Too Much Is Not Enough

Too Much Is Not Enough

Remember that old 80s mantra.

Times change. Too much is way more than anyone needs or can stand.

Marketing organizes and expresses brands to connect with their audience in meaningful ways and stand out from the crowd. But over the past few years’ lots of major media opportunities have become numbingly overexposed. In the drive to deliver ‘eyeballs’ or consumer impressions, successes big and small, proven or potential are repeated to the point that instead of meaningful connections, the audience is meaningfully disconnecting.

In the media business we’ve seen the exponential multiplication of any piece of programming that even hints at being successful. Ratings jump and network execs jump to put in new orders and clear the schedule for more nights. Really, does anyone want to see Howie Mandel for four hours every week?

Let’s look at car racing. Originally a rather niche sport, albeit one with a rabid following of loyalists, NASCAR has an image and a reality that aligned with real needs in the audience. Each broadcast was eagerly awaited by its fans. And a group of niche-y advertisers found a relevant and exciting environment for their brands. With the rise of multi-billion, multi-network television deals, the sport has

fundamentally transformed. Drivers are cloned through relentless media training into slim, 5’7’’, tow-headed second city weathermen.

They cease to talk to their audience with any genuine feeling or even personality. They master the ability to walk away from a 180 mph crash and congratulate the sponsor for supporting such a hard-0working crew. The adage of race on Sunday, sell on Monday has been recast. It isn’t about Ford guys and Chevy guys—it’s Home Depot vs Frosted Flakes. Sponsorship has reached the point of diminishing returns. Yes, the merchandizing runs across many platforms, from key rings to jackets to branded vacations—but how much can they mean when they’re everywhere? And, with NASCAR broadcasting Craftsman Trucks on Friday, Busch on Saturday and Nextel Cup on Sundays it’s overload for even the faithful. Ratings are down.

In baseball, Fox’s innovative coverage of the game is so innovative that it is hard to know exactly what we’re watching.  Constant re-plays start blending together with the actual plays and, and where are we?

There are, of course, are other examples of brand over-proliferation. New product extension gives us 22 different types of band-aids to choose from, an infinite number of toothpaste variants, and 15,000 new products in supermarkets every year.

So what?

It is certain that brand proliferation and extension generates incremental monies. But, long term does it help or hinder the franchise. And, does it help or hinder the consumer.

The absolute truth is that brands reflect a specific bond between its values and those of its audience. The greater the specificity, the stronger the bond. Look at the difference between Microsoft and Apple. We are not advocating ignoring new revenue, or gaining more shelf space. But, constant brand proliferation will diminish the bonds that consumers have with the brand. And that will lead to less ability to maintain strong margins. And that will accelerate the brand’s drive to commoditization.

And, there’s no profit there.

Brands need to think about media and delivery strategies that create and preserve the specialness of their messages. That will require better research and more specific understanding and definition of the audience. It will require understanding the nuance between and brand strategy and a media strategy. It will require communications that can prioritize the objectives to focus on an achievable goal. There will need to be, more so than ever, creative work that does more than simply entertain or create a sensation, but ‘say’ something meaningful about the brands place in the consumer’s world. That enhances the bond with the audience.

 Eyeballs are good, but not if they’re glazed over.

Why We Need The Friars Club

Let me say that I’ve gone to the Friars Club as a guest many times over the years and have always felt something that was supremely, innately ‘right’ about it.

Also let me say that I’m in the advertising business, have been since 1981. I’ve worked at and managed notable agencies. I’ve done the strategic planning, written and produced lots of tv and radio. Hired creative people from all over. And, the most important thing to me about my business is talent. The ability to think and write, to produce and present. It’s a lot like show business. If you’ve won a new account you know what ‘killing’ the audience is. And, sure as the sun, you know what it’s like to bomb and die. Over the recent past the ad business changed from being a talent business to a business of financiers. I still like to believe that in the end the only thing we ever have to make the money with is talent.

The Friars Club is still about talent. The Friars is one of the last bastions of talent. The Friars has the heritage and the currency of the days when value was the quality of the bit or the bridge. The delivery. The script or the production. The Friars holds the torch for everyone making it (or trying) on their ability to be creative. It is important because the world seems to be moving away from a focus on the individual talent and onto other, more generic things. 

Beyond that, I really appreciate the particular talents that go into being able to deliver eight thousand jokes in one set the way Rodney did. Or the verse and chorus that Chris Rock has developed in his recent bits. ‘Single and Bored’ is an amazing piece of comedy. As one who’s gotten up in front of  hundreds of sullen clients and sloshed peers over the years, I think I have a hint, only an inkling  of the unique abilities of the performer. To me there is nothing harder than going out on stage with nothing but yourself. The metrics for success are there on a second-by-second basis. The only tools are your ideas, words and delivery. It doesn’t really happen that way anywhere else.

And, other than the Friars Club, it isn’t celebrated anywhere else. I’d like to be part of that celebration.

Feel free to call anytime—-329-9979

There's A Lot of Great Work Here

'There's a lot of great work here.' With those words you can reliably expect to have said work never see the light of day. The kiss of death in a creative meeting.

There are several other phrases that say one thing but are bulletproof signals that you're going down in flames.

'You've given us lots to think about.'

'I want to share this with my team.'

'We're taking another look at our budgets.'

The reason all these killers work so well is that it aims to the soft and open heart of a creative. One puts every bit of commitment, enthusiasm and ego into presenting and sharing new work. And, one is left hanging. Naked. Waiting. Hoping.

The creative wants for nothing more than his audience to be receptive, welcoming. Nothing more than feeling the audience 'get it.'

And when the response is one of these killers or others it hurts.

Advertising Agencies Hate Ads. Why?

It's an interesting phenomenon this. Big gun creative directors always tying themselves to the mast of the new media. How many times have we seen a heavyweight creative directors, from a significant shop, pontificate about the ineffectiveness of general advertising. How they are taking their agency into the future, getting rid of the advertising writers, designers and art director and replacing them with digital experts. And, generally making a big deal of everything they think of but advertising.

I guess it seem to them that they're remaining current and then able to bring their clients the latest and greatest. Maybe it's a more personal need to stay on the leading edge. Maybe it is just short attention spans.

But, does it ever occur to them and their agency chiefs, that the primary revenue generator for the agencies is still advertising? That making ads is still the primary commodity of the advertising business?

I don't know, but if I were running one of the holding companies, I would get all the big gun CDs of each of the operating companies to make a big deal about the vitality of advertising.