THE NSFW STATE OF ADVERTISING 2014-15.

IN THIS GUIDE, WE’VE PREPARED AN OVERVIEW OF WHERE THE ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IS, WHERE IT’S HEADED, AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT.

WHY IS THIS GUIDE NSFW? (NOT SAFE FOR WORK)

WELL, WE FEEL SO STRONGLY ABOUT WHERE OUR INDUSTRY IS, WE’RE GOING TO USE SOME SALTY LANGUAGE. LET’S GET STARTED.

ADVERTISING. IT’S TOTALLY FUCKED.BLEEP

WHY IS SOMEONE WHO IS TECHNICALLY “IN ADVERTISING” PREDICTING ITS DOOM?

ARE WE WRITING OUR OWN EPITAPH?

ARE WE WRITING OUR OWN EPITAPH?

NO, WE’RE NOT

SO WHY AM I WRITING MY OWN EPITAPH?

READ ON.NO, WE’RE NOT

NO OTHER INDUSTRY HAS CHANGED AS QUICKLY AS THE ADVERTISING INDUSTRY.

THE HUGE CULTURAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL REVOLUTION WE’RE LIVING IN.

WHY?

IT’S CHANGED THE WAY CONSUMERS THINK, BEHAVE, ENGAGE, AND MAKE DECISIONS.

LET’S TALK ABOUT THEM AS US.

AND PLEASE, LET’S NOT TALK ABOUT CONSUMERS AS MYTHICAL UNICORNS,

US.

US. YOU KNOW: ME. YOU. HUMANS.

(ASSUMING YOU ARE A HUMAN, AND IF YOU’RE AN ALIEN OR BOT, PLEASE STOP HERE.)

WE ARE THE PEOPLE WE ARE TRYING TO INFLUENCE.

YOU ARE WHO EVERY OTHER COMPANY WANTS TO SELL SOMETHING TO.

SO, LET’S TALK ABOUT YOU. “THE CONSUMER.”

ALSO A MOM. OR A DAD. OR A DAUGHTER. NO MATTER WHO YOU ARE, RESEARCH SHOWS, YOU’RE SUPER BUSY.IT’S BECOME HARDER FOR ADVERTISERS TO REACH YOU.

WHILE YOU’RE READING THIS, SOME COMPANY PAID A FEW OTHER COMPANIES TO SHOW YOU

A TELEVISION AD.

WHILE YOU’RE ON YOUR DESKTOP TRYING TO GET WORK DONE (AND ALSO CLICKING OVER TO “TMZ”),

SOME COMPANY TRIED TO GET YOU TO STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING AND MOVE YOUR MOUSE OVER TO THEIR IRRELEVANT AD.

LIKELIHOOD IS YOUR MOUSE NEVER MOVED.

PLUS, OUR COLLECTIVE TOLERANCE FOR BULLSHIT HAS DIMINISHED GREATLY.

BLEEP

THIS IS THE TYPE OF THING PEOPLE THINK ABOUT IN ADVERTISING.

SO, NOW THAT WE’VE THOROUGHLY DEPRESSED YOU…

WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT THIS?

I MEAN, WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING.

YOUR PERFORMANCE, YOUR REPUTATION, YOUR LIVELIHOOD IS TIED INTO HOW YOU CONVINCE OTHERS TO CHOOSE YOUR COMPANY, YOUR SERVICE, YOUR BRAND.

YOU HAVE SOMETHING GOOD TO SAY!

HOW DO YOU SAY IT?

WHERE WILL PEOPLE HEAR IT?

HOW DO YOU WIN IN AN INDUSTRY THAT IS IN THE MIDST OF A “SHARKNADO” STYLE APOCALYPSE?

WELL, WE HAVE SOME ANSWERS (NATURALLY) AND WE’VE CONDENSED THEM INTO 5 EASY TO SWALLOW BITES.

INBOUNDInbound Marketing is the term used for marketing activity that brings people to you, rather than having to go out to get their attention. It’s about attraction, not interruption.

1

INBOUND MARKETING

INBOUND MARKETING FACT

Inbound customers and prospects cost 60% less than outbound customers. (Credit: “Search Engine Journal”)

BE USEFULBrand utility is a tool, resource, and content that your customers need and love. This model isn’t about outspending. It’s about out-thinking and out-teaching.

2

“15 recipes for beets” vs. “Beets are good!” “Eat more beets!”

BRAND UTILITY IS...

3

We build useful projects and craft ideas customers love.

BRAND UTILITY AT WORK: ScanNCut

BRAND UTILITY AT WORK: THE DOMINO’S PIZZA® TRACKER

BRAND UTILITY AT WORK: THE OPTICAL APPOINTMENT SCHEDULER

We build digital convenience tools for our clients’ customers.

SURPRISE AND DELIGHTWe have more opportunity than ever to know our customers’ deep desires. We can build digital connections that feel as deep and true as personal connections.

4

SURPRISE AND DELIGHT AT WORK: RED MANGO

For Red Mango, we surprised social media fans with gifts that celebrated their “yogurt dates.”

SURPRISE AND DELIGHT AT WORK: DOVE® INSTAGRAMDove® brilliantly surprised its Instagram community with handwritten notes.

PAID MEDIA IS NOT DEAD.NOW REPEAT THAT 5 TIMES. Despite everything you read, paid media and traditional advertising still has a role in a marketer’s life and a place in their budget.

5

PAID MEDIA

Thanks to new targeting methods that helps filter you from seeing crap you don’t care about, paid media continues to be on the rise.

TRADITIONAL MEDIAIS NOT DEAD.YOU JUST HAVE TO DO IT RIGHT.We have more data than ever to serve you things you’re actually interested in, when you’re interested in buying them.

EVEN THE BEST SOCIAL MEDIA IDEA NEEDS PAID MEDIA TO LET PEOPLE KNOW IT EXISTS.

ULTIMATELY, WE’RE NOT IN THE ADVERTISING BUSINESS ANYMORE.We’re in the Customer Analytics, CRM, Content Marketing, Community Management, Product Development and Customer Connection business.

SO, YES, OLD SCHOOL ADVERTISING IS TOTALLY FUCKED. BLEEP

BUT BRAND USEFULNESS, CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP BUILDING, TARGETED CONTENT MARKETING, INSIGHT-DRIVEN MEDIA AND, NEW APPROACHES TO OLD SCHOOL STRATEGY…

THAT’S WHAT’S WINNING

THANK YOUNICOLE LARRAURIMANAGING PARTNERTHE EGC GROUP516.935.4944NICOLEL@EGCGROUP.COM TWITTER: @NICOLE_LARRAURI