UPDATE: Uwe Hook posted a similar piece on his blog at Uwe's blog: Have we become assholes?. Loved what he had to say!
Two interesting things that seem to be coming together. Predictions that digital agencies will be on top and that there'll be more emphasis on creating experience or being more experiential. While we couldn't agree more on the experiential point, we're not sure that it will be the digital agencies leading the way. Perhaps, 2008 will be the year of a new category of agency, the experience agency. Not the experiential -- usually a new name for event marketing -- agency. But a company that understands that everything you do is part of your brand experience -- and that's not just digital. Of course, we'll still looking for good definitions for What Does It Mean to be Digital? anyway.
In a November commentary in MediaPost, Joe Pine & Jim Gilmore (authors of The Experience Economy) had this to say:
There is an undeniable phoniness underlying much of today's marketing practices. Think of the appeal of any mouthwatering hamburger in a TV spot versus the reality encountered in the actual fast food joint. Or consider the countless direct mail pieces for shiny new automobiles versus the dirty or disheveled dealership one has to visit to buy or lease one. Or think of any airline, hotel, or even hospital advertisement; if you could only check into the ads, you'd have a great experience. Indeed, the easiest way to be perceived as fake is to advertise things you are not.
The challenge right now has been that when the advertising talks about experience design, it's generally in the context of online user experience and not the larger "everything" experience design that we talk about. That's why we don't believe that simply being a digital agency means you're ready to help a company create experiences across all of their touch points. In fact, digital agencies may not even know how to create compelling interactive experiences unless they're online. And one of the things that we've certainly proved with AudienceGames, is that people love interactivity offline as well. They want the rest of the world to be as dynamic as their online world, which is why we think that things like location-based group interactivity and the need to e-tail your retail will be such important issues in 2008.
So, by all means, look to people who can give you the best solutions, whether it's digital or not. If you're looking for success in 2008, it's pretty simple. Create great experiences for your consumers in every interaction. If you do that, the method of communicating will not be so important.
Digital Agencies Rise To The Top. : Marketing will become “Experiential”. The category “Digital Agencies” will gain new meanings and power as client demand thought leadership in this innovation-driven environment. Roster agencies based on channel will become redundant as clients look to task based allocation of accounts, covering disciplines and channels. Ad agencies realize the need to change from creating ads to creating experiences but need to team up with innovation strategists.Innovation and Design Rules. Marketers’ ingenuity will continue to expand as the competitive marketplace challenges brands and even business survival. Efficiency has reached its limit and innovation is the new competitive advantage. Companies will turn to “design” and “design thinking” to help fuel innovation There is no turning back — and design will rule.
Link: Beneath the Brand - Blog Archive - Let the Lists Begin.
Related posts:
Link: Experience Manifesto: Brand New Day Word of Mouth: Madison Ave.--Are You Listening? - BusinessWeek.
Link: Experience Manifesto: Prediction 7: You need to E-tail Your Retail.
Link: Experience Manifesto: Prediction 1: Authenticity is the Key.
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