1) What trends, developments or issues would you point to so far in 2015 as being most significant, perhaps carrying implications for the rest of the year and beyond?
2) What work (advertising or entertainment) —your own or others’—has struck a responsive chord with you this year and why?
3) What work (advertising or entertainment) —your own or others’—has struck you as being the most effective strategically and/or creatively in terms of meshing advertising and entertainment?
4) Though gazing into the crystal ball is a tricky proposition, we nonetheless ask you for any forecast you have relative to the creative and/or business climate for the second half of 2015 and beyond.
5) What do recent honors on the awards show circuit (Cannes Lions winners, AICP Show/AICP Next Award honorees, AICE winners or Emmy nominations spanning comedy, drama, documentary, etc.) tell us in terms of creative and/or strategic themes and trends in the industry at large?
6) What new technology, equipment or software will you be investing in later this year or next year for your company or for yourself personally, and why? Or, tell us about what new technology investment you’ve made this year and why it was a good decision – or not?
Mid year Survey Reponses Continued:
Lola Lott, principal/CEO, charlieuniformtango
2) Without a doubt it would be Procter & Gamble’s Always “#LikeAGirl” .
Kudos to Procter & Gamble and Always for creating a message in a natural documentary style that addresses a larger social issue instead of a typical product demo, :30 testimonial, or comedic relief of an embarrassing female moment. By interviewing young women, young boys, and young girls we see first hand their negative social views. Most important, this campaign builds confidence, encourages pride among young girls, while the secondary effect builds brand loyalty in a softer nontraditional way. This is advertising at its best.
3) Be it intentional strategy or just good social media viral karma, the meshing of advertising and entertainment could not be better than in the example of Matthew McConaughey’s Lincoln commercials for the MKZ Hybrid. The original spots were shot well, feature an environmentally responsible hybrid vehicle, star a Hollywood Oscar winning actor, and a big old bull. The fun didn’t stop there, top comedians like Conan, Ellen, and Jim Carrey wanted to jump in and create their own ad spoofs. These parodies not only had us laughing out loud, they increased the brand exposure for Lincoln, increased their target audience, extended the life of the spots, and most impressive sales increased by 25%. (the largest increase since 2007)
In the words of Mr. McConaughey, “Alright, Alright, Alright!”
4) Brands will continue to embrace and explore focused strategic digital content.
We are seeing top brands open to creating longer format content, narrative style pieces, and targeted experiential messaging. For companies like LMF and Charlie Tango that offer top talent and flexible turnkey solutions the opportunity to collaborate and explore is endless. We are finding this work to be very creative and an exciting compliment to our advertising portfolio.
Skyler Mattson, managing director, WongDoody
2) The celebration of Dads is a cool thing and something that continues to strike a chord with me (a Mom). Campaigns like the recent ones from Dove Men + Care ad during Super Bowl as well as spots from Toyota and Nissan were powerful, emotional and authentic. This advertising is super relevant to the growing role Dads are taking on at home and with kids. Big brands that traditionally targeted mom (P&G and Vicks) are now featuring Dad because they understand Dads are starting to do more and more of the shopping. But featuring Dad also appeals to women…especially when Dad is showing his sensitive side and saving the day with his kids. Also of note along these lines, Amazon Mom just changed its name to Amazon Parent!
4) There has been a massive proliferation of apps for everything: from getting transportation to buying groceries to banking, everything can be done through apps. Technology is increasingly mobile (on your wrist, in your hand) and apps are easier than traditional websites for consumers to access the content they want. Brands that want to stay ahead will need to develop apps early—but not just functional apps—consumers will want engaging content and a seamless user experience.
5) It’s been really inspiring to see so much work honored this year not just for its creativity but for its social purpose. Cannes honored brands that solved long-standing problems or at least brought attention to important issues. These included campaigns for building cyclist safety in the UK, reducing iodine deficiencies in India and building self-esteem among girls. Brands with a higher purpose have a more loyal following and consumers are raising their expectations of what they want to see from the companies they support. This theme can be seen in entertainment as well. The Golden Globes honored Transparent early this year – a show that shines light on the transgender community and does so with courage and compassion. Whether from advertising or entertainment, people want to feel a connection to something bigger – and something important. It’s beautiful to see professionals in the creative fields of both advertising and entertainment using their super powers for good.
Jennifer Usdan McBride,
director of digital production, J. Walter Thompson New York
4) I would expect to see more campaigns that reflect the hacker culture. If brands can show that they think differently and efficiently to solve your problems, it’s more likely that you will identify with and invest in that brand. I think that’s a powerful notion.
5) Campaigns that address social issues or causes such as Like a Girl, Holograms for Freedom and the Ice Bucket Challenge were rewarded and recognized this year. It was also exciting to see recognition of brands that invested in technology that weren’t germane to their core product, like Volvo Cars’ LifePaint.
6) Apple Watch. It seems contradictory but I can’t stop thinking about how this device might help us disconnect from our phones and curb the incessant need to check our devices every three minutes. I’ve enjoyed the creative discussions and lists of possible projects that we could develop for it. I think the success of the Apple Watch will depend on the apps that make it indispensable. Investing in the device is the first step toward being the team that builds that utility.
Tim McGuire, CEO, Cutters Studios
1) Ad agencies continue to wrestle one another for new business as well as fighting to hold onto the business they have. Loyalty is often out the window, with large and even small advertisers playing one agency against the other.
How productive is that? CMOs have such a short life span that when they join a company they think they have to put their ad account in review because they need instant change to put their mark on a brand even before they know if their predecessor’s new campaign has been successful. Is that smart? Is an agency ever comfortable enough with a client relationship to be able to tell the advertiser what it really thinks instead of what the advertiser wants to hear?
Pins and needles do not make for great ideas and that’s what I see going on in the ad world today. We have wonderful agency relationships and we want to help them navigate these waters, and yet it sometimes seems that the currents are running too strong against them.
4) Forecasting the business climate in advertising and content development is like predicting the weather, but here goes. We see continued opportunities in all areas from production through post. The requests for these different services are ever-expanding from ad agencies to the advertisers themselves. Content is exploding… from the very high level productions to run and gun. Advertisers are now aware of the need and value in quality – whether it’s for TV, theatrical or other social media platforms. At the end of the day, they need great storytellers in production through VFX, design, editorial and audio and they need it fast. Those that can contribute at that high level, who can also get that run-and-gun content quickly and efficiently when necessary, will find success in 2016 and beyond.
5) The many socially relevant documentary projects that are sponsored by advertisers are wonderful reflections on the social consciousness movement going on in the world today, and advertising has jumped right in. Our company and editor/partner Kathryn Hempel were fortunate to work on the #LikeAGirl documentary for Leo Burnett and Always that has inspired young girls to be bold achievers.
Globally it has over a hundred million views, it won 14 Cannes Lions including the Titanium and the new Glass Lion that explicitly addresses issues of gender inequality and prejudice. Along with smashing success in the AICP Show and every other major awards competition, it is also in contention for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Commercial. Along with our creative partners around the world, we are continuing this trend with projects for Esurance, Toyota, Abbott Labs and other brands.
PJ Pereira, chief creative officer, Pereira & O’Dell
1) Nothing is more important right now in this industry than the divide between technical, direct response and algorythmic development against the content approach. In a certain way, it’s like the marketing world has decided to stop trying to merge art and science under the same roof, and let technology take care of the fast results and is bringing the artists to tell stories that are worth the consumers time – cause that’s not something you can buy anymore.
2) My favorite piece of advertising was a short film by Anomaly NY titled Gentlemen’s Wager A cool, sexy, surprising stories of two men fighting for a boat that is “rarer than air”. Surprisingly, it didn’t steal the award shows circuit this year, but I still think it’s the best thing Ive seen in the last twelve months.
3) I love how unpretentious the work we did for 1800 Contacts is. It has a simple, fool proof line we can execute over and over again. And it’s going to start to get really fun. Ultimately, it’s a very old school way of doing advertising, but it cause a spike in sales like they haven’s seen in a long time.
4) Formats that don’t require creative ideas whatsoever will grow – all the stuff a computer can do. As will formats that are purely creative, artistic. Ideas that don’t have to fall under the tyranny of a format imposed by a TV station, magazine, board… just good stories that consumers want to spend time with. And that’s a good thing.
5) If you watch the recent shows carefully, the message is clear: as content become more important and frees us from established formats, the industry has gone too far in telling great stories that have a brand in it, but not strongly enough to be remembered. They are telling us that we can’t abuse this freedom and have to stay very disciplined. It’s an important message. Discipline is what separates us from other creative forms.
Rupert Samuel, executive director of content production, CP+B
1) I think one of the bigger issues that many of us are having to address is our SAG signatory status and how that affects relationships with clients who are not signatory, and may look to shoot non-union. This is especially true in the social content space where SAG’s jurisdiction can affect agencies’ abilities to cost-effectively and speedily do our jobs. This needs to be figured out, otherwise the agencies that struggle to be competitive and often have to convince clients to pay so much in talent fees (especially for non-actors) are going to be forced to deal with this.
2) I am really digging the Finlandia Vodka work that Siri Bunford recently directed featuring eccentric and unique individuals’ takes on life. To me the in-your-face style, strong point of view and well-researched material made for a very effective campaign. I also just watched AT&T’s “Close to Home” that BBDO produced and Frederic Planchon shot, about texting and driving. I found it extremely powerful. Having just had a baby boy, I think the consequences of one’s actions mean so much more, so this really struck home for me. I thought it was wonderfully shot and executed.
3) Well I want to selfishly highlight the campaign we are in the midst of for NBA 2K16. The initial launch spot, which aired recently, features Spike Lee, who NBA 2K hired to write and direct the story behind the single player mode in the game, which this year gives the player the ability to star in their own interactive narrative, allowing them the ability to customize their own story as to how they might rise to the NBA.
We are currently finishing the rest of the campaign that will highlight the personal stories of this year’s cover athletes—Stephen Curry, James Harden and Anthony Davis – by featuring highlights that span their careers. Cameron Harris, our creative director, directed the campaign and we produced it entirely in house. This gave us the ability to shoot an enormous amount of content with a very meager budget, maximizing the exposure to the players and Spike Lee, and inherently giving us the legs to blur the lines between advertising and entertainment.
4) I think that the ability to be able to provide a powerful and flexible suite of production solutions in house is going to become more and more the norm. This goes far beyond having a few editors, motion graphics guys, and a couple of cameras. We are in the middle of this transition now with a team of over 40 staff dedicated to creating compelling content in house. Our main goal is the ability to provide the talent and options for both creatives and clients to feel great about in a cost effective manner. I think we just proved that with the work we produced for NBA 2K16 and we have only just scratched the surface.
We are currently in the midst of forming some very interesting partnerships in the entertainment space that I think will surprise many with the capabilities we are going to be able to provide to our creatives and clients. So watch this space, its getting exciting.
5) I think brands that are figuring out how to give back as part of their strategy, whether that’s making a customers’ life better or creating passionate interactions by driving their consumers to a cause they might care about is something that people are growing to expect more and more. In the realm of short attention spans and vast choices, these kind of stories make for truly compelling content that consumers actually give a shit about. The type of work generated from this premise is getting more and more attention on the award show circuit.
6) We are investing substantially in our internal production capabilities with big plays in the production, post and finishing space, making investments in camera/grip gear, studio space upgrades and Smoke purchases, along with edit stations, server and throughput upgrades. Another area, which we are leaning on our partners at MDC to help guide us in, is the creation of an all-encompassing data asset management solution for all of CP+B’s offices worldwide that takes into account past investments and future needs. This is no small task with all the offices and department functionalities, but something which I think will help streamline our process, especially with the explosive growth we are seeing in content creation and how we can share and manage that data. It will also provide a more efficient and metered system that allows us to fairly bill our clients based on their needs.
Lauren Schwartz, owner/executive producer, kaboom productions
1) We’ve turned the corner in terms of “content” being more pervasive than broadcast. Even when projects have a broadcast component, the media is being used for online, social or mobile. As a company with “slash-directors”- director/agency creative director, director/editor etc.—we are well positioned to leverage those capabilities on behalf of clients and their content needs. We can have higher-level strategic and creative conversations, and the partnerships with clients can run very deep, with exceptional results. I think we will only see greater and more diverse content needs moving forward. The challenge will be maintaining high production values and standards, being very flexible and nimble in our approach, and also educating our clients on the need to keep the budgets reasonable as these needs become greater.
2) We were fortunate to develop a new relationship with Hill Holiday, and have developed a collaborative partnership with them and their client Bank of America. To date, we’ve created a number of projects, the most recent of which was for the Special Olympics World Games. This campaign was incredibly meaningful to everyone at kaboom, most significantly to director Doug Werby, who was tasked with, and ultimately able to capture, wonderfully inspiring stories. We were all impressed with Bank of America’s support of this amazing organization, and the athletes profiled are awe-inspiring. Our next project takes us back to the Special Olympic World Games and will cover significant moments at the event. We can’t wait.
4) The industry is on the road to recovery and while we are confident that there will be an ongoing need for great content of all forms, we need to be careful (collectively) that the projects remaining are not just the very top and bottom tiers. Much like the national political discussion regarding the need for a strong middle class, we need a strong set of production companies who can handle the “middle tier” and “upper-middle tier” work. And to do that—we need “middle tier” budgets. There’s a lot of pressure to keep production values high and budgets low, which can lead to a race to the bottom. The health of the business depends on the folks in the middle who can stretch both ways…without hitting the bottom.
Leslie Sims, chief creative officer, Y&R New York
1) People say we are in a new Golden Age of Television, but we’re really in the Golden Age of Streaming Content. It’s not enough to be viewed sitting next to great entertainment— you have to be the great entertainment too. TV might still be the best way to reach a large audience at once, but consumers expect so much more from those ads.
3) Geico’s “Unskippable” by The Martin Agency. The first time I saw it I wanted to punch myself in the face we didn’t think of it first. It’s human nature that we’ll watch something for as long as it stays interesting. It just goes to prove there are great opportunities right under our noses every day. Any brand could have done that ad, but Geico wins because they were the first ones to actually do it—immaculately so, I would add.
4) CMOs understand how important it is to give consumers a reason to want to engage with their brands, but oftentimes with shrinking budgets, clients can sometimes get a little gun-shy about trying new things. I hope that marketers can get a little more comfortable with experimenting, take a step out of a comfort zone and try out new forms of media for previously impossible ways to showcase their brands. Even if the medium you try isn’t a widely used platform, the shareable PR around a savvy use of the medium can carry you a long way.
5) With clients in such high attendance at awards shows now, particularly Cannes, I’m wondering if we might not start to see a shift on the focus from the winning ideas for pro bono clients to more of am emphasis on great ideas—including but not limited to cause-related ideas—for major consumer brands.
6) FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WILL ELON MUSK JUST PLEASE MAKE A FREAKING IPHONE BATTERY CASE ALREADY.
John Stapleton, EVP, chief creative officer, 22squared
1) It’s funny, when things start to not go so well, we always tell ourselves; “Don’t sweat it, it’s not like we are saving lives here. It’s just advertising.” Well, if you take a quick glance at some of the Cannes Grand Prix winners, you will see ideas and marketing initiatives that are doing just that. Saving lives. My personal favorite is “The Lucky Iron Fish,” a campaign developed to help prevent the health-destroying consequences of anemia.
2) Geico’s “Unskippable” campaign was flat out amazing. As people look to avoid advertising, it’s fun to see work that breaks through in new forms. The execution of the dog in one version was my favorite. As for entertainment, I would say the documentary, Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck really grabbed my attention. I am amazed at how they layered Kurt’s illustrations and brought them to life using his voice recordings. It’s quite breath-taking.
4) We are going to continue to see advertising and content blurring together. People including myself can go through their entire day now without seeing one single ad. But if an ad was less of an ad and more of a piece of entertainment, education or mobile experience, it could change the game quite a bit.
5) Creatively, we are in an era of anti-heroes. After years and years of highlighting the champions and the positivity in all of us, I think we are tired of it and want the opposite for a change. In advertising, we are seeing this grow each and every year. The Always “#LikeaAGirl” campaign or the Under Armour “I Will What I Want” are two great examples. Even the Honda “The Other Side” found a great digital experience to highlight an anti-hero story.
We’ve also been seeing this trend play out in entertainment. People love seeing anti-heroes more than traditional ones – from Breaking Bad to Fargo to True Detective. We crave flawed characters fighting their way through pain, trying to do good, but choosing bad decisions to get there. It’s a great formula to embrace and I think we will continue to see more of it in the coming years.
6) We are all Google now. We use Gmail, Google Calendars, and now Chromebox to connect our offices and our people. We’re also using Google Slides, Docs and Sites to work seamlessly together. It’s pretty amazing to watch. I once stopped in the office at 11pm the night before a client presentation and there were nine people all working together on the same presentation from different locations. Creative teams, account people, strategists and proofreaders all in the presentation. All on separate pages. All modifying and making the work better. Together. This is the future of technology. To help us tell engaging stories at the speed of the internet.
Madison Wharton, chief production officer, DDB New York
1) The biggest shift I’m seeing is that brands are more open to connecting with emotionally charged subjects and spending media dollars on topics they wouldn’t have touched with a 50-foot pole a few years ago. “Conscious capitalism” done right is seeing massive success in reach, sentiment shift and it is crushing at the award shows. American’s cynicism fatigue has recently been alleviated with a few big wins for equality and that’s created a ton of excitement. People are celebrating brands that align themselves with similar values as theirs. They feel just as good about sharing an image of a Burger King Proud Whopper as they do posting a gofundme campaign for a friend-of-a-friend in need.
2) Yes, people say this all the time, but THIS really is the most exciting time to be in advertising. The work is reflective of collaboration across disciplines and of brands willing to go where they haven’t been comfortable before. Some of the standouts for me so far this year are the Honey Made #Thisiswholesome campaign and the Under Armour I Will What I Want (so, congratulations to Droga). Holograms For Freedom from DDB Spain gives me chills! #LikeAGirl is so simple and powerful. For entertainment, Vice has grown up to be a cultural powerhouse and I think they’re just getting started. I’m addicted to Silicon Valley, Black Mirror and Broad City!
3) The Geico Unskippable ads were an amazing interpretation of what’s traditionally been a not so great user experience. Virgin America’s 6 hour pre-roll was smart, addictive and so spot on. We need more ideas that are created with their message, audience and placement in mind, not just a cut down of the broadcast spot.
4) We’ll see products that work at making our lives better, like the Amazon Dash. Brands will connect with people on meaningful issues. And more brilliant, story-telling – but new and improved because it’s delivered at the right place, for the right audience, at the right time.
5) At DDB we’re playing with beacons and Qualcomm Dragonboards to see how they can improve our life in the agency. We’re working on data reactive rooms so that we’ll know when our brands are reaching certain KPI’s and can investigate accordingly. Personally I love the Charlie app. It reads through my calendar and sends me a one pager on everything it can dig up on the people I’m about to meet with. So when I sit down in a room of new people I already know our common interests, any awards or articles they’ve been mentioned in, and who all of our mutual friends are. Yes, it’s creepy, but it’s also fascinating.
