The Triumph of Theory.

I don't remember where or when I first heard it, but it hit me like an avalanche. 

Mostly because it might have made me obsolete.

The phrase I'm talking about became popular with the rise of planning. 

Around the time the word "insight," replaced the notion of facts.

I was told and told and told then told some more, that giant purchases were no longer based on rational reasons why. 

Rather they were based on brands forming an emotional connection to people.

Brands had to be cool.

Part of culture.

If they liked the music I liked, or endorsed the causes I believe in, I'd like them.

I grew up in a different era where, I believe, clients and their agencies had more respect for the intelligence of their potential customers. They believed that not every purchase was impulse based. That if someone were buying something that cost a couple of week's salary, they might want an actual reason why one such offering was different/better than another.

Here's one example.

I annotated the copy below and numbered all the facts I noticed. I bet you know more about this 1961 Volkswagen than you do about anything Volkswagen has made in the last 30 years. Or longer.

What precipitated this post was an article I just read in Monday's Wall Street Journal. 

I read it before 7AM on Monday, and I immediately sent it to a group of my ad friends. Senior people of my generation who still care.

If I were an automaker, or I currently had a car-account, it would scare the shit out of me. I've enumerated two bits you might want to pay especial attention to.

1. "Look-Alike Range Rover." I underscored that because a lot of marketing used to be about adding value to a brand or a product by telling people what made it different and better. Anyone can make a car that looks like a more expensive car. If you don't tell people of the intrinsic value of your product or service, they'll almost invariably choose the cheaper look-alike.

Generics work for pharmaceuticals where the composition of a drug is regulated. You can't change the formula. It has to be the same. Generics don't work for products that vie for customers' dollars. But most advertising advertises generics. Most advertising fails to include useful consumer information proprietary to the brand or product paying for the ad.

This sameification of everything has destroyed countless brands--and just about every agency brand and every agency creative. No, it's not enough to say you're award winning, or borderless, or anything else. You have to find, establish, inculcate and own your intrinsic better-ness. 

2. U.K.'s bestselling vehicle in September. In September, 2025, Chery, the Chinese-owned manufacturer of the ersatz Range Rover was barely in the top-20 in UK sales. A year later, they're #1.

Of course brands like Range Rover left themselves vulnerable. 

They stopped (just as ad agencies and copywriters have stopped, and politicians and hotels and restaurants have stopped) telling people why they're worth more.

I do understand how these ads could get me to spend more on a particular product or service.

I am unable to fathom what these ads do to help a brand attract a premium price.

There are a lot of theories behind the decline and fall of advertising. 

If you ask ten ad people, you'll probably get twenty different reasons. Maybe thirty if one of those people is in senior management.

The fracturing of the media landscape.

The rise of the holding companies.

The demise of the commission system.

A lot of people will blame consumers. 

They'll say they don't care.

Can't read.

Don't watch.

Care more about influencers and peer reviews.

I don't really buy any of those reasons.

I think the reason people stopped caring about advertising is that advertising stopped caring about people.

Advertising stopped giving people useful information so they could make better decisions that would get them the most for the money they've spent.

Advertising stopped serving people and started pandering to them.

You probably think all of this is stupid.

But if you were writing your dating profile or selling your apartment, you'd probably find a way to differentiate yourself, to make what it is you have to sell desirable among thousands of look-alikes.

I wrote the ad to sell my Connecticut home already, though it's not for sale.

Here's the first sentence.

"We're as close to the sea as you can get without being in a flood zone. But if you're a light sleeper, beware. The sound of the waves and a distant clanging of a buoy bell might keep you up at night."

This is the shit people usually write:

"Meticulously maintained and beautifully updated, this exceptional home offers refined coastal living in the desirable Fenwood Beach Association."

You choose.