'If You Don't Design Culture, It Will Design Itself'
Q] Congratulations on GUT’s historic wins at Cannes Lions, securing Independent Network of the Year, Independent Agency of the Year, and the Agency of the Year awards. What do these accolades mean for you and the agency, and how do you envision building on this success in the coming years? Q] Please share your journey from being a copywriter to co-founding two globally acclaimed advertising agencies, DAVID and GUT. How did these experiences shape your approach to creativity and brand building? Q] GUT’s decision to sell a majority stake to Globant is noteworthy. What was the strategic thinking behind this move and why did you decide to sell it after getting the biggest honour an independent agency could have received at Cannes Lions? Q] The trend of independent agencies being acquired by digital/tech behemoths is gaining momentum. What unique opportunities or challenges do you believe arise from this shift in the industry, and how does GUT’s partnership with Globant position the agency in this evolving landscape? Q] What are your thoughts on the Indian advertising industry and the overall Indian market? Do you have any plans for expansion in Mumbai or India? Q] Tell us a bit about Dove Sketches. What was the creative process behind it? Q] The concept of ‘brave work’ is central to your philosophy. What do you consider to be a ‘brave ad,’ and how do you encourage clients to embrace unconventional approaches in their campaigns? ‘THE KEY IS TO HAVE GENUINE LOVE FOR THE BUSINESS’ In honour of the distinguished global advertising maestro, Anselmo Ramos, the Co-founder and Creative Chairman of GUT, Famous Innovations hosted an industry gathering and an exciting panel discussion. On the panel were Raj Kamble, Founder & CCO, Famous Innovations; Kainaz Karmakar, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy India; and Ashish Khazanchi, Managing Partner, Enormous. The session explored the journey of Ramos, a copywriter from Brazil who went on to create the most awarded advertising agency in the world – Gut, which was judged the Cannes Lions Agency of the Year 2023. “Yes, it’s tough. It’s a couple of things – you need a support system, and my family plays a crucial role. You need great people because I can’t oversee everything. We have 18 partners at Gut, and they have a profit share, so they’re invested. You have to delegate and find talented people, it’s all about people. They’re amazing and very talented, so you trust them and delegate. When I travel to different Gut offices (now seven), I listen to their problems, questions, and concerns, aiming to inspire and provoke simultaneously. It’s a delicate balance,” Ramos shared.
Winning the Independent Agency of the Year in Cannes means a lot to us—a dream realised. Holding the trophy brought overwhelming emotions, and marked the culmination of 30 years of continuous work in the industry. Achieving this goal in just five years since starting GUT is remarkable. In January 2020, I publicly tweeted our goal of becoming the Agency of the Year in Cannes by 2023, and it became a reality. The victory boosts our agency in talent retention, attraction, and new business opportunities. It also validates the belief of our dedicated talent and brave clients who supported winning ideas. Ranking 8th globally in the Cannes report, regardless of independence, motivates us to aim for a top-three network position. While we currently have seven offices, this historic win drives us to expand and strive for greater achievements.
In my journey, I gradually moved up the ranks, evolving from a writer to a Chief Creative Officer at Ogilvy. We initiated David as a founder-partner within Ogilvy and WPP, streamlining the startup process with their support. Learning the ropes, we focused on relationships, client acquisition, and quality work, aided by their investment and back-office services.
After five years, Gaston Bigio and I, having gained experience, ventured into a 100% independent GUT. People often ask how to start an agency, and my answer is that you need to accumulate 30 years of continuous work in the industry. GUT’s rapid growth in five years is a culmination of decades spent building our reputation and relationships, emphasizing that reputation and relationships are the essential elements for launching and flourishing in the agency landscape.
We’re thrilled about our partnership with Globant, even though it happened sooner than expected, just five years into GUT. Post-Cannes, Gaston and I pondered what’s next, given the monumental impact of our Cannes achievement. This strategic and complementary tech collaboration is our answer. Globant, one of the world’s fastest-growing tech companies, has been our client for over three years, making this partnership unique. Originating from Latin America, we share values and goals, and the client acquiring its agency is an exciting rarity.
This partnership, we believe, is vital for the next five years of GUT, complementing our initial years of full independence. Currently exploring each other’s capabilities, we see the power of creativity and technology working together. Now, with Globant, creatives and engineers collaborate from the start, enabling us to bring ideas to life more seamlessly. Though the speed at which this happened surprised us, we thrive on reinvention. After the Independent Network of the Year award at Cannes in just five years, we closed that chapter, seeking new horizons.
We’re witnessing the significant impact of technology, especially AI, on our lives. In the creative process, top creators at the agency see AI as a valuable external collaborator, an extra chair at the brainstorming session. This collaborative dynamic, akin to having writers, poets, filmmakers, and more in the mix, benefits creative development.
The best creatives embrace AI without fear, recognising its role as a complement rather than a replacement—unless one’s skills are subpar. AI’s collaborative nature provides a team dynamic, enhancing the creative process. I believe AI will enhance our humanity, making the human touch even more valuable. Skilled individuals can charge more for their unique contributions, making this a positive shift. Our partnership with Globant, a major AI player, excites us as we fully embrace the collaboration of creative tech. It’s not a choice between tech or creativity, it’s both together, and we’re eager to learn and experiment.
Yes, maybe. We do want to keep expanding the GUT brand in terms of capabilities, including media, design, and PR, to offer a broader range of services for our clients. Additionally, we aim to expand into more countries and establish offices in strategic markets. Six months ago, we opened our first office in Europe. Now we’re moving towards the east—Europe, Asia, and Africa. I already have a social media handle for Mumbai. I reserved various social media handles for different cities. The night Gaston and I decided to open GUT in Cannes, I spent the entire night reserving handles on social media. The Indian market is very creative, and you can even do local campaigns as there are so many languages, you have so many Indias inside India.
The idea aimed to address the alarming fact that only 4 percent of women considered themselves beautiful. The campaign sought to convince the remaining 96 percent of their beauty, encapsulated in the line, ‘You are more beautiful than you think.’ The ambition for greatness was evident from the start, with the client expressing a desire for a Grand Prix, a challenge we embraced and conquered. The simple one-line brief, ‘Let’s make women feel more beautiful than they think,’ guided our creative process. A key lesson learned was the power of embracing uncertainty, pushing us to try things that might not work, and fostering innovation and freshness in our approach.
Bravery is our core value at GUT, as we aim to be a brave agency for brave clients. However, bravery varies for each brand, depending on context and factors like audience and market. To address the assumption that bravery is binary, we introduced the bravery scale ranging from 0 to 10, emphasizing that bravery is a spectrum.
We engage clients in honest conversations to assess their position on the bravery scale. Understanding that individuals often rate themselves higher than their organizations, we work to bridge the ‘bravery gap.’ Our goal is to move clients along the scale, acknowledging that progress takes time—typically a year to advance one stage. This approach fosters a collaborative journey towards increased bravery, ensuring alignment between clients and our agency.
Anselmo Ramos spoke about his journey in the advertising industry in a fun-filled chat with Raj Kamble, Kainaz Karmakar, and Ashish Khazanchi
Kamble shared an interesting anecdote about passion and drive, revealing that one of Ramos’ team members wears t-shirts printed ‘I want to win a Grand Prix’ written in reverse. So, the first thing he sees in the morning in the mirror is ‘I want to win a Grand Prix.’
“Yes, it’s true. It’s all about the drive, you have to want it badly. Everything revolves around the drive. When I met this guy, I could see the spark in his eyes. In life, setting a goal and working relentlessly towards it is crucial. Oprah Winfrey mentioned that most people don’t get what they want because they lack direction. Having a clear goal enables you to reach it eventually. The drive is essential in this challenging business of selling ideas to clients. You must love it; otherwise, it becomes exceedingly difficult,” Ramos affirmed.
He further shared that it’s not only about having the drive but also about ambition and belief. “I often talk about ‘The Secret,’ a somewhat cheesy book with an amazing message—the law of attraction. Whatever is in your life right now is 100 percent your responsibility because you attract what you think about. It involves setting up your vision, believing that it’s possible, working hard, and loving the business. In our cynical advertising industry, where many view it just as a job, the key is to have a genuine love for the business. For us, love is our engine—it’s about loving the industry, ideas, brands, and each other.”
Karmakar noted a distinctive feature of Ramos’social media, stating, “Anselmo stands out by sharing future achievements rather than sharing about past like most people do. For instance, he predicted that in 2023, GUT would be the Agency of the Year at Cannes, and it happened. What’s the process behind this manifestation? How do you ensure achieving your goals? Are targets assigned, or do you use an Excel sheet?”
“So, yes, I have some Excel. But in January 2020, I tweeted, ‘Here’s my plan for the next 10 years. And there I said that by 2023, we are going to be the Agency of the Year at Cannes.’ Despite getting a lot of pushbacks from my people at Gut, I do it. It’s a weird technique that I have. When I put it out there, then I need to deliver it. Otherwise, I’m going to look stupid. So, it’s about accountability. For me, it works. I don’t think it’s for everyone. But yes, people don’t want that.”
Khazanchi asked, “As an agency founder dealing with numerous business aspects, how do you maintain the energy and drive for exceptional work? Especially considering the impressive work seen at Cannes this year, how do you sustain this?”
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