The “A” word

Call it “branded content.” 

Call it whatever you like. 

Just don’t call it “advertising.” 

Why have so many in the industry become embarrassed by the “a” word? 

Has “advertising” become a dirty word?  Is advertising dead?

Nils Leonard, founder of Uncommon London, seems to think so. In a recent article in The Drum, he writes: 

“I can tell you that three-quarters of brands could disappear from shelves and no one would care, I could tell you that we have reached peak stuff, I could tell you that people are paying actual money to avoid what we spend our lives making….”

What Leonard is really saying is that advertising creativity is on life support, not the industry itself.

“The word creativity has become weak. Like the word kindness. Or hope. A word unattached to money. A word clients roll their eyes at. An indulgence. Time, logistics, consistency, data, synergy, integration, 360 thinking, deliverables, content, social assets, trend, machine learning, insight and collaboration are all for sale here.”

Leonard certainly has a point. The power of advertising to educate, inspire and provoke will be what ultimately determines its fate. At a time when the industry is under siege more than ever, the quality of the creative work is more important than ever.  And creativity has to win out.

As veterans of the industry who still love this business, we believe that great ideas, brilliantly executed, can still have a major impact on how people think and feel—and the brands they align with.

For us, “advertising” is not a dirty word at all, but rather a badge of honor.