There's a fog that's settled over our industry that's obscured our vision to the point where some can't even see their image in a mirror. This is a fog that says advertising is a technology industry.
I saw a parallel to this miasma in "The New York Times" this morning in an op-ed by Nicholas Kristoff. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/23/opinion/23kristof.html?hp
Kristoff starts his column this way: "What if nutritionists came up with a miracle cure for childhood malnutrition? A protein-rich substance that doesn’t require refrigeration? One that is free and is available even in remote towns like this one in Niger where babies routinely die of hunger-related causes?
"Impossible, you say? Actually, this miracle cure already exists. It’s breast milk.
"When we think of global poverty, we sometimes assume that the challenges are so vast that any solutions must be extraordinarily complex and expensive. Well, some are. But almost nothing would do as much to fight starvation around the world as the ultimate low-tech solution: exclusive breast-feeding for the first six months of life. That’s the strong recommendation of the World Health Organization."
The problem with advertising today isn't our lack of technology or our inability to reach consumers because of their technology.
The problem with advertising today is that most work is dumb, pedantic and boring.
Technology can't solve dumb, pedantic and boring.
Better stories can.
