Mark Black I’m a Freelance Creative Director / ECD / Creative based in London. With a career that has allowed me to work across many areas. From what would be classed as the more ‘traditional’ agencies to both digital and creative technology shops as well as a stint 'client side' as Global CD at DiDi.My formative years found me in agencies that asked me to look for ways to help brands connect with consumers. TBWA for example had ‘Disruption’ which was massively liberating from a creative point of view. It allowed me to use different media, different technologies, different ways of thinking. From changing the uniforms in every McDonald’s in Ireland, turning beer mats into pub games for PaddyPower or creating online games to help school children see the benefit of eating more fish for Bord Bia. There was no wrong answer in helping a brand tell its story.The same applied when I worked in the likes of Dare or +rehabstudio - I brought the things I’d learned about how consumers and brands connect and applied that to how they interact with technology and digital platforms. I never saw “digital” as a lesser medium, I saw it as a massive opportunity to try new things, build things, make things, push things. From making chatbots to letting kids talk to a T-Rex (National Geographic), to using 360 video to get fans closer to F1 (YouTube). These projects reinforced my belief we’ve just scratched the surface of how brands can connect with people.I’ve also been lucky enough to work for people who always reminded me to not just be a creative. Be strategic. Be business minded. Don’t be afraid to look past the client brief and to try to find what their real problem is, if you can find an answer to that you can make work that’s more interesting and that makes an impact on a clients business. Which after all is why we do what we do.These experiences have allowed me to become what I feel a creative needs to be today to answer the needs of clients and brands in what feels like challenging times to reach consumers.All that said I like to think my work gives an example of how I think, some of it is live work, some of it thinking, but all geared towards solving a clients business problem.I’m always interested in opportunities to do more of the above if you think I can help then please say hello.I hope my work gives an example of how I think - markblack.co.uk