There’s strength in numbers. And to prove that point, a number of friends sent me articles about PepsiCo’s Brad Jakeman and his rant at ANA’s “Masters of Marketing” conference last month.
It would be like inviting Jerry Del Colliano to the NAB Radio Show. But the difference is that Jakeman is a client. He works with ad agencies every day of the week.
Jakeman tore into the traditional advertising model, even questioning whether “advertising” itself shouldn’t be retired. (Hey, colleges and universities – are you listening?) You can only imagine how that went over with the 2,700 advertising professionals in attendance at the Association of National Advertising conference.
Ironically, Jakeman was named 2015 “Advertising Person of the Year” by the Ad Club of New York.
Taking shots at the entire process, Jakeman noted that “digital marketing” is the “most ridiculous term I’ve ever heard.” And he went on to note that digital has been somehow separated from all marketing “as though it’s the life raft tethered to the big ocean liner.”
He went off at advertising that pollutes and is interruptive, even noting that it’s even positioned as something you have to sit through. Case in point: pre-roll ads that show the countdown of how many more painful seconds you have to endure before you can access your desired content.
So why does it matter? After all, Jakeman is obviously a disgruntled Pepsi exec, obviously frustrated with the level and quality of marketing his brand receives from their all-star ad agencies.
But the hard-hitting truth behind Jakeman’s words is the realization that credible messaging, savvy marketing, and compelling storytelling are so rare in the world.
As an example, he brought up the design and marketing of the Caitlyn Jenner brand, and how that transformative (literally) story was managed, told, and shared. It engaged, it captured attention, it was compelling, it generated dialogue, and it forced people to form an opinion.
As he asked ANA attendees, “Have we done anything with our brands that is in any way as remarkable as the way Caitlin Jenner, and that phenomenon, has been managed?”
These qualities are largely missing from so much of the marketing and advertising you hear on the radio. This is the case for both the advertising stations run for clients or the promos, liners, and positioners they run for themselves. Too often, radio fails to truly connect and inspire.
So let’s look inward at our own branding and marketing efforts. What have we done to jumpstart and transform our brands, many of which have a great narrative, a strong place in the minds of local residents, and personalities that matter?
Those are the lessons of today, and why Jakeman was up in arms at the ANA.
Westwood One’s Pierre Bouvard attended that conference and noted, “Disruption is on the minds of marketers, who brought fresh insights on the challenges and opportunities ahead.”
Disruption was a theme at our DASH Conference yesterday as well. We heard from Podcast One’s Norm Pattiz and his superstar podcaster, Adam Carolla, talking about how podcasts are changing the ways in which people are listening to audio entertainment and information.
Pandora’s Geoff Snyder talked how his company is disrupting the car dealership dynamic with training videos, visibility, and other tools that allow the pure-play to have strong presence on the showroom floor.
Ford exec Mark LaNeve quoted his own boss, Ford CEO Mark Fields, who preaches that “We need one foot in today and one foot in tomorrow” to understand and take advantage of the disruptive new media environment.
We saw and heard examples of what LaNeve was talking about with the combination of traditional and new media integration with the winners of the first Be Fabulous awards, named in honor of radio’s advocate and booster, Detroiter Bill Burton. A video campaign from WLNK (Greater Media/Charlotte) afternoon personalities Matt & Ramona promoting Dodge trucks. Another winner for Dodge Ram vehicles was the amazing on-site marketing and promotion at the “Country Hoedown” in Detroit by WYCD (CBS Radio).
And then there was “Chick On The Street,” Katie Thompson, from KSWD (Entercom/Los Angeles) and her Subaru instructional video, “How To Turn On The Sound,” that has strong entertainment value but also a higher purpose. These are ways that radio can challenge Pandora and Sirius/XM, and other media disruptors going after auto dollars and dealership presence.
But the CDO (Chief Disruption Officer) at DASH Day One was John Ellis, former Ford technology officer and now head of his own consulting firm. Ellis told the broadcasters in the room, “Yes, you should be paranoid” when it comes to the new in-dash ecosystems, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. He warned the room that Apple will become “the default source of content” in cars. It’s what many new car owners will see first when they start their “connected cars.”
So how can we use the disruption in our midst to capture the essence of what our stations and our companies are all about?
Designing for disruption. That’s the challenge for 2016 – for our brands, our companies, on the air, and in the car – for the radio industry.
For a complete summary of the first day of DASH here in Detroit, AllAccess’ Joel Denver wrote a detailed recap of the event that you can read here.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
- Radio + Thanksgiving = Gratitude - November 27, 2024
- Is It Quittin’ Time For SiriusXM? - November 26, 2024
- Radio, It Oughta Be A Crime - November 25, 2024
The New “D” and “CDO” positive purpose. Excellent!