Chris Riley, Head of Account Planning for Apple, was in Portland last night. His talk centered on one question: “Now that the consumer is able to be as creative in our media as we are, what are we to do?”
The roar in the creative world is more and more coming from those who were once too small to play. It is coming from all directions. A citizen army of Weekend Warhols, now armed with Macs and digital cameras without a scent of commercial intent. Good work from the fringes. Good work everywhere.
Riley noted how the cost of making an impact has dropped sharply. In 1984, the Macintosh “1984” ad cost plenty. Ridley Scott was given a $900k budget, and then Apple paid $800k for the 60 second ad slot during the Super Bowl. The commercial was the first example of what John Sculley called “event marketing,” the goal of which was to create a promotion so groundbreaking that it deserves as much coverage as the product itself. Contrast this with today, where a Korean teenager named Funtwo can perform a stadium rock version of Pachebel’s Canon from his bedroom and draw 7.3 million viewers for a cost of zero dollars. This reflects how the line is blurring between amateur and professional, and how big money does not necessarily effect a big impact. Further, attention is more and more being drawn to creative work devoid of any commercial intent. This is folk expression of a new age. But thanks to technology, this is less like the scrawl of Howard Finster. This new expression is professional grade.
There is something else going on here. Amateurs are generating their own content, but they are fond of reacting too. Driven largely by Millennials, participation is the new creative currency. When Millennials are passionate about a product, idea or cause, they now have the means to create and participate. Social media is their collaboration system. This is a new twist to Sculley’s “event marketing.” Rather than provoking the media to create a buzz, we rely on capturing the imagination (litteraly) of the New Amateurs (i.e. Snakes on a Plane).
The old way was for a company to have a monologue with consumers. A creative agency would team up with a company and have a one way, downhill conversation with us, through television or print. This foundation has eroded now that the consumer is creatively armed and able.
The new way is for a company to have a dialogue with its consumers. Our job as creatives is to facilitate this dialogue, and make sure the means by which it takes place is fresh and interesting. Brands then have to meet their consumers half way, and let go of the reigns at some point. It is the consumers who want to be trusted, and are going to spread your message the farthest.
The picture Mr. Riley paints is nothing new, but the answer how we react to it has yet to be answered. The first step is beginning to recognize that the consumer is grown up now, and is very capable of joining the conversation.
Great points, all very relevant to our current media culture. One thing to note is the dishonest feeling when companies try too hard to jump on a grassroots bandwagon. The infamous Coke Zero blog, the "hey look at us, we're so viral" Agency.com Subway pitch, faux mySpace profiles and advertisements disguised as podcasts...they always ring false to me.
Yet when you see the things fans have done with a brand like Nintendo...everything from live re-enactments of games, to insane musical remixes, to having Mario jumping on Sony president Kaz Hirai's head...it somehow works.
On Sep.19.2006 at 11:25 PM