Creative partnership: A quieter way to be heard

We've all been somewhere where the noise is just a little too loud. 

Maybe it's a café where you can barely hear the person across from you. A club your friend dragged you to. Or even your local grocery store, where someone seems to have decided that shopping requires a soundtrack at full volume. 

It's distracting. Overwhelming. And it makes having a decent conversation surprisingly difficult. 

Now think about the digital spaces we spend so much of our time in. 

Every day, we're surrounded by messages, opinions, images, videos and content competing for our attention. And with new technology making it easier than ever to create and publish, there's certainly no shortage of things to look at. 

According to the Reuters Institute's 2026 Digital News Report, people spend approximately four to five hours a day on their smartphones. For some of us, probably a little longer, depending on our tendency to scroll before bed. 

That's a lot of information to take in. 

And for brands and communication teams, it creates an interesting challenge. 

How do you create something people actually want to pay attention to? 

Two qualities that need each other 
For me, the answer lies in creative partnership. Throughout my life I have been able to be on both sides of that partnership. Sometimes as strategist needing a creative executor and at other times being the creative executing on strategy. Having experienced both sides of this coin I have come to realise that working with an experienced creative brings more to a project than the ability to make something look good. It brings an understanding of brands, communication, design and, perhaps most importantly, people. 

I have also realised along the way that good creative work needs to be both genuine and interesting. These are some of my favourite anchor words when looking at communication work. Interesting without genuine can quickly feel like a gimmick. Genuine without interesting can struggle to get noticed. You need the right balance.  

Finding that balance takes experience, curiosity and a willingness to challenge ideas along the way. 

And that's where partnership becomes so important. When creatives are involved in the thinking, rather than simply being handed a brief to execute, they can help shape the message itself. I know my creative work has certainly benefited because of this.  

What I love about creatives is we’re curious. We ask questions. We bring different perspectives. We challenge what might otherwise feel like the obvious solution. 

Sometimes the best creative contribution is a completely new idea. Other times, it's knowing what to take away. 

The goal is always to create something that feels right for the brand and makes a genuine connection with the people it's intended for. 

Where on-demand creative comes in 

This thinking is very much at the heart of Open > Studio which forms part of our bigger eco-system at Open and a service line I am excited to be leading.  

In essence, Open > Studio is our on-demand creative service, giving organisations access to experienced creative support when they need it. For me, there is nothing more frustrating than having to go through layers of people before finding the right creative that can execute on your vision. Having experienced this frustration in the past, I am excited that we get to offer a service that connects creative directly with client.  

Part of making this connection work is building a strong relationship. We want to understand the people we're working with, the challenges they're facing and what they're trying to communicate. 

That understanding gives us a much better starting point for the creative work. 

Over the years, the tools we use have changed enormously. Software has evolved, design trends have come and gone, and the possibilities for creating content continue to grow. I certainly don’t use the same tools I once used over a decade ago when designing and as creatives our toolkit has evolved overtime alongside technology. 

But the value of creative experience remains. Knowing when to push an idea further. When to simplify it. When something looks impressive but doesn't quite communicate what it needs to. 

These are the things that develop through years of working with different brands, teams and communication challenges. 

And they're the things we bring into every creative partnership. 

A quieter way to be heard 

With so much content competing for attention, it's tempting to think the answer is to create more. More posts, more visuals, more messages, more noise. 

But I think there's a better question to ask. 

Are we creating something worth paying attention to? 
For me, that's where good creative work starts. With people who understand the message, care about the details and are willing to work together to make something meaningful. Because sometimes the most effective way to stand out is to be a little more thoughtful about what you put into the world. And that's the kind of creative partnership we're building through Open > Studio. 

Let's have a coffee ☕ 

I'm Sergi, or Serg to most people, and I lead Open > Studio from our Cape Town office. 

If you're looking for creative support, have a project in mind or simply want to exchange ideas, I'd love to hear from you. Virtual coffees are always welcome. And if you're in Cape Town, even better. 

Get in touch at spa@weareopen.eu or explore Open > Studio. 

Source: Reuters Institute, Digital News Report 2026.