The Age of Advertising Creativity in a Time of Disruption

As with other parts of the media industry agencies are experiencing transformative change It is no longer enough to ply spots and dots in siloed media Agencies that succeed are employing a range of innovative creative driven solutions to better connect with their consumers and ultimately reinforce the brand personality and drive sales quotWe need to reach out beyond the traditional media planquot explained Rob Rakowitz Director of Global Media for Mars IncJack Myers Chairman of MediaVillage and a noted media ecologist spoke of the futurelooking trends impacting our industry quotWe are entering the golden age of advertising creativequot he stated quotThe economics around content are challenged and questioned We are dealing with a lot of issues in an age of algorithms data science adblocking ad clutter and ad avoidance If we make it all science and too little art advertising becomes moot and irrelevant The emphasis on ad creative is pivotalquotBut concentrating on ad creative is challenging Alison Tarrant Executive Vice President Client Partnerships Group NBCUniversal explained quotWe have been in the custom content space for many years What has changed is how we need to adapt high quality TV creative to advertising and be nimble across platforms How we can be faster cheaper better Being nimble in the market is one of our biggest challenges The need to develop creative at a high production level is another big challengequotBut there are many success stories companies such as Mars and Mondelez presented their efforts on creating content that serves both the consumers39 need for entertainment and engagement as well as the advertisers39 need for reinforcing and strengthening the brand personality and maximizing ROIMars amp8211 Reaching Out Beyond the Traditional Media Planamp8220We at Mars are expanding role of media beyond mass reachamp8221 Rakowitz explained To do this the company needed to get a sense of the amp8220Mars journeyamp8221 amp8211 the blurring of lines between commerce data and creative and driving the idea of more convergent media amp8220How it effects content weaves into tech and how it drives commerceamp8221 he added amp8220We look at outcomes not just outputs to drive brand growthamp8221Mars contends with a range of amp8220moresamp8221 more data platforms and disruptions amp8220It is a confusing exciting exhilarating time to work in this space trying to make sense of it allamp8221 Rakowitz admitted Some examples of how Mars is serving change include its work in creating online vignettes for Twix and cooking demonstrations to show the value of adding grains to a meal for a specific Uncle Benamp8217s packaged rice product Rakowitz says Mars strives for two vectors amp8220Timeless and timely Timeless tells a consistent brand story that is enduring and memorable and timely brings in the moment and driving talk abilityamp8221Mondelez amp8211 Building Dragons Not Unicorns Mondelez39 Chief Media and eCommerce Officer B Bonin Bough demonstrated that even an established brand like Oreo can expand its brand story and make it relevant and valuable to todayamp8217s consumer amp8220Disruption sits on the shoulder of giantsamp8221 Bough explained amp8220You needed Hilton to get to Airbnb and Henry Ford to Uber vs taxisamp8221 In the case of Oreo Mondelez allowed customers to design their own custom packaging and then directly shipped the product to the consumer amp8220It is all about communicating to customers Even a cookie can sit in the chain from disruption to wonderamp8221 he added amp8220It could change a brand foreveramp8221Oreo celebrated Gay Pride in 2012 with Rainbow icing layers demonstrating that a cookie could have a point of view on culture In 2014 Mondelez used a 3D printer to print a customized Oreo based on current trends amp8220We are planting the seed of innovation and building amp8216mass customamp8217amp8221 he said amp8220There is a huge opportunity for disruptionamp8221But finding and nurturing the right talent is a big challenge Bough admits that amp8220Right now everyone is looking for unicorns but few unicorns survive past five years We have a unique opportunity to build dragons not unicorns We need to reskill our entire organization in order to disrupt in a large corporation We need to find a coalition of the willing Those in the organization who want to bring about change We need intrapreneurs and to celebrate those in organizations who bring about change like we celebrate outside entrepreneursamp8221ConclusionThe disruptive future looks bright for companies like Mars and Mondelez But more needs to be done As Jack Myers concluded amp8220We need to bring more young people and more multiculturalism into our business Our business must reflect the audience we are talking toamp8221Image at top courtesy of Corbis The opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillageMyersBizNet management or associated bloggers

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The Age of Advertising Creativity in a Time of Disruption

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Charlene Weisler

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Charlene Weisler

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