The Art of Building Good Relationships

Are people at Dentsu Inc. just masochistic? For instance, they absolutely love "super spicy" food. Within the company, Shion's Nasu Curry became legendary. Back when I joined, before the headquarters moved from Tsukiji, it was a lunch menu item at a cafe behind the Kabukiza theater. Especially during the hot seasons, the line was endless. We'd sweat buckets while shoveling down eggplant smothered in chili peppers.

Then, about 20 years ago, it suddenly closed. Just as the memory of that addictive flavor was fading, Owa-kun—who runs two shops, Seimitei and Kaomitei, near Shimbashi SL Square—obtained the legendary recipe directly from the original owner and brought it back to life. (He and I joined Dentsu Inc. the same year. He left the company a few years ago and is now a proper izakaya owner). Seeking that nostalgic taste, lunchtime has turned into something like a company cafeteria. Dentsu Inc. employees really do love this kind of kick, it seems.

Now, last time I wrote something like "There's no marketing in advertising agencies." So, setting aside the "masochistic tendencies," do they have any unique skills? Reading 'The Art of Words ' (Asahi Shimbun Publications) by copywriter Takuya Isoshima gave me a hint.

As the book's blurb states, "This is the training you'd first receive if assigned to creative at Dentsu Inc.," its theme is fundamental creative thinking. It introduces copywriting examples about "radio" used in actual training sessions.

　　People speak their true feelings on the radio.

　　Everyone lets their guard down, so their true feelings come out. Radio

Which better captures radio's appeal? Which makes you want to listen more? To move people, merely stating features accurately isn't enough; you must thoroughly consider words that truly "connect" with your audience.

To deepen this thinking, four perspectives are introduced: ① Product/Company, ② Target Audience, ③ Competitors, and ④ Era/Society. While sometimes mistaken as an introductory copywriting guide for copywriters, it actually shows how any businessperson can acquire creativity. It's a must-read not only for students but especially for business professionals active in other industries.

What struck me most in this book is Mr. Isoshima's identification of the ultimate goal of copywriting: "to foster positive relationships between people through words." He attempts to redefine the products and companies he handles "not to persuade, not to command, not to out-argue, but fundamentally to build good relationships."

Here lies the essence of creativity. The "good relationship" Mr. Isoshima writes about is what this series refers to as discovering a "new searchlight (concept)." The job of a copywriter is not to craft cool, flowery phrases or pleasant-sounding poetry, but to relentlessly think through a "new perspective" that makes you want to reach out.

And this "technique for building good relationships" is precisely the unique approach of advertising agencies. Ordinary companies rarely engage in training that encourages competing to come up with such "I never thought of that!" ideas.

As an aside, Mr. Isoshima was a senior in my university tennis club, "Stardust." He was a fourth-year when I was a freshman. After joining Dentsu Inc., he quickly won an advertising award hosted by a newspaper company. As a student, my honest reaction upon seeing his work was, "Huh? Is coming up with ideas like this rakugo storyteller stuff really the job?"

It took me over a decade to realize that kind of flexible thinking is actually an advertising agency's greatest strength, but that's a story for another time.

Please, help yourself!