Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Comment, Communication Strategy, Confidence, Creativity, Culture, Differentiation, Disney, Egovertising, Experience, Innovation, Marketing, Truth
I’ve talked a lot about how the industry loves to talk about innovation when what they actually mean is evolution.
Hell, sometimes it’s not even that … sometimes it’s just a new name for an old thought process or discipline that was expressed as part of what people always did rather than split out in an attempt to make more money or gain more influence.
I once said to the wonderful Martin Weigel that I am pretty certain marketing is the only industry that would make a paper plane and claim they invented flight.
Now that doesn’t mean people aren’t adding to what is being done … or bringing new thinking and craft to it … or finding new ways to incorporate it into work … but it does mean they’re trying to maybe ‘own’ too much of the narrative of the discipline. Suggesting they’re inventors when they’re actually craftspeople. Valuing ‘theory’ rather than actually making something truly interesting with it.
Now there’s many possible reasons for this.
+ We’re in marketing and so they’re marketing themselves.
+ Being a craftsperson has lost the value it deserves.
+ It’s cheaper to badge than to actually create.
+ People don’t know their history.
Now I’m sure I’m going to be accused of being a prick … an old, condescending prick. And maybe I am. But I am also not claiming I’ve invented anything and I’m just pointing out neither has many of the people who do.
And there’s nothing wrong with not inventing something … because doing your job really well is something worth celebrating, especially when you see what passes for ‘good’ in so much of what is put out these days.
But it appears the allure of pioneer is infectious these days.
Case in point is the talk around eco-systems, flywheels, multi-platform DTC/e-comm and the like. Yes, it’s amazing. Yes, it driving new ways for brands to behave and earn. Yes, technology has allowed this to be done in more powerful and profound ways. But in many cases, it’s not revolution, it’s not really even innovation … it’s evolution.
And why do I say that? Have a look at this.
That is from 1957.
NINETEEN FIFTY SEVEN.
It’s Walt Disney’s ecosystem/flywheel/multi-platform DTC, e-comm [without the e] for the Disney corporation.
The blueprint for how he would use creativity to fuel his business in ways where every division is helping another division.
And while modern expressions of this have evolved and added more nuance, it’s not miles off, which is why whether you like/hate/respect/loathe him or the Disney Company, that’s pretty progressive thinking.
Or it was in 1957. in 2021 maybe not so much.
[Though, being honest, it probably is – which is even more worrying]
And yet we read so much from people acting like Walt Disney … except they’re not building their own brand, they’re selling their concept to build your own brand.
As I said, there’s nothing wrong with that.
Fuck, there’s a lot of value and money in that.
It’s genuinely exciting when you see someone identify opportunities in old approaches and habits that millions have missed. And for that, you should absolutely be using it to build a platform for your future success, growth and change.
I am literally cheering from the sidelines. All I ask is you please don’t act like you have invented flight when you’ve actually made a more efficient and effective paper plane. Not because I’m a bitter bastard – OK, let’s not go there – but because the future of this industry requires bigger leaps not better wrapping paper and the more we manage up our abilities, the more we lower the reality of our potential.
Christ, that’s a heavy post for a Monday isn’t it.
Given I know what the rest of the week has in store, it gets worse. Eek.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Comment, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Effectiveness, Egovertising, Fake Attitude, Honesty, Insight, Luxury, Management, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Planning, Positioning, Relevance, Resonance, Status
A client recently told me a story of a very successful client he worked with.
Apparently this person was a lover of cars and owned Ferrari’s and Rolls Royce’s.
My client asked him what the difference was between them.
Expecting some conversation about performance or comfort, he was surprised when he heard:
“When I pull into a hotel in my Ferrari, I’m treated like I’ve booked the Penthouse Suite. But when I pull up in my Rolls, I’m treated like I own the hotel”.
I really like that.
I like it for a whole host of reasons.
But the main one is the clarity in differentiating ‘success’.
So often, as an industry, we define things in absolute terms.
Good. Bad. Rich. Poor. Success, Failure.
But as with all things in life, there’s nuance and texture in there if you look closer.
Which is why planning – despite all the information that is now available to us – is still an outdoor job.
Going out to talk to people.
Listening to different viewpoints.
Watching how different groups react to different situations.
It’s not a ‘day out’. It’s not ‘superficial fluff’.
It’s the difference between doing work for people or about people.
I’ve banged on about the importance of resonance over relevance for years, but it’s never been so important … because with so much choice of who we can give our attention to, if we want to stand any chance of having people give a modicum of a shit about us and what we do/think, then we better be speaking their language and context rather than the language and context we think – or want – them to speak.
[A classic of utter bollocks is still the Gerard Butler, ‘Man of Today’ ad for BOSS. You can read the post I wrote here and see the ad it is referring to, here]
If the people behind the brilliant TV show, Succession, can talk to billionaires to ensure everything on the show reflects how the super rich spend their money – and how they act because of it, ie: they never bend their head down when entering or existing a helicopter because they travel by them so much, they know exactly where the propeller is in relation to their height – then surely we can go and spend some time with people to see what they do and hear how they think about brushing their bloody teeth or something equally inane.
If we want to get back to being valuable to clients, we’d go a long way towards that by stopping with audience generalisations – of which I am absolutely including broad – or even narrow – Lifestage segmentation – and knowing the real nuances.
Filed under: 11.11 @ 11.11, Anniversary, Attitude & Aptitude, China, Chinese Culture, Comment, Creativity, Culture, Effectiveness, Entertainment, Marketing, Perspective, Planners, Planning, Point Of View, Relevance, Resonance, Shanghai
As I’ve said many times, I miss China.
I miss everything about it. Except the pollution.
It was – and remains – an incredible important and special place in my life, personally and professionally, and I’m so grateful I get to still do work there.
That said, there’s days where I miss it more than most and today is one of those.
Singles day – because of the date 11.11 – has become the single biggest shopping day on the planet. Bigger than the global Black Friday and New Years Day sales put together.
I have had individual clients sell US$100 million+ of product on that single day … and as huge as that is, it’s nothing compared to some other brands. You see, for all the talk of Singles Day being the luxury brand bonanza, the reality is it’s the more mundane things that sell in far bigger quantities.
There’s lots of reasons for that, of which money is only a small part.
That aside, the whole thing has become an extravaganza … even featuring international celebs [before they were in disrepute] in the lead-up … and yet, while it has finally been ‘discovered’ by many in the West, it still blows my mind at how little they really know, or care, about what started it, what drives it and what it represents to millions in the Middle Kingdom.
Of course I shouldn’t be surprised, because where China is concerned, the West still prefers to be deliberately ignorant to the goings on there … preferring instead to either ignore anything until is comes to the West, or just repeating what they’ve read somewhere without delving more into the culture or the history.
And that’s what I saw a lot there.
In fact, it’s a lot of what I saw wherever I lived, especially in Asia.
The preference for headlines rather than the details.
Easy wins instead of earning your rights.
Acceptance only when it was localised.
What scares me is this attitude seems to be extending beyond just knowing other cultures … but approaches to planning.
Answers rather than listening.
Comments rather than thinking.
Responses rather than considering.
Generalisations rather than nuance.
Complicity rather than a point of view.
I appreciate we live in a world where there is commercial benefit in speed. And while that doesn’t automatically mean it is wrong, it only works if you have people with the real experience and knowledge to be able to answer the problems properly.
There’s a massive difference between someone looking things up on Google and someone who appreciates the nuance and layers that goes behind opinion, beliefs and behaviour.
And yet too often these people don’t get valued by their companies.
Viewed as too costly … when the experience and knowledge they have is the difference between resonating with culture or shouting at people.
Or said another way, doing work that is for people rather than about them.
It blew my mind how little Western markets, and companies, valued my – and everyone else I know who spent considerable time in Asia – experience. I constantly felt a sense of distain from those who had never been there … as if the work and culture didn’t count for anything … despite the history, the economy, the culture and the technology.
Fuck, I had someone recently ask me if I knew TikTok was a Chinese company. A person who claims to be ‘an expert’ in digital. You should have seen their face when I told them that not only did I know that, but it had been around in China for years before it had come to the West.
This does not mean you have to live in another country to care about it. But generally, you do have to if you want to have any way of understanding it beyond the headlines and the superficial clickbait.
Which is why in the next few weeks if someone tries to present you a deck entitled, ‘Singles Day: all you need to know’ … just ask them what the premise is.
If they only talk about big numbers – and, god forbid – something to do with Confucius, run the other way. And if you think I’m joking, I can tell you about the time I was in Beijing and sat in a meeting full of CEO’s and the guest speaker started talking about his proprietary strategy for using Twitter, until it was pointed out that the government ban it there.
This guest was the head of strategy of a major ‘global’ digital agency.
Whether you like it or not, China is vital to your business.
Might be directly or indirectly, but it can’t be ignored, even if your ego has to take the hit.
The fact I have to write this in 2021 is mind-blowing, but here it goes:
Hire Chinese talent.
Value Chinese talent.
Learn from Chinese talent.
I promise you they’ll be able to help you and tell you stuff that is far more insightful and valuable that someone writing a presentation on Singles Day from information sourced via Twitter or the Daily Mail.
Love you China. Miss you.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Apple, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand, Comment, Craft, Creativity, Culture, Distinction, Innovation, Loyalty, Luxury, Management, Marketing, Packaging, Standards
I know lots of people are questioning Apple’s innovation … but apart from the fact the rumour is they’re going to be launching all manner of exciting new things – from Apple glasses to Apple cars – the reality is many organisations evolve into something different over time.
Part of this could be because of technology.
Part of this could be because of a new interest.
Part of this could be because they’ve just lost their hunger.
But whether it’s brands like SONY going from innovation to perfection or Queen going from rock stars to entertainers, evolution doesn’t necessarily have to mean a bad thing.
I say this because we recently bought a new Apple desktop.
Please note I said BOUGHT … no freebies here. [Damnit]
Anyway, when it came we were struck by a couple of things.
First of all, the packaging was even more beautiful.
Let’s be honest, in terms of iPhone etc, while nice … their packaging has become far more simplistic, but for the desktop, it was a celebration of cardboard engineering.
Everything was beautiful and precise … you felt the effort and time that went into it, ensuring from the moment you opened the box, you felt you were getting something truly special.
A celebration of purchase, so to speak.
The second moment was the cables.
Jill wanted a yellow desktop and while everything was as simple and elegant as ever, the cable just captured the classic Steve Jobs ‘paint behind the fence‘ philosophy.
Look at it …
Having a yellow outer makes sense, but the fact they made sure that extended to the inside of the cable is something that just smacks of attention to detail.
No one will see it once it has been plugged in.
It probably wouldn’t even be noticed if they hadn’t done it.
But by making the effort, it not only stood out … they reminded us that what we have just bought isn’t simply a computer, it’s something that has been crafted by people who care about what they do.
It helps justifies the cost.
It reassures the quality.
It defines the brand and brushes aside the competition.
For all the modern approaches of marketing spouted left, right and centre … it’s amazing how simple things done extraordinarily well supersede all the approaches, techniques and buzzwords.
And while this is all possible because the company behind it is united by an idea, an identity and a set of values that defines who they are in definitive terms, anyone who says the little things don’t matter doesn’t know what the fuck they’re talking about.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Authenticity, Comment, Communication Strategy, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Distinction, Emotion, Empathy, Innovation, Management, Marketing, Mischief, Perspective, Planners, Planning, Point Of View, Positioning, Relevance, Research, Resonance, Rick Rubin, RulesOfRubin
I like quotes.
Always have.
I like them because they often frame something in a way that sets my brain on another track.
It’s why I enjoyed the Rules Of Rubin series I did a while back. And while that was for a specific work-related reason, I came out of it with far more than I imagined.
Recently I had another one of those quotes, not by Rubin but by Paracelsus … a Swiss physician who was a pioneer in many areas of the medical revolution’ during the Renaissance.
It’s that one at the top of this post.
Yes, I know what it is saying is obvious.
Let’s be honest, the phrase ‘everything in moderation’ has been around for decades, but there’s something about this that just has more bite.
Maybe it’s the use of the word poison.
Maybe it’s the way it doesn’t define any specific thing as bad.
Maybe it’s the way it doesn’t feel condescending or judgemental.
But it set my mind whirring far more than using words like ‘moderation’ and I would imagine it would do the same to any creative having to work with such a brief.
Quotes have a wonderful way of doing that.
They’re far more valuable to provoke different ways of thinking than filling in a creative brief with the answer you want the creatives to execute rather than giving them the problem you want their brains to explore and resolve.
We’re in danger of only valuing literal thinking rather than lateral … and that’s what I love about quotes. They challenge how you think … make you take some leaps, look in some new corners, explore what you think is possible … but never adding pressure on what or where you go with them.
I have always had a hard time writing briefs.
I place so much pressure on myself to get to something intriguing and interesting that I end up writing 7 or 8 different versions – all with different possibilities – so I and the team – can have a real chat about where our energy is at.
I think my record is something like 14 odd for Spotify.
And that’s before we even start on all the other briefs that come from it.
I still do that, but what’s helped my sanity is starting with a bunch of quotes or poems or song lyrics. Stuff related to the issue without being obviously directly about it.
It’s such a great time saver to open discussion.
Like the brief before the brief.
The opportunity to work out what excites you about a possibility without getting too lost in the detail of the possibility. At least initially.
So next time you’re stuck on where you should go, don’t start filling in the brief boxes in the hope the answer will present itself [it never does] … fill up the walls with stuff that opens things up before you start closing things down.
Because the best briefs are not a flow of logic, but a story of adventure.