Greg Hahn of Mischief fame and acclaim and I have never met. We left our big agency jobs (Greg's was way bigger than mine) around the same time and via similar sets of macro-economic circumstances. That is, our agencies didn't want to pay for talent anymore.
Two years ago, I wrote to Greg and asked him if he wanted some space in this space for a blog post. He kindly said "yes." And responded with this post. You can learn a lot from Greg. And should.
Along the way, Greg's agency Mischief has become the envy of just about every creative in the world and perhaps a thumb in the eye of so many agencies who believe in quantity over quality and tonnage over "stun"-age. Greg and his people do great work. It's great and therefore gains an outsized share of attention for the brands he works for.
Over the last few days we've all been assaulted by hype around the power of whatever specific AI someone is flogging and the changes it will bring to marketing and, of course, our jobs. I've read tons about the technology's capabilities and its writing and thinking abilities.
What I haven't read or even seen are anything but hosannas. Is anyone considering these questions?
1. Have you ever gotten customer service satisfaction from a bot or a computerized voice system?
2. Have you ever gotten a "data-driven" marketing message that was really relevant, not borrowed-interest or pandering relevant?
3. What percentage of marketing messages do you ignore?
4. What percentage of marketing messages do you find annoying?
5. Do you like when brands are always-on, and therefore always sending messages to you?
6. Do you want more messages?
7. Or better messages?
If you're like me, god forbid, and you believe as most neuro- scientists and psychologists do, that humans have 'ancient brains,' you probably believe that most people aren't looking for more messaging they're looking for more fun. Or more meat. Or more information. Not just more more.
I'm not saying AI is without value or utility. It can spur ideas from humans--but don't ask it to have ideas.
What's more, no one has yet said, and I've yet to see, a computer make something fun. Or weird. Or something that makes me want more.
That brings me back to Greg Hahn. And his post on Linked In yesterday morning--which is about getting more bang for your clients bucks. (Or as Bernbach put it, “It may well be that creativity is the last unfair advantage we're legally allowed to take over our competitors.”)
Which brought me here. Where I watched these. Enjoyed these.
Can AI do this? No seriously. Can AI make wine or just fill bottles with crap?
And, maybe more importantly, what is the purpose of marketing? To send out so many messages people eventually submit and crumble under the weight of your billions? Or to create something likable so people join you?
How would AI respond to this:
P.S. I'm not trying to get work from Mischief. I don't suppose they could afford me. (Though they could try.)
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