Keeping On Keeping On: An Announcement

Back then I was rather airily aiming at a post a week In fact in that first week I posted three leading Derek Jones then at Mediatel to suggest I spread it out a bit How right he wasI havenamp8217t managed to keep to the oneaweek target my estimate is that over 10 years Iamp8217ve posted about 450 times Missed target or not the cogs have been whirringReading some of the old posts Iamp8217m struck by how optimistic they are and how short Over time like my waistline theyamp8217ve expanded Theyamp8217ve also gotten angrier Theyamp8217re all easily found archived by year at wwwbjandacomblog and also here at MediaVillageWhen I started my career in the late 1960amp8217s I was very proud to work in advertising I was indeed still am fascinated by how we mix creativity and numbers amp8211 to harken back to last weekamp8217s post by magic and logicToday Iamp8217m more disappointed and frustrated than proud The majority of people inhabiting what they refer to as the ad business are nothing to do with advertising Instead theyamp8217re technocrats and sales people more interested in numbers on a spreadsheet than in the ads themselvesTo make it worse these people donamp8217t understand nor do they care about audiences and how they behave All they care about is maximizing the numbers in the measured audience even if the numbers are meaningless Make them bigger regardless Thatamp8217s ignorance masquerading as a policyHow we got to this state is a long long story involving technology understood by the few vested interests holding companies driving their media arms to deliver everincreasing profits to make up for underdeliveries elsewhere advertisers who donamp8217t want to admit theyamp8217ve been focussed on the wrong thing a trade press concerned with not upsetting the platforms and an agency sector that shies away from controversy to focus on far more easily supportable societal argumentsThere are of course many good guys amp8211 the strategic planners and thinkers the fraud researchers those in the attention measurement game doing all they can to move the industry forward the indie agencies placing transparency ahead of easy money advertisers who place creativity ahead of convenience those always seeking to learn to do better and those from my generation raging against the dying of the lightBut weamp8217re not the industry however much we may think we should beIncreasingly the debate is less about advertising and more about technology less about meeting client needs and business objectives and more about selling snake oilI must admit Iamp8217m finding it increasingly difficult to write a regular weekly post even if itamp8217s less than weekly in reality about things I care little about And which to be honest I donamp8217t always fully understandFrankly there are quite enough people pontificating about things they donamp8217t understand The world doesnamp8217t need another one And so Iamp8217m going to stop doing itI wonamp8217t stop The Cog Blog altogether I still care a lot about the ad industry and I like to think I still have something to say Itamp8217s just that I wonamp8217t be saying it quite as oftenI shall in the words of one of my favorite authors Alan Bennett be quotkeeping on keeping onquot You will still be able to find me on LinkedIn Facebook Twitter and on my site If you subscribe for free Iamp8217ll still let you know when I post anything of earthshattering importanceIamp8217ll still consult appear on platforms chair events and work with those whoamp8217ll have meMy hope for the industry has never been that we go back to some golden age that never really existed but that we come to our senses and realize we are here to do great work that works for our clients even maybe especially if theyamp8217re heading in the wrong directionWeamp8217re here to advise objectively Whatever the shortterm consequences might be for our own bottom lineI am hopeful Things go around principles survive and reappear We realize this more as we get older In the words of the great Alan Bennett quotAt 80 things do not occur they recurquotThanks for reading and au revoirPosted at MediaVillage through the Thought Leadership selfpublishing platformClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageorgMyersBizNet

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Keeping On Keeping On: An Announcement

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Brian Jacobs

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Keeping On Keeping On: An Announcement

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