As you may have deduced by now, we are very interested in pushing the conversation about the future of advertising. But not in the "join the conversation, engage your consumers" kind of talk. We're more interested in the "hey agencies, get your sh*t together" kind of talk.
You know, the real conversation people don't like to retweet.
In the past couple of months, we have found that there are other advertising and communications professionals who feel the same way. Tired of the fluff. Missing the conflict in discussion that has helped our industry get to where it is today.
As everyone has said, the advertising landscape is changing, and quickly. In order to keep up with technology and the evolving behavioral traits of the consumer, we must engage our colleagues in serious conversation. Below is an interesting video that hints at the "business as usual" atmosphere that we tend to think bigger agencies cultivate. Who really wants to be the "last advertising agency in the world?"
At least it is a video that gets you thinking, and with it being created and produced by Saatchi & Saatchi Canada, it is interesting how they portrayed the "goings on" in the industry. Not all of us are hardcore partiers stuck on timesheets and protractors. But some are.
Also, the conference that this video is promoting still needs help. It was called "Emerging Technology and Advertising" and had talks about social media, creative looting (which is a whole different subject), and the integration of it all, but there seemed to be nothing on consumer intelligence or consumer behavior. Baby steps, we guess.
This video frames the conversation in a more dire sense than how we've heard it before. In a serious sense, not the "marketing is dead," silly sense. Hopefully with segments of AdLand mobilizing to do something, we can avoid the ultimate calamity, leaving offices abandoned, creative unapproved, and scheduled tweets unpublished.
Dwayne W. Waite Jr. is partner and principal at JDW: The Charlotte Agency, a marketing and advertising shop in Charlotte, NC. He enjoys consumer behavior, economics, and football.
As you may have deduced by now, we are very interested in pushing the conversation about the future of advertising. But not in the "join the conversation, engage your consumers" kind of talk. We're more interested in the "hey agencies, get your sh*t together" kind of talk.
