Filed under: Comment
I should of written this sooner, but I want to say thank you to everyone who either wrote on my blog or sent me email/SMS regarding the post about my Dad.
As I said in one of the comments, I find it amazing that I am afforded such warmth from a bunch of people I’ve never met but I am very, very grateful and very, very touched.
Maybe Andy said it best when he commented the human race isn’t as doomed as the media would like us to believe – though with all the shirking of responsibility by banks and governments regarding the global financial crisis, I think it’s a tighter race than he might of thought, ha!
Anyway the reason for this post is that Marcus and BTBB both used poems in their comments – and without disrespect to anyone else – the power they had on me is amazing.
Of course the fact they were relating to death at a time where I was thinking about my Dad meant they were always likely to be especially poignant – however it got me thinking about the power of good copy and why it is a dying art in adland.
Actually I should rephrase that because I know there are some incredibly talented writers in agencies … what I mean is that it saddens me that there are less and less brands who are seemingly embracing the power of the written word in their communication – they all seem to be favouring bullish headlines, a fancy photo and a few lines of description.
I don’t know whether this shift is a byproduct of clients wanting to just focus on the ‘offer’ or society not wanting to focus on the ads [possibly both] … and I do appreciate the emotions of ‘death’ and quite different to the emotions of ‘buying a sofa’ … however whilst the basic foundation of popular advertising is ‘entertainment’, that doesn’t mean people only react to slapstick humour or graphical wonderment – infact if done [and presented] well, I could argue long copy [spoken or written] is even more powerful in motivating or engaging society.
The only time I tend to see ‘longish’ copy these days is in ‘niche’ marketing collateral … however in many cases, the only element of ‘niche’ is in the terminology used because the rest of it is as flat, broad and emotionless as the stuff FMCG’s put out each and every day.
To me this sort of thing isn’t niche marketing, it’s niche effectiveness …. if a brand really wants to speak to a small segment of society – apart from ensuring the media placement is appropriate – they should get their agency to think about how they can express their ‘offer/news/views’ in a way that is interesting, deeply relevant and emotionally resonant.
Both the poems I got sent [plus a speech emailed by Naoko] had more impact on me than most ads could ever dream of achieving – and yet they needn’t be so different. If clients and agencies just remember the power of emotional communication … encouraging their planners and creatives to start talking and acting as humans again … then great things could happen, because as much as some say society has an ultra low attention span, I believe it has more to do with what the companies are saying than our ability to focus.
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This is a really interesting post and I agree with everything you say. I don’t know if long copy is dead but it’s definitely seriously ill. π
In addition to the reasons you’ve listed, I think agencies desire to have a quick turnaround on ads so they can get cash flow also has contributed to this situation, as has lack of training in creative departments.
Your last sentence is especially pertinent because as the famous quote goes, people like to read interesting things and sometimes they are ads. Not very often these days though. π
Comment by Pete September 29, 2008 @ 7:51 amgod bless mr c he got a planner to understand copy and that last sentence fucking nailed it
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 8:37 amthe other aspect to developing long copy is surely context – 300 words on a freeway billboard is retarded, but ideal for a print piece to appear in the Saturday paper.
Comment by lauren September 29, 2008 @ 10:13 amoh, and thanks to FWAF, i only ever hear that Auden poem in a scottish accent now.
Comment by lauren September 29, 2008 @ 10:14 amthats a great impression of a planner youre doing there lauren, stating the fucking obvious. i know youre doing it to just take the piss because youre far fucking smarter and creative than the cocks who get paid a shitload to talk about things like brand fucking onions π
brand fucking onions?
brand fucking bollocks more like.
any cock on this blog who relates a brand to any type of fucking food from onion to pizza is due a hefty kick right in the windpipe.
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 11:02 amhey – you can try and insult me all you like andy dear, but i’m an artist and a junior in account services – i can’t go any lower in the food chain.
Comment by lauren September 29, 2008 @ 1:23 pmpie chart anyone? mmmmmmmmm pie…
Comment by Age September 29, 2008 @ 1:40 pmshed anyone?
Comment by Marcus September 29, 2008 @ 2:45 pmYou can get a lot lower Lauren, you could work for Mindshare as their marketing director.
Great post Rob, am I seeing you this week?
Comment by Bazza September 29, 2008 @ 3:31 pm“The real giants have always been the poets, (those) who jumped from facts into the realm of imagination and ideas.”
B in DDB
Comment by Nicky Rothstein September 29, 2008 @ 3:53 pmFewer and fewer copywriters can do this.
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 3:58 pmThen may I suggest that the industry should employ people who can do this?
Comment by Marcus September 29, 2008 @ 4:06 pmIf Scamp thinks the guy at Fallon is worth a million pounds a year, what would a poet get? Maybe they’d be happy with a wooly cardigan, some port and a summers day sat in a field.
Comment by Bazza September 29, 2008 @ 4:11 pmBernbach Ogilvy, Young and Rubicam. All great observers of life who really contributed to advertising and now what is left of their legacy? Pityhy headlines that people don’t read for products they don’t want.
Rob always said advertising was more inventive in the past and now I finally understand what he meant.
Comment by Bazza September 29, 2008 @ 4:17 pmadvertsing has been using poets, you just don’t knowit.
Think of all the rappers that namedrop shit..so yeah it works and is being used.
Jay-z made armadale vodka a hot drink (he owned the company as well) by dropping it in his rhymes.
Comment by Nicky Rothstein September 29, 2008 @ 4:17 pmBMP and CDP used to be great at entertaining long copy press ads. Scamp recently claimed the best ads use only words or only pictures… I wonder what your thoughts are on that.
Comment by Rob Mortimer September 29, 2008 @ 4:22 pmI think we all know what Rob’s views would be on that Rob M. π
Comment by Bazza September 29, 2008 @ 4:29 pmBazza means that Rob would read my comment on that ridiculous post and agree with me totally. Don’t you Bazza?
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 5:17 pmNo I wouldn’t John.
Morning [or night or whatever time it is] I’m going to bed … hope you’re all well.
Comment by Rob September 29, 2008 @ 5:59 pmYou’re clearly over-tired.
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 6:00 pmI think you can join Lauren in the ‘state the obvious’ planning department. Night.
Comment by Rob September 29, 2008 @ 6:17 pmHere’s to the great writers, great poets…I love long copy.
I’m hoping I get some good pitch news today so I can slowly, but surely bring it back for a new client.
Comment by Will September 29, 2008 @ 6:33 pmi’m sorry, but i’m not sharing a department with doddsy.
Comment by lauren September 29, 2008 @ 7:29 pmi wouldnt even share a lift with doddsy
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 7:49 pmyou bloody coward Boucher.
Comment by Marcus September 29, 2008 @ 8:04 pmI dwell in my own ivory tower.
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 8:50 pmivory? cheap bastard
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 8:56 pmI’d have thought it’d have been diamond John. I’ve always thought you were a diamond geezer.
Comment by Will September 29, 2008 @ 8:59 pmI’m hoping Andy that the scarcity value of endangered wildlife will allow me in the future to cash in my ivory tower and upgrade to the opulence of your mirrored palace and glamorous assistants
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 9:08 pmI think Dodds is taking the piss.
Comment by Marcus September 29, 2008 @ 9:36 pmI hope you’re not suggesting that his assistant is not glamorous Marcus?
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 9:37 pmJust because Billy has tattoos it doesn’t mean he’s glamorous John.
Comment by Marcus September 29, 2008 @ 9:53 pmAnd professional.
Comment by John September 29, 2008 @ 9:54 pmi havent got a fucking maxim bird working for me, but ive “had one” which means im better than campbell but we fucking knew that didnt we.
besides katerina pisses on anything and im not saying that because she has a big bastard ruski mafia guy as her “man” im saying that because she basically fucking keeps this company tickety boo
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 10:47 pmgotta love russian chicks
Comment by Nicky Rothstein September 29, 2008 @ 10:56 pmespecially when theres a big hairy fucker with an ak looking at you. enough of this shit i have genius to create
Comment by andy@cynic September 29, 2008 @ 10:57 pmis that you or the AK talking
Comment by Nicky Rothstein September 29, 2008 @ 11:17 pmIt’s been nice knowing you Andrew.
Comment by George September 29, 2008 @ 11:40 pmI couldn’t watch that video clip in the shed, I’m sorry. I’ve watched it now. I don’t know what show it’s from either, and I’m sorry for that too.
And it made me cry.
As I’m getting older I realise that I tend to cry more, even at the silliest things (although, as the Germans say – I’m built quite close to water). I’m getting older, and things are happening to me and I’m making things happen to other too. Sometimes those things are good and sometimes they are bad and they wind in and out of each other and make up the fabric of my somewhat ridiculous life.
I think poetry or a good script, touches the points where the good bits overlap the bad bits – the crossroad where one thing moves to another. Advertising on the other touches the threads – just the good bits or just the bad bits.
You don’t need to understand what a 30 year old male, living in Germany, with an income of 75K Euros a year does. You need to understand what he has done, the good bits and the bad bits and where they cross over.
You need to understand his wounds.
Comment by Marcus September 30, 2008 @ 12:52 amKat isn’t Andy’s assistant, we’re all hers and I’m the most loyal of them all. No horses head in my bed tonight. π
Comment by Billy Whizz September 30, 2008 @ 12:53 amYoung Whizz, horses are a Italian thing.
In my experience the Eastern Europeans tend to be more creative and suprising..Spokoynoy nochi π
Comment by Nicky R September 30, 2008 @ 1:02 ambut you might find a fat pig or an ugly cow in there whizzy.
no more talk about kat shes to powerful to risk pissing off and with her eastern european temperament and razor sharp cheekbones she could cut us up with just a flick of her head.
campbell you can feel fucking happy because we were so impressed with this post that we decided to write a long copy ad for va. creatives that listen to what you say? it must be like a dream come true
Comment by andy@cynic September 30, 2008 @ 1:05 amI see Andy’s legendary people skills on display again. π
Comment by Pete September 30, 2008 @ 6:31 amI love that video clip. But don’t you just know that 9 times out of 10 in the real world some cock client is going to say ‘but what about the business target audience? Our product empowers them to create dynamic sales presentations and we’re not addressing them with this emotional approach. And ‘Carousel’ is too family skewed – it’s not going to appeal to our young adult demographic.’
Comment by Lofty September 30, 2008 @ 8:49 amVery honest and truthful comment Marcus, thanks.
That clip is from the show Madmen, which is about an advertising agency in the 50’s (50’s?). It’s a great show especially when you see just how ridiculous this industry can be to have not changed THAT much in such a long time.
Comment by Age September 30, 2008 @ 9:06 amI know what you’re saying Lofty but isn’t that down to the skill of the pitch rather than just the ignorance of the client? OK so the clip doesn’t touch on those things, but that’s because advertising didn’t worry about such things back then. π
Comment by Pete September 30, 2008 @ 9:14 amI hadn’t seen Marcus’ comment, it’s great and he is totally right. Great communication isn’t just about category trends or focusing on the aspirations of an individual who “claims” to earn a certain amount, it’s about understanding people’s hopes, fears, loves and losses because then you create communication that has real relevance to it not just category association.
Comment by Pete September 30, 2008 @ 9:23 amAge, Pete – thanks for noticing.
Comment by Marcus September 30, 2008 @ 3:06 pm