The Fix is In

The fire is raging in our industry. Advertising agencies have turned from respected grandfathers to shifty teenagers, searching for their place, but remaining head-strong, regardless of consequence. 

The first step to upheaval, then rejuvenation, is finding those things that are most detrimental, and then using that opportunity to improve ourselves. Over the next few days, I'll talk about a few afflictions that plague our industry, and how to fix them.

(1) Lack of Conversation
We simply aren't connected enough.  We are not the connoisseurs of people and culture we like to pretend to be.  We barely listen, and more often that not, become more caught up in our own dogma than our responsibility to the consumer. We work harder to preserve our way of life, rather than understanding what the consumer values most.

The Fix:
Believe me, actually listening to, and more importantly, adapting to consumer wants is something we, as an industry, are worst at implementing. 

We change this by becoming a part of their communities, reading what they write and hearing what they say, and interacting and engaging with them.  That means talking, not only to your fans, but your enemies, and everyone in between.  It's about using our ability and resources to recognize what can make our clients greater, and their customers greatest.

photo from wild wood gallery via flickr.

Comments

[Mack Collier]

"We work harder to preserve our way of life, rather than understanding what the consumer values most."

Exactly. This is why so many times the campaign that wins all the ad awards ends up getting the agency fired because sales went south because of it.

[paulmcenany]

Totally. Just misplaced priorities...

[CK]

I'm lovin' this new series. This particularly resonated with me: "We barely listen, and more often that not, become more caught up in our own dogma than our responsibility to the consumer. We work harder to preserve our way of life, rather than understanding what the consumer values most."

Amazing what we accomplish when we listen and get outside of our own heads/agendas, eh?

Psst: I've tried to post this comment 3 times, so I hope it works this time...

[paulmcenany]

Hey, there it is! It finally worked!

kickass...