A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to attend a talk on creative strategic thinking by Dave Trott. His approach to marketing, as readers of his excellent blog will know, is refreshingly simple. Instead of complicating things with jargon, he applies ruthless clarity (or, as he calls it, radical common sense) to issues surrounding communication.
I learned a lot at this talk, but one thing really stuck with me.
In our line of work, it’s incredibly easy to get distracted by new technology. From augmented reality to Google+ to Tumblr to Pinterest, there’s always something shiny that agencies and clients alike can’t wait to get their hands on.
This magpie mentality isn’t a new phenomenon. The same thing happened when we were first introduced to television, then the same again with the Internet.
But throughout the ages, all of these communication channels have had something fundamental in common.
People.
As marketers, it’s still people we’re trying to reach, no matter how ‘revolutionary’ or ‘game-changing’ the new technology we want to use is billed as.
If we remember that, our priorities shift. Creative ideas and compelling storytelling become the most important parts of what we do. These stories then define the communication channels, not the other way around. Of course new technologies can inspire us and broaden our thinking, but that’s secondary.
Forget using shiny new stuff for the sake of it. People are our media, and they always will be.
