It’s all about the work (or is it?)

One of the interesting sub-plots at Cannes this year was the changing face of our industry. Gate-crashing the previously-tight advertising club was the newly formed Microsoft Advertising, a major sponsor and exhibitor. Microsoft apparently hosted 550 employees and clients at the conference (approximately 5% of the total number of delegates). Their presence (along with Google & Yahoo) clearly disrupted the comfortable creative agency club vibe and was the talk of the town.

The global agency groups appear to be increasingly rattled by the fear that Google and Microsoft want to extend their position of strength in search into all forms of digital advertising. They (we?) fear that an industry historically built on creativity is being transformed into one controlled by algorithms.

"It's all about the work" has been held as a truism for as long as the industry has been in existence. Because advertising generally "interrupts" the actual reason for the consumption of a particular medium, the challenge has always been to attract and hold the consumer's interest for long enough to put across some form of commercial message. Chances are he may have no particular interest at that point in time. The necessity of interrupting in an interesting way is the reason that creativity and effectiveness are inextricably linked.

The threat to this adage appears to lie in the fact that in cyberspace much commercial messaging does not rely on interruption. For example, a consumer browsing for information on "the environment" and then later "cars" is likely to be confronted with a key word-linked advert by a motor manufacturer for a hybrid powered variant. In this instance, the ad is not creative in the manner that we understand the term, rather it is a piece of concise text. There is no need to interrupt any longer - the ad is directly relevant to what the consumer is looking for at that point in time.

Similarly, the dream of hosting "dialogue" and "interaction" between brands and consumers on a flashy corporate website/ portal has also faded. Today consumers have found their own places to talk: on blogs and social networks. The digital discussion is anarchic and uncontrolled. Brands who thought they were going to control the dialogue with consumers have ended up struggling to muscle in on the conversation.

The focus now is on tracking these blog postings through clever software and responding where relevant through open, honest dialogue. When it comes to dealing with blog controversy, straight talking from the MD of the company is best practice. Again, the "creativity" lies in the software development, not in the messaging

It is clear that in the digital space, advertising is not driven as much by interruption as it is by accurately targeted messages. No interruption, no need for amazing creative (as we understand it).

The industry faces an assault from Google and Microsoft who have moved rapidly from keyword-linked search into display ads, ads embedded in video games, online video ads and ad serving. Google "clearly wants to replace the advertising industry in totality", said Cindy Gallop, former CE of BBH New York. This may be an extreme view, but the ad industry is losing huge revenue that would have previously been spent on "creative" ads, to search advertising. Expect this trend to continue.

The ad industry should not see the tech companies in the same way we currently view media owners. The tech companies are seemingly not intent simply on providing platforms on which brands can communicate. Whereas in the past, a rapidly expanding channel meant more creative opportunities, the tech company's success may in fact rob us of these.

On a positive note, there was a glimpse into the future of "the work", in two of the Grand Prix winners at Cannes.

The Cadbury's "Gorilla" spot is as much a TV ad as it is a You Tube-style entertainment execution. The agency old guard may question whether it's a commercial at all - (there is no hint of product in the execution!). Rather it is simply a compelling piece of entertainment, brought to you by Cadbury's.

The future may, in part, lie in this insight. The "work" will no longer be evaluated on its ability to "interrupt" other forms of entertainment; rather it will need to be entertainment in its own right.

Double Grand Prix winner "Uniqlock" showed how a campaign could be viral outside of a simple You Tube video clip. The application combined film with interactivity and essentially created a visually-arresting web clock. This application formed the centrepiece to an integrated campaign. The genius lies as much in development as it does in creative.

In short, it's still "about the work", but our understanding of what "the work" is will have to change. Software development will be increasingly important and our appreciation of good work will have to move from a purely aesthetic appreciation to a more holistic one.