Category Archives: Business

The end of mid-size agencies? Inside the shifts that will reshape the ad business

This story is part of Ad Age’s Future of Advertising 2030 series exploring how marketing, media and creativity will evolve over the next five years.

Advertising agencies are in the process of setting strategies for the next five years despite numerous unknowns—the impact of AI, speed of consolidation and increasing ease of in-housing among them. These variables may have wide-reaching impact, including the potential demise of mid-size agencies, that marketers should be preparing for now.

On Ad Age Insider, Ad Age reporters look at the future of ad agencies and strategies that industry leaders are putting into place now to prepare.

“A lot of [agencies’] executional work becomes commoditized by AI, and a lot of marketers will have pretty robust in-house systems. So the real value and agency lie in their strategic thinking and being able to bring an outsider perspective to the equation.” –Ewan Larkin, agency reporter, Ad Age

Ad Age Insider podcast transcript

Parker Herren, host: How will the agency landscape transform by 2030? What has surprised you guys the most in your reporting on the future of agencies?

The demise of mid-size agencies

Brian Bonilla, senior agency reporter: It’s hard to be surprised, but I would say something that might surprise people in general—the role of the mid-size agency might go away by 2030, meaning we’re already seeing a lot of small, independent agencies get a lot of business, but we’re now starting to see those same agencies competing with each other and competing with large agencies and seeing a leveling of new business opportunities. And at the same time, mid-size agencies, which typically range from like 100 to maybe 250 employees, are competing with large holdco networks of like 5,000 employees for the same business. 

So by 2030, you’re going to see those mid-sized agencies either merge with other entities or sell to private equity firms or things like that. That’s going to be something that might be surprising for a lot of people, and I think will happen quicker than people realize.

How agency structures will shift

Ewan Larkin, agency reporter: This is interesting. For a couple of years, agencies have been trying to market themselves as consultants, and it hasn’t really stuck. To some degree, it has, but I think it’s obvious they are still service providers fundamentally. But I actually do think now we might see that shift start to stick a little bit. A lot of the executional work becomes commoditized by AI, and a lot of marketers will have pretty robust in-house systems. So the real value at agencies lies in their strategic thinking and being able to bring an outsider perspective to the equation. 

I think that puts them in direct contact … with the likes of Deloitte Digital and Accenture Song. So the focus for agencies really should be building up some of those consulting capabilities and commerce consulting capabilities. Agencies like VML are already starting to do this. They rolled out a unit earlier that encompasses consulting, CX and other things, and that already accounts for about 40% of their overall global revenue. So, I expect more people to make moves like this. This is one of the early stages of holding companies really being able to package up one of those offerings.

Parker: For Ad Age’s Future of Advertising package, media reporter Brandon Doerrer wrote about 2030 readiness. And chief technology reporter Garett Sloane dug into the 2030 tech stack. That sounds pretty thrilling. What did you guys find in your reporting?

Brandon: People tend to think that there are just going to be more and more integrated accounts, especially between creative and media. The walls are really coming down between those two functions. We are seeing brands increasingly hire the same agency to handle both of those functions. So, agencies are going to need to get used to those two functions not being in silos anymore, not having walls exist between those two teams.

Garett: We’re already starting to see these roles change. We’re seeing shifting ways of billing clients, different business models, different services agencies have to cater to. So, it’s already happening. It’s going to happen more and more where agencies are going to have to operate as platforms and services that can interact with brands and help brands build their ad tech stacks, acting as consultants, acting as facilitators into this futuristic landscape.

That’s where agencies need to go, and they’re starting already by developing new products and services. Whether that will work is still an open question, and if they can adjust and change—some will, some won’t.

The social AOR resurgence

Parker: Let’s talk influencers. Gillian Follett covered the future of the social and influencer space. Is there any way the future of influencers will impact agencies in 2030?

Gillian: Experts that I talked to for the story said that they predict the spectrum of influencer agencies will stretch to the extremes. So, we’ll see more brands working with influencer functions within larger holding companies, or we’ll see brands looking to very specialized boutique agencies who specialize in specific platforms or types of creators, like gaming creators, for example.

We’re also going to continue to see influencer budgets increase, not at the same meteoric rate that we’ve seen over the past couple of years, but based on forecasts from intelligence companies like eMarketer, it’s definitely on an upward trajectory. 

We’re also seeing a resurgence of social agency of record assignments from brands across different categories. Something that I spoke to one marketer about was this idea that it’s not just the brands that are trying to target Gen Z or want to be social-first anymore that are looking for social AORs. It’s brands that they wouldn’t expect, like more established legacy brands are looking for social AORs. And a lot of these brands are seeking the insights that social media can provide in terms of what consumers are looking for, the types of products that they’re craving and using social as the foundation for their marketing campaigns rather than having social be a tacked-on piece at the end.

Parker: Okay, Lindsay, I’m going to let you round out this group with some intel from your reporting on the RFP process in 2030.

Lindsay Rittenhouse, senior agency reporter: Within the RFP process, agencies are going to have to stop the theater—the glossy presentations, the pitch decks, and really showcase how you’re working as a team. Get ready to be in more chemistry meetings—enough with the showboating and the theater in the pitch.

Parker: Tell us how marketers should begin preparing for that now.

Lindsay: Well, they have to set up the process so that there are more chemistry meetings and more time for the meatier stuff, the interviewing, the briefings, the working together, and just get rid of some of the processes. You don’t have to do these massive pitch presentations. [Marketers] are the ones who set the process for the RFP, so don’t allow the theatrics.

Agencies in 2030—how to plan ahead

Parker: I want to hear everyone’s advice for how marketers or agency leaders can begin prepping for their 2030 strategy. Why don’t we just go round robin, starting with you, Brian.

Brian: Start thinking about what type of agency model do you want as a marketer. We’re seeing roster agency models become way more popular, meaning instead of having just one AOR handle everything, I’ll have a social agency here, I’ll have a creative agency here or I’ll have a roster of five creative agencies. 

If you’re an agency, start thinking about what model makes the most sense for you to be in—should I be more niche or should I broaden my capabilities? And as a marketer—same question but on the flip side. If I’m going to be spending less on marketing, but I’m expecting to have more outcomes, what is the best model that makes sense for my external partnerships? Because I do think agencies will still be necessary as much as we’re talking about in-housing and things like that.

Ewan: They need to clarify which functions they want done in-house, which ones they need outsourced, very clearly defining what they can do themselves versus what is essential that they get from an external partner. There is a push for efficiency, and, obviously, everybody wants to save costs, so they want to bring it in-house, but you are going to need an external partner. You always do need that outside perspective. So, very clearly define what needs to be done yourselves and what you need an agency for. 

But rethinking agency relationships in general—they’ve always been seen as providers, that’s what they are, but now a lot of them are going to be actually helping build those internal capabilities. So identify which agencies are high-level strategic thinkers, which ones really understand your brand and your challenges, which ones can help me build my internal chops. Those are the ones that I think are likely to have long-term value.

Brandon: On the agency side of things, if you’re a creative agency and you don’t already have media capabilities, really digging in and evaluating if it would be worth building that out. If you have a unique angle, something to offer brands to make yourself stand out from the plethora of media agencies that can do the same thing. Media is probably in a similar boat. At least having an understanding of various creative processes is going to be helpful.

On the marketer side of things, brands can just not be afraid to ask. I did a story not too long ago about how indie creative agencies can respond to requests for media services. And the reason why agencies are starting to think about either building these capabilities internally or which media agencies they can partner with is because they’re getting these requests. Marketers—don’t be afraid to ask if you have an indie creative shop that you’re working with that doesn’t do media. They’re getting used to getting that question already, and they are starting to think about how to best answer that question. So, no dumb questions is the advice.

Garett: They could start developing the services and tools, and some are. We’ve seen agencies launch AI agents—the trading bots that they can all of a sudden potentially give out to brands to start to use. A lot of these tools that agencies are building are internal, but eventually, they’re going to make them external and start shipping them to brands to use as part of their suite of services. So, agencies start building internally and then will start giving it out to the masses.

Gillian: Brands should start considering whether they want to look to agencies to help them with sharpening their social strategies to adapt to this new way of seeking consumer insights from social and using social as a starting point for marketing. For some brands, it might make more sense to develop a social media team in-house to lead these efforts for the brand. Some brands have sought social media agencies of record because of the wide range of functions that are involved in social media marketing today, like paid social, creator marketing, social media intelligence gathering. There’s just a lot that goes into it these days.

Brands should start considering whether that’s something they can do in-house, or if they need to find partners to help them develop those strategies as social becomes more and more important.

Key Takeaways

  • Mid-size agencies will likely disappear by 2030, either merging or selling to private equity firms
  • Agencies are shifting from ad makers to consultants and platform builders
  • Creative and media functions will merge as brands increasingly hire one agency for both services

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

8 agency leaders divulge the most pressing issues facing their business—and how they’re navigating them

The 4As hosted a roundtable with Ad Age and seven industry leaders from holding companies and independent agencies at Advertising Week New York to discuss some of the most pressing issues facing executives today.

Lindsay Rittenhouse reported that the roundtable included a lineup of executives spanning a wide range of roles and companies: 4As CEO Justin Thomas-Copeland; Stacey Hightower, CEO of Omnicom Specialty Marketing Group; Frances Webster, CEO of independent agency Walrus; Tracey Faux-Pattani, CEO of independent shop Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners; Chris Foster, CEO of Omnicom Public Relations Group; Ian Grody, chief creative officer of independent shop Giant Spoon; Joe Baratelli, executive VP and chief creative officer of independent agency RPA; and Nada Bradbury, CEO of Ad-ID, which sets a standard for the industry to identify advertising assets across all media.

These leaders discussed a wide range of topics, including how they are using AI in their day-to-day; how they are driving value in their agencies; the means to stand out in an increasingly crowded market; and what talent they are hiring.

Some takeaways from the conversation:

How agency leaders are using AI

Webster said Walrus is using AI to respond to an “RFI right now … it’s helping us with upfront strategy and segmentation.”

“It’s like the internet from the ‘90s, you’ve got to surf the wave and you can’t have a two-year plan,” she said. “It’s a three-month plan or a six-month plan. But if you’re not engaging with it, you’re out.”

Hightower said Omnicom Specialty Marketing Group has been using AI in Europe “for quite some time.” He said the agency created a call center that has been using AI to speak with customers who dial in on branded hotlines. It’s also now bringing internal efficiencies. For example, Omnicom Specialty Marketing Group uses AI to sift through resumes.

“We do probably 5,000, on average, hires a year in Europe … We can’t get to every resume that comes into our inbox,” Hightower said.

“We’re an indie shop, so we’re bootstrapping everything,” Baratelli said. “We’re using it around the stuff no one wants to do, reporting, scoping.”

The conversation came on the heels of Madison Logic releasing new research from a Harris Interactive survey of more than 300 business-to-business marketing leaders. It found that three in four of those surveyed believe the future of advertising will be defined by AI-driven creative processes (73%) in the next five years. Two in three of those surveyed predicted personalization at scale and immersive advertising (66% each) will become more prevalent, and 84% believe traditional advertising will be dead by 2030.

Still, all of the executives agreed that advertising is a relationship business and nothing will change that.

“It’s important to point out that these are all really responsible uses of AI,” Ad-ID’s Bradbury said. “What we are seeing on our side is folks trying to understand the various uses of AI. So everybody does all this great work [and] we’re getting calls saying, ‘Can you help verify this for me? Is this a product that came out of an agency? There’s this other layer that you just can’t control [AI] that we need to start to wrap our arms around it.”

Strategists are in demand

AdAge asked what jobs are most in demand right now and strategy was the one definitive.

Faux-Pattani said BSSP is always on the hunt for great strategists, but noted that the shop sometimes struggles to find truly top candidates in that space. She said curiosity is always needed in that role, but the agency has had a hard time finding candidates who have curiosity that is “intuitive” versus “data curiosity.”

The strategy role is also shifting and putting more pressure on professionals in those roles.

Since clients are buying more “connected solutions,” agencies need strategies to be adept in everything from “commerce to brand, to media, to analytics, to creative understanding,” Thomas-Copeland said. “I don’t know any strategies that can do all of those things really well. And then at the same time in the room there was a call for strategy as a function to be front-of-house with clients. So suddenly they’re in a new environment.”

Webster argued that strategists and account people now have to “battle together … as an account strategist, you really need to understand your client’s business much better than they do.”

Hunting for new business opportunities

Most of the executives said there is a lot of opportunity to win new pieces of business, but they are far-ranging in size. Industry and agency leaders also have to be strategic in deciding what accounts to go after. 

Health care agency reviews are on the rise, for example, and Faux-Pattani said she sees a lot more “emerging brands” looking to hire shops right now.

In terms of the boon in health care agency reviews, Thomas-Copeland said that category has always been more “resilient” to macroeconomic factors. Still, 4As agency members have told the organization that even within health care marketing, “projects are not being solidified … in terms of planning and commitments, there’s a bit less of that,” he said.

Thomas-Copeland said agencies are having to place “their bets on where they’re going to look for opportunity, and trying to get really good at judging what is an opportunity that looks like it has some longevity, versus the one-and-done.”

“We’ve been very selective over the past 18 months or so in terms of the clients that we pursue from a business perspective and it’s worked,” Giant Spoon’s Grody said. “Over the last six months, we’ve won 67% of our pitches. The reason is we go after fewer, bigger, better and then we find smaller clients where we see that profound growth potential.”

Webster said Walrus has had success going after emerging brands that have reached $200 million to $400 million in revenue and are “ready to spend. They’re either getting ready for an IPO or sale, or they’ve just sold and need to show return on that investment,” she said.

For Omnicom Public Relations Group, Foster said it’s a much different situation.

“We will probably chase 2,500 RFPs in the course of a year,” he said. “We’re doing 100 or so a week as a network, if not more. The deal flow is very different in PR than advertising and media … in Europe, I’m seeing competitive consolidation in the marketplace, and so the deal sizes are small because there’s just a lot more competition.”

How to stand out in a crowded market

Faux-Pattani said she’s starting to see more intimate pitches with two or three competing shops, versus somewhere between four and six, which she welcomes. She said she sometimes will turn down a pitch if there are too many shops vying for the account.

That might be good for the agencies invited to pitch, but that means there are even fewer opportunities to get a foot in the door. The executives discussed how they are standing out in an increasingly overcrowded market that sees new agencies popping up seemingly every day to compete with holding company shops and independents alike.

“There are 14,000 agencies out there,” Webster said, making it more pertinent to understand your niche and where it makes sense for you to show up as an agency. Walrus, she said, goes after the opportunities it wants, rather than waiting for them.

“We have a robust sales department, PR program and outreach program,” she said. “For these smaller pieces of business, too, it’s much easier to hunt—to prospect, build, identify opportunities and make relationships, so we’re not actually having to go into a pitch. We close a lot of business that way.”

Hightower said Omnicom Specialty Marketing Group promotes itself through “product innovation and storytelling.”

“In Europe, we will pitch a suite of modalities, so we’ll say, ‘Give us your budget and we’ll figure out the best way to implement your spend across a number of modalities,” he said. “That has resonated well in that marketplace. In the U.S., it’s been through technology, building platforms where we are able to acquire data about the client, about their value chain, and then providing them feedback that can help them reduce costs and get more bang for their buck.”

Despite the conservative backlash to diversity initiatives, the executives said they remain committed.

The state of DEI

“From a 4As standpoint, the focus will continue to be on inclusive teams, and inclusive teams are great for business, they’re great for being an economic multiplier, they’re great for brands being much more in tune with the market,” Thomas-Copeland said.

Webster reiterated that point, saying companies with diverse boards and teams outperform those that are not.

“We’ve always been committed to inclusivity,” Grody said. “We remain committed to inclusivity. Nothing has changed.”

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

Ideas, not AI, will decide who survives in 2030

In a world where everything can be personalized and optimized, there’s only one true differentiator left: ideas. (Adobe Stock)

AI will undoubtedly shrink the marketing services industry. Or so that’s the opinion of industry paper Ad Age via author Barry Lowenthal in a recent piece a few weeks back. Thought it worthwhile to share again especially to those of you who may not have seen it yet.

Many of the functions agencies are paid for today—targeting, media planning, asset versioning — are already being handled faster and cheaper by machines.

Yet the most successful agencies in 2030 won’t be those with the biggest AI budgets; they’ll be the ones still capable of original thought.

Since the explosion of generative AI, holding companies have raced to future-proof themselves, pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into the technology. They’ve hired engineers, signed vendor deals and built proprietary tools. The logic is that automation improves margins by enabling more work to be produced with less overhead, and it’s attractive to clients.

But here’s the problem: Everyone is doing the same thing.

AI platforms might look different, but they’re powered by the same foundation—similar models, trained on similar data, offering similar outputs.

AI is a great equalizer. While early investment and enterprise deals offer short-term advantages, the tools are ultimately accessible to all. As technology becomes commodified, there’s only one true differentiator left: ideas.

In a world where everything can be personalized and optimized—where every ad element, from celebrity to color palette to music cue, is engineered for conversion—what cuts through is the unexpected.

Zany, emotional, human ideas. The kinds that make people laugh out loud, tear up or text a friend because it hit a nerve. The kind no algorithm can predict because they come from life experience, not data.

Those ideas aren’t born from prompts or dashboards, but from humans living messy, interesting lives—wandering museums, walking unfamiliar streets, swapping stories at a dive bar.

The agencies that stay relevant in an AI era will be the ones that protect this kind of cultural immersion. They’ll hire for life experience, not just technical literacy. They’ll measure inspiration like they do performance, instead of grinding their teams into creative exhaustion. They’ll reward originality over speed and efficiency. 

If the goal is to survive the next five years, curiosity and creative instinct must be treated as core competencies.

That means rethinking workflows to allow time for discovery, not just delivery. It means protecting those unproductive long walks and deep rabbit holes.

The payoff won’t always show up neatly in a dashboard, so it will be a challenging pitch to the CFO. But in a world where AI devours everything else agencies in once thought made them valuable, it’s the only bet worth making.

That’s the future. And no, you can’t buy it; you have to nurture it.

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I agree with Mr. Lowenthal, original thought leading to creatively inspired ideas will and must lead the way. I’ve been involved in this business for several decades and I realize that the industry has turned into a young person’s game. Most have grown up with AI and consider it the “standard.” That is unfortunate. It still must be considered a tool in the work belt of the creative person who’s developing the idea. It can’t be used as the end-all. That is unless sameness is one’s idea of creative thought.

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

A Few Quotes to Feed Your Soul.

When executing advertising, it’s best to think of yourself as an uninvited guest in the living room of a prospect who has the magical power to make you disappear instantly. — John O’Toole, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself. — David Ogilvy, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Creative imagination — the lamp that lit the world — can light our lives.– Alex F. Osborn, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

I have always believed that writing advertisements is the second most profitable form of writing. The first, of course, is ransom notes. — Philip Dusenberry, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

If you have anything really valuable to contribute to the world, it will come through the expression of your own personality, that single spark of divinity that sets you off and makes you different from every other living creature. — Bruce Barton, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

The soft stuff is always harder than the hard stuff. — Roger A. Enrico, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Let us blaze new trails. Let us prove to the world that good taste, good art and good writing can be good selling. — William Bernbach, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Creative people thrive in environments that stimulate and reward original thinking — where freedom is valued and controls are kept to a minimum. — Keith Reinhard, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

The advertisers who believe in the selling power of jingles have never had to sell anything. — David Ogilvy, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Know what the client wants, know what the client needs, and know how to cause the client to want what the client needs. — Keith Reinhard, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Anyone who thinks that people can be fooled or pushed around has an inaccurate and pretty low estimate of people — and he won’t do very well in advertising. — Leo Burnett, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

Brands shy away from creative risk

Periodically I come across articles of interest that I want to share. Below is one such piece. It’s written by Aaron Baar and delves into the mindsets of marketers and their respective brands when it comes to taking risks. Given the current socio-political environment, it’s no wonder that companies are backing away from and giving second thought to creative risks. So, let’s get to it, shall we?

Among marketers, 63% are focused on short-term tactics rather than long-term brand building, up from 53% in 2023. Photo via Adobe Stock

Dive Brief:

  • Only 13% of brand marketers and creatives view their companies as “risk-friendly” when it comes to creativity, while 29% are highly risk averse, according to the 2025 State of Creativity report from Lions, which produces the annual Cannes Lions creativity festival.
  • The report, now in its fifth year, surveys more than 1,000 marketers and creatives around the world and includes qualitative information from one-on-one industry leaders. More than half of respondents (51%) said their customer insights are too weak to develop bold creative, and 57% said they struggle to react quickly to cultural moments. 
  • The survey also revealed that brands are increasingly focusing on short-term marketing activities, rather than long-term brand building. In the 2025 survey, nearly two-thirds (63%) of respondents said their brands were focusing on such tactics, up from 53% in 2023. 

Dive Insight:

Brand and agency executives are becoming more risk-averse when it comes to marketing creative, which could negatively impact growth, according to the largest creativity festival. Outside data cited in the report backs up the assertion that stronger creativity leads to better business results. Brands that take creative risks generate four times higher profit margins than those that don’t, per WARC and Kantar. Additionally, brands with an appetite for creative risk are 33% more likely to see long-term revenue growth, according to Deloitte.

The aversion to “creative risk-taking,” defined by the survey as “bold, unconventional ideas that challenge norms and engage audiences in unexpected ways,” boils down to issues marketers face like poor insights and an inability to respond to cultural moments quickly, per the report. 

With regard to insights, 51% of respondents said their ability to develop high-quality insights was poor or very poor. Conversely, only 13% said their ability was very good or excellent. The main barriers to developing quality insights were a lack of understanding and clarity as to what makes a good insight, not enough priority on insight development and insufficient time allocated to insight exploration. 

The report noted that strong agency-brand relationships and more diverse teams and methods yielded better, more actionable insights. Additionally, AI use also increased efficiency and reduced bias.

A lack of confidence in consumer insights is also leading to brands’ inability to respond to cultural moments. According to the report, 57% of brands struggle to react quickly when something happens, and only 12% rate their ability to do so as “excellent.” Other challenges include too many layers in the approval process and limited resources and investment. Recommendations include streamlining internal processes and shaping culture rather than chasing it.

Interesting take, wouldn’t you say? I’d be curious as to your take on this report and, given your perspectives, what comments you may have. Let me know, okay?

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for selected short stories and personal insights on life and its detours.

It’s that time of the month again . . .

. . . when we see and read what others have said that made an impact. May these quotes bring about an impact for you as well. Enjoy!

 

All of us who professionally use the mass media are the shapers of society. We can vulgarize that society. We can brutalize it. Or we can help lift it onto a higher level. — William Bernbach, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

The voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes. ― Thomas Alva Edison

Nothing comes merely by thinking about it. — John Wanamaker, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

I would rather have a mind opened by wonder than one closed by belief. – Gerry Spence

Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses. – George Washington Carver

Reading, conversation, environment, culture, heroes, mentors, nature—all are lottery tickets for creativity. Scratch away at them and you’ll find out how big a prize you’ve won. – Twyla Tharp

Chaos is the only thing that honestly wants you to grow. The only friend who really helps you be creative. — Dan Wieden, member Advertising Hall of Fame

What we are doing is satisfying the American public. That’s our job. I always say we have to give most of the people what they want most of the time. That’s what they expect from us. — William Paley, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Advertising is what you do when you can’t go see somebody. That’s all it is. — Fairfax Cone, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong. – Arthur C. Clarke

 

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for personal insights on life and its detours.

And, check out creative selections from ideasnmore.net.

Jolan tru!

Quotes – From Lee Clow’s Beard to Virginia Woolf

Leading off 2024 is this list of various quotes from those luminaries in and out of the advertising field. The quotes were selected by me from a variety of sources for the purposes of motivation, incitefullness and humor, among other things. Hope you get something out of them!

 

If you have a dream, don’t let anybody take it away. And you always believe that the impossible is always possible —Selena Quintanilla, singer-songwriter, businessperson, actor, fashion designer

Good advertising is written from one person to another. When it is aimed at millions, it rarely moves anyone. — Fairfax M. Cone, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Good agencies understand advertising’s role within the four Ps. Great ones earn the right to influence the other three. — Lee Clow’s Beard

There is no such thing as ‘soft sell’ and ‘hard sell.’ There is only ‘smart sell’ and ‘stupid sell.’ — Charles H. Brower, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Everything is reduced to facts and figures but the things that count. — George Gallup, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Every area of trouble gives out a ray of hope, and the one unchangeable certainty is that nothing is certain or unchangeable. — John E. Kennedy, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Meetings are all too often the burial grounds of great ideas. — Keith Reinhard, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Creativity is no longer about grabbing attention or raising consumer awareness. Its goal is to remind consumers about what is fundamental and gratifying about a brand. — Peter A. Georgescu, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

Security is mostly a superstition… Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. – Helen Keller

SO LONG AS YOU WRITE WHAT YOU WISH TO WRITE, THAT IS ALL THAT MATTERS; AND WHETHER IT MATTERS FOR AGES OR ONLY FOR HOURS, NOBODY CAN SAY. — VIRGINIA WOOLF

 

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for personal insights on life and its detours.

And, check out creative selections from my website.

Jolan tru!

Balancing Creativity and Constraints: Reflections of a Designer

Having worked with a variety of designers in my time, I found this piece interesting from not only the perspective of a designer but also from that of most creatives. She, as in Shreya Agarwal, asks pertinent questions about which we all have pondered at one time or another. My question to you is this: Do you agree? Comments?

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As I transitioned from the consultancy to the in-house design universe, a lingering question became my guiding star: What truly brings a design to life?

My time as a consultant was full of lessons learned across diverse industries and work cultures. As my former boss aptly noted, we should be paying our clients for the crash courses we received with each new project. However, I felt a sense of dissatisfaction. I yearned for my designs to be more than just concepts — I wanted them to inhabit the real world, to be used, tested, and improved upon.

After spending some time as a designer in a product company, my perception of the design role has undergone a shift, and I believe it’s a change for the better.

We’re all familiar with the romanticized notion of a ‘designer’. In this fantastical world, problems fall neatly into line, leaving us with ample time for creative musings. Our brilliance is celebrated, and our perspectives are treated as profound wisdom. We’re devoted to catering to every user, doing deep research, and crafting smooth micro-interactions.

In an ideal world, it would be sunny-side up, but reality’s clouds have a habit of raining on our parade.

How often have we been told, “This looks great, but it’s not feasible”? How many times has our enthusiasm been dampened by the weight of business constraints? This pain is real and shared by many, including myself. Yet, I’ve grown to relish these moments. Now, every time someone utters those discouraging words, I respond with a curious, “Which part? Why not? How can we change it? How can we enhance it?” I prioritize the well-being of users over the pixel-perfect transition from Figma to code, which becomes less crucial. What truly matters is delivering value to users, regardless of the means. This leads me to the question that continually echoes in my thoughts: Who can collaborate with me to transform my design into reality?

Design isn’t a lone ranger, it doesn’t ride solo; it’s more like a supporting actor in a complex drama. Design exists in a symphony with other functions like product, engineering, and analytics. This collaboration and compromise is the journey from creation to implementation. It’s the teamwork with engineers who turn your meticulously crafted visions into digital reality, with product managers who chart the course, and with analytics that provide the feedback loop for iterative improvement. However, let’s address the misconception that some designers harbor, I did too — the idea of single-handedly reshaping the universe through a UI overhaul. Allow me to interject with a resounding “Ahem, no.”

Yes, that’s the revelation. Design isn’t here to sprinkle fairy dust on the company; it’s here to serve business goals. Granted, serving the business also involves doing good by the user.

A good design can sometimes be the tiniest adjustments that wield the most significant impact. Because, let’s be honest, even seemingly minor modifications like resizing carousels or revamping interactions can come with hefty price tags. From my counterparts in product management, arises a crucial question for every designer: What is the return on investment for this design?

Design embarks on a journey — from pixels on your screen to the engineers’ coding stations, culminating in its release into the wild. This is why, before you seek investments from a myriad of collaborators (product, engineers, analytics, marketing, and beyond), ask yourself this question: Does it merit bringing this design to life? It is not about possessiveness over your design but nurturing it, allowing it to adapt and endure the rigors of technical considerations, budget constraints, and ever-shifting user landscapes.

Design can be extravagant or accessible, the essence lies in understanding your company’s ethos and financial scope. My personal quest is to make the most bang for the least buck, maximizing impact while minimizing expenditure.

Being a designer resembles tightrope walking — a delicate balance of creative aspirations and business considerations, the sweet spot where brilliance meets pragmatism, where innovation doesn’t tip over into extravagance. So, how much design is too much design? Well, it’s the amount you can manage without tumbling off the rope.

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For the most part, I agree with her perspective. However, IMHO, good design echoes and enhances the idea it is supporting. If the design is such that it overtakes the idea or muddies the concept, not to mention the message, one might need to go back to the proverbial drawing board.

The challenge to those egotistical creatives out there (most, if not all of us) is to strike that balance between creativity and the constraints that embody the project as it is presented to us. Admittedly, that’s easier said than done. But try we must. Failure’s a part of the process . That’s a possible outcome of reality. It’s included at no extra charge during the process of creativity. Those who embrace that concept will be better off than those who don’t.

 

Hopefully making a ruckus, one blog post at a time!

Be sure to check out my other blog, Joe’s Journey, for personal insights on life and its detours.

And, check out creative selections from my website.

Jolan tru!

AI’s Impact on Creativity in Ad industry: A Panel Review

How do you think AI will impact creativity in the ad industry – positively and negatively – in the near future? This is the question put forth to a panel of nine industry gurus, moderated by one Carol Cooper of Shots, in a recent article. There’s been so much written already about AI that I felt it appropriate and timely to share this panel discussion since it relates to creativity and advertising.

 

Johnny Vulkan, Founding Partner, Anomaly

The first photograph was allegedly taken in 1826 but it wasn’t until just shy of 100 years later that an American gallery deemed photography worthy of inclusion in their collection. After all, what artistic skill does it require to create a mechanical and chemical replication of reality?

We’re now, hopefully, more enlightened about photography and the still; moving and digitally manipulated form has become a central part of our industry. And now we have a new tool, AI.

Whilst it can be crude, nascent, often clumsily disappointing and inaccurate, we’re already seeing exquisitely crafted images and concepts brought to life. Some of these outputs would’ve taken weeks to achieve using more conventional methods, and maybe only the finest of today’s craftspeople would be able to even come close. Now, like so much software before it, seemingly impossible ideas can take seconds to render, and that democratizing of creation is exciting and terrifying in equal measure.

Jobs will be lost. New jobs will be created, but it’s clear that the best insurance anyone can have would be to experiment, learn and play. 

AI is not without problems and it’s natural for us all to experience some discomfort as ‘bad actors’ have the same access to tools as people with less malicious intent, but this genie will not be going back in the bottle. We can probably predict a few years of highly litigious legal jeopardy as all industries struggle to define new rules and concepts in intellectual property and rights but this will only slow rather than reverse the direction of travel.

It won’t take 100 years for AI creativity to appear in gallery collections, in fact it’s already controversially helping to win awards and competitions. But it’s still ultimately a tool. One that any one of us can wield and learn to master. What a great chance for us all to learn.

Above: Anomaly founder Johnny Vulkan, made by AI with Lensa.

 

Johnny Budden, Executive Creative Director at AKQA

As with any new technology, you could choose to limit human advancement or take people to the moon. When cars were invented we didn’t change our previous methods of transportation – we still walked, cycled and moved around as before. We simply had access to technology that improved our method of getting around.

There are countless possibilities of using AI to add creativity to our work – not replace it. And we are now harnessing those possibilities to advance civilization. For example, HeyPi.com is a compassionate AI that cares about your needs. GoFundMe used AI animation to bring donation stories to life.

The power of machine learning created a match between Serena Williams and her past self, from her first Grand Slam at the 1999 US Open versus her most recent at the 2017 Australian Open. We are going to the moon, everyday.

The advantages of AI means that our boutique team is expanded now into a team of a million. We are still driven by the same imagination and passion as before, only now with access to an infinite resource of information to help us achieve the future faster.

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The Big Idea: Do We Still Need It?

Sometimes I play the creator. Other times I play the curator. This week I, again, play the curator and offer up an unexpected article I found that proposes a different point of view from the one expressed just last week.

The Big Idea. Is it still needed? Some advertising practitioners say yes while others are doubtful. While last week’s post revealed the rationale that the Big Idea is not necessarily Better. This week’s post maintains the POV that the Big Idea is still important and that it should always be sought after.

Now, for the article . . .

Through a thousand tiny cuts, the building blocks of historical media have been broken into millions of pieces.

But those pieces must be managed somehow. If we zoom out and see them as a single territory (instead of micro-managing every mini experience), the pieces are more similar than different. Which hints at a full circle. The pendulum has begun its return swing and we’re about to see a fresh bloom of imagination and excitement to command brands’ millions of interactions.

But have we still got the know-how? And who has the big ideas to transcend the granularity of today’s media mix?

How little clicks superseded the big idea

Being in the right place at the right time was always marketing’s core strategy. For most of its history, that meant renting room in everyone’s heads so your brand would be at the top of the pack when someone was ready to buy. Crystal-clear and well-wrought propositions conveyed through imaginative, emotional executions allowed brands to occupy well-defined emotional territories for that magical moment of purchase.

This was the ‘big idea’.

With each media innovation, from radio to smartwatches, the battleground expanded, and budgets tried to keep up. In the early days of the internet, it was still just posters on the screen, with Alex Tew’s Million Dollar Homepage representing peak experiential pandemonium.

But then, the entirety of human knowledge got squeezed into people’s hand-held devices. For brands, being in the right place at the right moment became operational rather than psychological.

Presence became the ‘big idea’, and everybody had it at the same time. Everything became a numbers game; clicks, hits, and likes were the new money. Measurement became all-important and promised the end (again) of the missing half of John Wanamaker’s advertising spend.

Suddenly, if it could not be counted it didn’t count. Data floated to the top of an increasingly unfathomable ocean of media possibilities. Data, data, data. At a time when we have more media options than ever before, the strategic playing field has narrowed almost to the point of singularity.

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