Beware of the Spruitjes

The spruitje represents: ‘be normal, that’s crazy enough’. The spruitje considers ideas being ‘good enough’ as long as they are being laughed about, that is, if it’s just as funny as the spruitje from the competitor. The spruitje won’t easily say: let’s make something that people from all over the world will talk about. The spruitje isn’t occupied with the rest of the planet and the work that’s being produced outside the borders of his country. The spruitje just wants to be gezellig (gezellig: untranslatable and another threat to excellence).

So, don’t let your inner-spruitje be in your way because The Netherlands has a culture in which creativity can flourish enormously.

We have a smaller market, so let’s use it as a testing ground for new ideas and fresh approaches. By that I don’t mean Carte Blanche for the most naïve plans, but the Dutch market lends itself beautifully for startling ideas that afterwards can be applied to bigger markets and put Dutch marketers and creatives on the map. We, with our open and tolerant culture (I keep persisting that it’s still there), can open ourselves up to the new visions of young creatives from in - or outside the advertising realm.

Where the spruitje would say: ‘we have been doing the same for years, is there anything wrong with that?’, we have to respond by staying curious and asking questions.

Where the spruitje would say: “why are all those crazy new steps needed?” we have to respond by keeping the faith in top-creativity, free spirit and ambition by believing in people who want to conquer the world with their ideas, simply for the fun of it. Sometimes the only advice or answers you need to proceed is: Screw it, let’s do it.

Besides being the home of the spruitje, it isn’t without reason that The Netherlands is also the home of international creativity. It’s no coincidence that a lot of international advertising agencies are based in Amsterdam. The spruitje perhaps assumed that it’s due to tax reasons, but the he didn’t bother to ask those foreign creatives.

I myself have to watch out for the spruitje, for I almost wrote this piece in Dutch. While the Dutch creative community is so much richer.

The 2nd of November, all the members of ADCN will come together in De Kring, as well as the creatives of Tribal, 180, W&K, Taxi and Perfect Fools, to begin building this common creative community. Let’s make it a fun night where it won’t be the spruitjes against the rest of the world.

Just because spruitjes are very delicious with draadjesvlees, dutch potatoes and home-made appel-sauce. For top-creativity that isn’t always enough.