention)
The Question: If I scrolled past this at 100kmph (or mph), would I stop? Is it distinctive?
The Hard Truth: In the boardroom, everything looks interesting. In the real world, most advertising / branded communication is boring. If it’s boring, the strategy doesn’t matter.
Gate 3: The Craft (Execution)
The Question: Are the brand codes right? Is the tone correct?
The Hard Truth: This is the only place where specific executional feedback is allowed.
Part 2: The 3 Rules (The Behavior)
While discussing the Gates, the way you speak determines the outcome. These rules run in the background of the entire conversation.
Rule 1: Describe the Symptoms, Don’t Prescribe the Cure
When we see something wrong, our instinct is to fix it. We say “Make the background blue.” But you might be prescribing the wrong pill for the illness. When you describe the symptom, you empower the agency to solve it. When you prescribe the cure, you turn them into computer operators.
The Behavior: Your job is to articulate the pain point. Their job is to find the remedy.
Instead of ‘make the logo bigger’ (Prescription), say ‘we are failing on brand attribution.” (Synptom)’
Rule 2: The “One Voice” mandate
Agencies cannot serve two masters. Give them one consolidated feedback.
The Behavior: Debate only during the meeting, but consolidate before the end. The Marketing Lead must deliver one single verdict. If it’s not in the summary notes at the end of the meeting, it doesn’t exist.
Rule 3: The “Safe Room” protocol
When a client speaks, the agency often hears a command, even if it was just a suggestion. Fear kills clarity. And so does complicated terminology.
The Behavior: You must manually disable your authority to invite pushback.
The Script: Always follow feedback with “That is my reaction. But you guys live in this every day - tell me why I am wrong. What’s the risk if we make this change?”
🧩 What you can do this week:
While I have shared this feedback framework in the context of creative evaluation, the process is versatile and works in a wide range of situations including feedback to your team on that presentation you briefed them on, to the project manager who is presenting this first draft of a product launch plan etc.
Next time you are in a review, catch yourself before you say “I don’t like…”. Take a pause and structure your thoughts.
I have created a Creative R.A.G Scorecard (Red-Amber-Green). It’s a ‘pre-flight checklist’ that forces you to grade the work on the 3 Gates and follow the 3 Rules.
Print it out for your next meeting. It turns the “Pile on” into a structured review.
[ Click here to make a copy → https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DGAtNE59h5kTcpvj4o7GpcHOCgIMgbMAKVEwEnO4Ibg/edit?usp=sharing ]
Stop judging vibes. Start diagnosing systems.
🔜 Next Week: We move from creative to commercial. We are going to tackle The Media Architenture: How to stop buying “Channels” (TikTOk vs. TV) and start buying “impact” by using audience signals.
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