A hard act to follow

David Droga. You know his name and what he's done. He talks to Marketing's Marcus Chhan after taking the stage, following minister mentor Lee Kuan Yew's talk, at the inaugural World Effie Festival.

He's the single most awarded creative at the Cannes International Advertising Festival with 48 Cannes Lions and three Grand Prixs. What advice does he have for Singapore marketers?

"Bold and brave are words thrown around usually but really what does it mean? I don't think it's as simple as ‘have courage!'. The most important thing is it doesn't cost any more and in fact sometimes it costs less to do stuff that just has a little bit more cut through and more of an edge and is compelling and emotional. Our industry and categories are very formulaic, and people like to operate within their comfort zone which for me is the biggest risk you can take," Droga said.

A self confessed believer in the emotions of advertising, Droga reckons there are two worlds of advertising out there - one which adheres to an advertising formula, and one which is about doing stuff people want to see again and again and that makes them smile and think.

"This isn't just a Singaporean thing, this happened when I was in Australia, in London, I never understood why people have different mindsets. When they are in a boardroom they think consumers are more or are as interested in their brands as they are," he said.

Having moved to Singapore in 1996 to become ECD of Saatchi & Saatchi Singapore and regional CD for Saatchis Asia, Droga has his own opinions about the nation's most famous brand - Singapore Airlines.

"I can give you a cynical response or I can give you an optimistic one. Singapore Airlines is an amazing brand, I am very loyal to it. They've built this fantastic brand and the Singapore girl has played a part in that. It's a little bit old school now though but I guess it depends on who's perspective you're looking at it from - consumers in the US might say the Singapore Girl is sexist and I'd like to think the brand would have more to hang its hat on than just the Singapore Girl," he said.

However, Droga said for him give an opinionated comment on whether to drop the Singapore Girl would be "ignorant" because he doesn't know enough about the situation.

"They've created something iconic which people remember so that's a plus and I don't think it's as simple as they should just dump it but they should dump it if they have something better. Any good marketer is always looking for something better," he said.

On the topic of greatness, Droga agreed that although Singapore does have "world class creatives", they belong mainly in the areas of tradional media such as print where the work "absolutely punches above its weight". As for what Asia's creative community has to offer to the rest of the world, he said the future global brands will come out of this region.

The man's affection for Asia is plain to see and he even admitted to being "obessesed with Chinese contemporary art", a habit picked up from time spent in Singapore. Droga's real addiction remains in producing effective creative work and he views the rapid emergence of social media as "just another option, not a solution".

"It's just a 3D canvas which I love, and I look at from a selfish creative person point of view. It just gives me a bigger canvas and allows me to have deeper, broader and longer conversations and be much more creative," he said.

Creativity isn't everything, however, and in the past two years Droga has had to acknowledge the business side of building a business after the opening of his own agency, Droga5. Having to take a step out of the "creative bubble" and start thinking about employee pensions and salary, he said, was a very "bizzare" experience. His advice to any creative person trying to master the art of running a business?

"Hire a good CFO," he said.

Always eager to chat to the press, Droga says he's a "rambler" and has no secrets to hide regarding success, just don't ask him how he comes up with his ideas.

"The question I can never answer is how do you come up with your ideas? I am like, how does anybody? I don't know. As I always say, I am just a squirrel trying to get a nut," he said.