» uk-netmarketing: roundup: 30-06-2000

Anti-agency feelings
UK-Netmarketing Weekly Round-up - June 30, 2000

The UK-Netmarketing list subscribers are an eclectic bunch, with a number of traditional and new media agency staff amongst its ranks. So, it’s not surprising when the frequently re-visited traditional vs. new media agency crops up. The continual blurring of the lines between the traditional and the new media world and the movement of staff between companies also adds spice.

Ray Taylor, a new media agency proponent commented, "The dinosaurs of the ad industry are facing their toughest time ever, and the growth of the Internet is only a small part of their problem. But it does present a terrific opportunity for people with good ad industry experience to leave and create something new and exciting in new media."

Felix Verlade responded, "As one who has in the past derived amusement from advertising agencies who tried to ... break into new media, I'd caution against your 'opportunity'. Seems to me that every new communications opportunity opens up new commercial vistas; but TV didn't replace radio, it just modified its relative position to TV. And much as they tried, radio's impresarios rarely managed to move across to the new medium successfully. And that's analogous to advertising and commercial communications. Banners sounded an easy bridge, but have proven valueless."

Felix continued, "The attempts to expand advertising to encompass new media has by-and-large failed. The new media have fostered a new way of communicating. Successful commercial communications on, say, the web bear no relation to the methods of traditional advertising. So we have specialists. The successful specialists started out in new media communications. Some advertising agencies set up new media agencies by acquisition. Those that then tried to impose advertising methodologies (so they could understand enough to sell that to their clients) failed, with no exceptions. But that does not render advertising agencies dinosaurs, just proves them specialists."

Paul Canty, pouring oil on troubled waters, suggested "... there is still a very real need to work together with the [traditional ad agencies] to provide cross media solutions for clients. If disciplines within an agency work separately, then there ceases to be very little point in having large agencies at all ... (whether your owned, affiliated, or know a guy whose passed the work your way...). Successful cross media marketing campaigns (print/DM/Web/iTV/wap yaddayadda) are pretty thin on the ground. ... In some campaigns this simply is not relevant, but as more people use more platforms, the need for a thread (idea/creative concept...call it what you will) to link them together is going to be pretty key. The hard bit is finding a thread that works."

Robin Edwards added, "Good point. Presumably as people use more platforms, the amount of time spent using each gets spread around. I would hate to think, though, that the media is the starting point for a campaign, rather than the problem trying to be resolved. ... I suppose, the very fact that ad agencies who ‘don't get it’ have been doing rather well out of mega-funded dot-coms, which were usually created by us lot, is quite amusing :o)"

Jenny Adamson argued that a place exists for both types of agency, writing, "Why the constant diatribe against the ad agencies? There are a huge number of products / services that need on and offline support and at least some agencies are beginning to offer both. People with experience in branding and positioning are as crucial in building an online proposition as they have been in advertising beans over the last 50 years."

Without a hint a sarcasm, Robin Edwards replied, "No no Jenny, you are missing the point. ALL ad agencies that existed before new media are bad. They can't change, because they have ‘old school’ thinking y'see. That's right, we're very hip and new media is our thing, so no-one else is allowed to touch it. And if they take us over, well they still don't get it and we just get paid to do our thing which they don't understand. Y'see? Old traditional business ideas are really really bad. Just because they worked for 50 years doesn't mean squat in this day and age. No siree Bob, the kids are the future." Well, almost no sarcasm.

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