Big Picture Advertising: Jack Myers on the challenge for advertising

Jack Myers is a hugely influential media thinker in the US, with an exceptionally high quality reader base for his subscription email newsletters on media and pop culture. He posted on a list I read and I thought this excerpt was right on the money;

"The most significant issue in advertising today is not the creation of commercial avoidance technologies, but the need for great compelling creativity that generates audience interest and response. Advertisers need to approach advertising in the same way content developers approach programming: you need audiences to want to watch. When asked if they like advertising, people will naturally say they don't. Advertising is a part of the culture, and will continue to be into the foreseeable future. The challenge is for the media and creative communities to adapt new strategies and executions that creatively engage consumers - rather than yelling at them with intrusive messages."

As we mentioned in the post on the new Sky+ figures, the new technologies provide some great opportunities as well as threats. It's a great time to be in the advertising business as there have never been so many new ways to reach consumers. The issue is "Who has the talent to exploit these opportunities?

We think the future of advertising belongs to new companies that combine a knowledge or marketing with a good take on what is happening with technology - and can bring in the best talent for the most appropriate channels. Or will traditional ad creative teams, that much prefer making expensive 30 second TV commercials,triumph? We can't wait to find out.