Media and Marketing Beyond The Algorithm – by Jaffer Ali

A creative genius cannot be trained. There are no schools
for creativeness. A genius is precisely a man who defies all
schools and rules, who deviates from the traditional roads
of routine and opens up new paths through land inaccessible
before. A genius is always a teacher, never a pupil; he is
always self-made. --Ludwig von Mises

In my last missive, The Algorithmic Debate Is Over, I promised to be more prescriptive for those who understand that spreadsheet-driven mathematicians and MBAs have all but lost the intellectual case for reducing human interactions to algorithmic formulas.

If you are still clinging to the premise that uncertainty can be tamed through better math, then you might as well move on and stop reading now, because I have nothing more to say to you. But if you want to understand what it means for you and your business to embrace the mystery and wonder of an uncertain future, read on.

First, we need to clarify something. I never meant to imply that historical data and information have no value. My point was merely to question the innate limitations of "rational" human behavior. If history has taught us anything, it's that too much faith placed in any man-made creation is a recipe for chaos down the line. Notice I said "faith". This word is anathema to those who preach of the science of certainty, despite their bewildering fundamentalist "faith" in the numbers.

It's difficult to prescribe precise rules of the road moving forward, especially when there are literally no rules. All of the self-help books that promise a short list of rules to success are hogwash. The road ahead is much more challenging and does not surrender to such simple prescriptions.

Rather, if we are to move beyond the algorithm, we must embrace uncertainty. We must be open to opportunities, but be ready, willing and able to say "no". We must be aggressive and yet tempered. We must be open to, yet reasonably wary of the latest "new" thing. We must embrace new technologies but understand their limitations.

In short, we must embrace a point of view that transcends the dichotomies. This is not a mixing and matching of yin and yang. It is an understanding of the implicit conflicts in what we think and do. Poets and philosophers have grasped this better than most. Sartre wrote Being and Nothingness. TS Eliot spoke of "the still point" that was neither toward nor from, neither up nor down. Mathematician/philosopher William Buyers called it "the blind spot". Artists have called it "the void". My good friend Jeff Einstein has called it "the gap".

We cannot afford to ignore the contradictions we face. As marketers, we cannot choose between data and creativity. We must understand that conflict itself is the source of the solution. It is when this dizzying array of technological and human challenges forces us into "the still point" that solutions manifest.

But we all too often become reflexive to one side of the dichotomy. How often have you had a conversation that ended, "that's not my model"? The prescription is to avoid the reflexive responses of saying "yes" to technology for technology's sake, and "no" to an idea that challenges your comfort zone and/or clashes with your business model.

Tensions abound when we pit the lessons of the past against the uncertainty of the future, when we attempt to pair business as usual with innovation. And yet it is this very creative tension from which innovation and solutions spring. Our most common form of handling contradictions is to try to mix and match from each side of the equation. But understanding that light is BOTH a wave and particle is not mixing and matching. One must recognize both aspects of reality and understand that contradiction is a fundamental part of reality and cannot be ignored.

If you are a marketer, you must understand the limitations of historical data. This alone will drive you to different solutions. It could drive you to owning your own media. It could drive you to developing new and interesting ways to engage your customers beyond stalking their every movement.

At the end of the day, we must all find the "still point", that special place that transcends, indeed defies algorithmic erudition. If history has taught us anything, it's that real genius never reveals itself in what is. Real genius resides in what could be.

Jaffer Ali is the CEO of the video network, Vidsense. To contact him, send an email to j.ali@vidsense.com.

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