Paper Moose and Innocean have released the findings of their Drop The Shade industry survey, accompanied by the introduction of the “Love Our Work Industry Charter.” The initiative, aimed at establishing industry best practices and resources, focuses on promoting positive creative feedback within the creative sector.
Innocean, known for F*ck the Cupcakes, and Paper Moose, a purpose-led agency certified as a B Corp, collaborated to explore the industry’s dynamics concerning interaction with others’ work and its implications.
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Launched in September 2023, the Drop the Shade survey targeted the creative industry to identify and understand issues related to giving and receiving feedback. Additionally, it sought to reveal the effects of negative, unsolicited, and anonymous feedback on individuals and the creative community at large.
The initial findings indicate a prevalent sentiment among respondents: a desire to improve the industry discourse rather than bring it to an end. A significant majority, more than three-quarters of participants, expressed concerns about negative feedback negatively affecting talent retention and deterring new talent. Encouragingly, 77% of respondents advocated for the elimination of anonymous commentary from industry publications.
The full report will soon be available at loveour.work, along with the first draft of the “Love Our Work Industry Charter,” a voluntary initiative for the industry. Jeremy Willmott, creative director at Paper Moose, emphasised the necessity for change, stating, “It’s time we stop tearing each other down and start loving our work a bit more.”
“Love Our Work’s mission,” according to Willmott, “is to elevate the standards of the advertising industry by holding ourselves accountable to the way we give creative feedback. Our aim is to rid ourselves of the toxicity we see and hear in our workplaces and on our professional forums.”
Jeremy Willmott, creative director, Paper Moose
Jasmin Bedir, CEO of Innocean, highlighted the survey’s results as indicative of the industry’s collective desire for change in discourse about marketing and advertising. The “Love Our Work Charter”, Bedir explained, “is an attempt to bring us together as an industry and lift each other up.”
Jasmin Bedir, CEO, Innocean
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