Tag Archives: Knowledge Creation

The Future of Advertising?

Ever tried to predict the future? Not easy, is it?

I don’t know if this article comes close but it is an interesting read. Dax Hamman, Chief Product Officer, Rubicon Project, did a nice job with it.

ProgrammaticMind Issue 10 22

The future of advertising may take many forms, some of which may not even be known to us at present – wait, let me jump into my time travel Shuttlecraft (on loan from Star Fleet) and I’ll get back with you.

ProgrammaticMind Issue 10 1

 

Until then, the publishers of Rubicon have put together an intriguing read in this their 2016 Biannual Issue, The Programmatic Mind.

Whatchathink?

Well, for one thing, how will advertisers get consumers to pay attention to ads if when we all live in an era of super-saturation? The author states we start by using information as advertising – using data available to us in order to make our ads as relevant as possible so the consumer has no choice but to pay attention.

Hmmmm, I thought that’s what we try and do everyday . . . now. That’s what smart creativity is supposed to do. Let’s face it, cutesy only goes so far! Mr. Hamman further states “. . . that elegant design won’t be enough if your ads are not providing valuable information.” That’s true.

I agree with the author when he says the future of advertising is full of tremendous promise. It’s also full of a whole bunch of challenges and subsequent responsibilities. Information overload will, I think, be even more so than it is today.

Still, consumers are a fickle bunch; they’re also quite intelligent and can certainly discern an ad that makes sense, is relevant and interesting. Our future world will most likely be more intense, with more information, quite problematic, more programmatic and probably more “anything-atic.”

Oh, boy, pass the Excedrin!

Since you folks will undoubtedly have a thought or two on this subject and the article, pro and con, let me know. Don’t be bashful. There’s plenty of Excedrin for all of us.

Creativity Tip #7: Control Freaks Not Welcome!

Creativity. We can play with it. We can enjoy it. We can experience it. We just can’t – and shouldn’t – control it. But we want to!

Individuals love to control things. That’s usually when we get into trouble. Creativity doesn’t respond well to control. In fact, when we try to control everything, we stifle creativity.

Shame on us! We should know better, but some of us don’t.

As noted in a previous Creativity Tip, one doesn’t manage creativity (let alone control it); one manages for creativity.

Creativity, somewhat like a child, flourishes in an environment that encourages innovative thought – and the time in which to do it. Nobody gets ahead in a scenario that screams “I need a creative idea and I need it in five minutes, and, oh yeah, it better be a damn good one!” Sadly, that’s an environment that does exist. It probably hails from a mindset of fast thinking – most of the time.

Men in general, research suggests, tend to have this mindset; they feel they need to make decisions instantly. Women, not so much.

Here’s where we tend to get into trouble. By putting an unrealistic time parameter on devising a “creative” idea (I’m not talking about brainstorming, here), one tries to control the creative process. The opposite is usually the result. Creativity is stifled.

What happened to allotting time for quiet, contemplative thinking? Now, I’m not talking about going into a room, sitting in the corner and contemplating one’s naval for two hours. Sometimes our “quiet time” is no more than 30-minutes (if not less). Still, without this time to gather one’s thoughts and even put them in some sort of context, we’re short circuiting our creative process, and the end result.

Women, in general, are better at this contemplative thinking because they tend to mull things over more than men do. Now, obviously, one size does not fit all. I know several men and women who would turn these findings on their head. I, too, don’t usually make instant decisions, but it depends upon what I’m deciding.

When we slow down the fast thinking and spend more time in the contemplative state, our creativity will flourish and the end results will be much better.

But, do we have the courage to do that?

Creativity Tip #4

How do you know when you’ve hit THE idea? There are different approaches but this one is sort of like thinking in reverse. I call it the Drill Down Technique.

Begin with writing a one or two word idea on a small “sticky note.” These ideas address or answer a specific question that attempts to solve a problem.

coloredstickies

This works better in a group of about four or five, and is a timed exercise of about ten minutes.

So have a timer (electronic or a person) monitor closely.

Once you have, say, 25 or more ideas (“stickies”), choose what you consider to be the best five ideas . . . and ELIMINATE THEM.

At this point, most likely whoever is keeping time will come by and collect the now-discarded ideas. They no longer exist for (for now).

Choose five more from your “sticky notes” and ELIMINATE THEM.

Continue this process in increments of five until you have five best ideas left. Then eliminate three, then one.

Maybe this last idea you have is the best one; maybe not. However, it’s one to which you may not have paid much attention if you had gone through these ideas in a more traditional way.

Now, go do your due diligence and find out.

You never know.