3/4/2010 11:55:47 AM
Posted by Erik Lohmeier, CEO
For years, our industry has been faced with change. Customers have become more self reliant and more skeptical of commercial messages. They have become accustomed to choice: choice among brands, choice relating to what they watch and choice relating to how they interact with the world around them. As a result, marketers are challenged by the fact that their customers and the competitive landscape are constantly changing. They are searching for answers more than ever before, and yet they are more risk adverse than ever before.
The current economic climate has only exacerbated this challenge with agencies and clients feeling more adrift than ever.
It’s times like these where a bit of perspective can perhaps help us all refocus. While much has changed in our industry, I believe that the core of what we do has not. We are still in the business of connecting ideas to people. The tactics and media choices have changed, but the reasons why marketers advertise have not.
Traditional advertising still plays a valuable role in a brand’s overall communication strategy, but it can no longer be the sole effort. To...
3/4/2010 11:54:57 AM
Posted by Jeff Kowal, VP/Creative Director
It's kind of ironic that as someone who works in advertising, I don't watch a lot of television. I know, I know, I should be taken into the street and beaten. But one side effect of not being plugged in all the time is that when I do sit in front of the TV, I get a fresh perspective on how marketers are talking to us consumers. My current conclusion is that, globally speaking, we have a severe case of the dumb going on.
Let me explain.
Last week, I was at a Super Bowl party with other members of the local advertising community. The hostess had a chart on her wall where we could vote for our favorite Super Bowl spots. As the night went on, the general tone of commercials ranged from the mind-numbing and useless, to low brow humor, all the way up to :30 second fits of insanity that left everyone staring at the screen with the BAD kind of "O" face. By the end of the night, the chart painted a pretty dismal picture. A few smattering of "pretty good" in a four-hour sea of "meh." On the way home, I listened to my girlfriend (who, by the way, is not in the business) rant about the general lameness of this year's commercia...