Marketers Aren’t Speaking A Language The Public Comprehends
The self-styled torchbearer of the new world order has said that marketers have failed to understand the modern language of the human species and that as a species we have evolved more in the past 20 years than in the previous 3000.
Entrepreneur, venture capitalist, best-selling author and a two-time Emmy-nominated media visionary Leonard Brody prosecuted his case against marketers at ADMA’s Global Forum in Sydney.
Brody said that if Darwin were here today, he would argue that we have evolved into two people: physical and virtual.
He said that most people spent “two-thirds of their working day in a virtual persona”. He also said that people’s virtual persona was highly contradictory to their physical self. “If you don’t understand the dynamic, it’s like walking into a German restaurant speaking Japanese. You’re speaking the wrong language.”
He then went on to say that “marketing is the worst offender of this. If you look at the CPM rates when I started in this business, the CPM rate for a click-through ad in 1996 was about $28, today you’re lucky if you get .2 of a cent.
“The reason is because we have ignored behaviourally the way people act in their virtual ID versus their physical one . . . Google figured out that when your in your physical self, you’re doing something very different.
“When you’re in your virtual self, most of us have a declared intention. We’re doing something. We’re looking for something. There’s very little meandering in your virtual identity; much less than you would think. It’s much more purposeful,” he said.
“So putting up a banner ad, which is disruptive advertising, which we’re used to in the physical world, but not in our declared intention virtual world resulted in complete and utter ignoring.
“It’s like when you go into a restaurant and there’s that guy walking around with the roses; everybody knows how to zone that dude out. It’s the same issue with the virtual world.”
Brody said that what Google had figured out was that if you’re in the virtual world to do something, then why not put the ads next to the answer for the question that you asked. “Let’s engage behaviourally in what you’re doing.”
Brody describes the place in time humanity finds itself at the moment as the fifth era of humanity.
He said it was distinguishable to our past because for the first time in the history of our species “we own a communications vehicle, with emphasise on the owned part, which is many-to-many, non-broadcast in nature, where millions of people can speak to millions of other people with virtually no additional cost to the their disposable income in any meaningful way.”
He said it was “true pretty much across the globe and it’s becoming truer by the day”.
Importantly, he argued, it was virtually impossible for governments to regulate. To illustrate his point, he pointed to when the Turkish government shut down Twitter in 2014. “During the time that Twitter was said to be shut down, Twitter usage in Turkey went up 188 per cent.”
He said it was the first time in the history of humanity that we have owned our own communication on a global level at mass scale. “That is the reason that the Internet matters. We have not been here before, we have not experienced this kind of connectivity before and we have no idea where this is going to go,” he said.
Brody also pointed to the recently oft-quoted statistics about some of the leading companies in the world to prove how profoundly the world had changed.
“If you don’t believe we live in a rewritten world, then look at these statistics. The largest transportation company in the world doesn’t own a single vehicle [Uber], the largest media company in the world owns no content [Facebook], the largest Telco in the world owns no lines physically [Skype] and the largest hospitality business in the world owns no rooms [Airbnb].”
He also said that the title “largest” for all of these companies, with the exception of Skype, had come about within a decade.
To show how blindsided incumbent companies had been, Brody pointed to the raising of venture capital to fund new economy businesses.
“Some $16 trillion dollars in new market capitalisation on the public markets for new economy companies . . . Not $1 of that was created by an incumbent business. The question is why? Why didn’t Facebook get invented by a media company? Why didn’t Groupon get invented by a directories business? They knew it was happening.”
Please login with linkedin to comment
'Home Away From Home’ Advertising Standards Bureau Bob Garfield Newspaper of the Year Online ads Sportsbet vertical responseLatest News
TV Ratings 29/4/24: Farmer Wants A Wife And Lego Masters Lock Horns In Overnight’s Battle
Who won the battle of the big guns - Lego or Farmer Wants A Wife? One thing's for sure, it wasn't Great Train Journeys.
Nielsen Data Reveals Brands Spending Big To Attract Aussie Tourists
Nielsen Ad Intel data has revealed that the travel and tourism industry spent more than $153 million on advertising in Australia in Q1, 2024 – an increase of 8 per cent from the previous quarter, with TripADeal the biggest spender, followed by Virgin Australia, then the Flight Centre-owned Ignite Travel. As many Australians return from […]
IAS Awarded New Responsible AI Certification From Trustarc
Integral Ad Science tossing up over the mahogany or teak frame after being awarded TRUSTe Responsible AI Certification.
AWARD Calls For Hall Of Fame Nominations
B&T's noms for AWARD Hall of Famer includes Louis The Fly, Chums' talking Scottie dog & Mumbrella's coke dealer.
Havas Red Wins PagerDuty PR Account
Havas Red wins PagerDuty's PR. And judging by B&T having to Google PagerDuty, it could probably do with some help.
ACA Poised To Release Results Of 2023 Create Space Census
The Advertising Council unveils date for its census results. Hey, why not coincide it with an office lamington drive?
Why Fear Is Essential To Fernando Machado’s Creativity
If there's anyone B&T loves to chat to, it's fabled marketer Fernando Machado. Although the 5am time difference sucks.
Superdry Drafts AFL’s Patrick Lipinski For New Campaign
B&T fast regretting that poncho we just bought, as it appears the puffer jacket returns as winter's hottest trend.
Elon Musk vs eSafety: Legal Experts Warn That ‘Rogue Operators’ Like X Are Unlikely To Win Federal Court Battle
If this legal stoush boils down to who can afford the better lawyers, B&T's backing Mr Musk every single time.
Amy Poehler Presents First Look At Inside Out 2 At Vivid Sydney 2024
Vivid isn't about freezing your arse off while looking at lights on a wall, as you'll learn with this Amy Poehler news.
Mutinex Launches DataOS Improving Data Warehousing & Quality For MMM Marketers
Work in marketing? Does your data warehousing resemble a teenager's bedroom? Here's a Marie Kondo-approved read.
IMAA Celebrates Three Years Of Group Trade Credit Insurance Deal
Are you a struggling indie? Thinking of firebombing the building for the insurance money? IMAA has you covered here.
Adam Sandler Seemingly ‘Slams’ Ukraine In Pro-Kremlin Campaign
Host of A-list celebs caught slamming Ukraine's president. Thankfully it does have the Milli Vanillis about it.
New Marketing & Comms Agency For Defence & Aerospace Industry Takes Flight
As painful as this is to say, judging by current world events, the bomb & tank industries must be in rude health.
Opinion: Do Punters Want To Wear Your Brand?
This columnist asks do punters want to wear your brand? B&T'd say yes if you were Nike, no if you were Anusol.
WiredCo Builds Portfolio With Appointment To G.J. Gardner Creative Account
WiredCo 'cements' its relationship with home builder G.J. Gardner. Did you see what B&T cheekily did there?
Keep Left Reveals ‘Strategically Assembled’ Strategy Team
PR agency announces serious upgrade to its strategy offerings. Thankfully stops short of calling them Delta Force.
Initiative’s Michael Chong: What Do Mountaineering, Media & Marketing Have In Common?
Yes, B&T's running an inspiring mountaineering story. And this from people who won't come to work if the lift's broken.
CMOs To Watch: DrinkWise’s Part Time Builder, Part Time Marketer, Nathan Kent
Despite his love of DIY, B&T can't see Drinkwise's Nathan Kent in any "you can get it" VB ads anytime soon.
Mari Kauppinen Pops Up As MD Of ITA Group ANZ
Mari Kauppinen set to bring some zing, some song and some va-va-voom to her new role at ITA Group.
“It Is Getting Better But At A Glacial Speed”: PR Guns On Shaping A More Diverse Media Industry
B&T has a love-hate relationship with PRs. Love if they take us for a boozy lunch. Hate when you send releases as PDFs.
GoTransit Media Group Unveils The Power Of Regional Transit Advertising
Need reminding lots of people live outside the Surry Hills enclave? It's the regionals &, yes, they have almond milk.
Slew Of Promotions For Special Senior Creative Leadership Team
Special announces a slew of promotions in its creative team. And, no, they didn't order Uber Eats to celebrate.
Kantar: AVOD Subscribers Double In 12 Months
Study finds Aussies happy to watch ads on their streaming services. Or, are they just putting the kettle on more often?
Val Morgan Digital Exceeds All Campaign Uplift Benchmarks Via A 12-Month Brand Metrics Study
Val Morgan announces it has exceeded all its campaign benchmarks. Still can't get under an hour for the City To Surf.
Australian Retirement Trust launches monster of a campaign, by M&C Saatchi and Bohemia
Get offered a seat on the bus today? Knees creak like an old pirate's galleon? This retirement ad may be of interest.
Print Audits To Discontinue As Audited Media Association Of Australia Pivots To Support Influencer Marketing
Is it just B&T or are audits in the media industry suddenly becoming murkier than Roxy's husband's tax returns?
News Corp Australia Launches 2024 National Education Advocacy Initiative With Expanded Program
News Corp set to shine a light on the nation's schools in new series, giving illegal bikie gangs a well-earned rest.
Decoding The Consumer Maze: Urban List Report Reveals How Modern Shoppers Spiral From Discovery To Purchase
Latest report unravels a shopper's journey from the joy of discovery through to a nasty letter from a debt collector.
Cosmo Returns To Australia!
Ever get the feeling we've weirdly warped back to 1988 at the moment? Confirm it with the relaunch of Cosmo in print.
People & Culture Consultancy Human Kind Collective Launches To Plug HR Gap For Media Agencies
Does the very mention of HR have you struggling to remember last year's Christmas party? Get the sweats with this news.
‘We Want To Be A Growth Partner, Not Just A Media Buyer Or Someone That Makes Ads’ – Bohemia Boss On Agency’s Ambition
B&T's chatting with Bohemia boss Paul ‘Hutch’ Hutchison. Although we do think 'the dagger' a far superior nickname.
Initiative’s Geoff Clarke: ‘Youth Hits Targets With Enthusiasm, Experience Hits The Targets You Can’t See’
Initiative’s CCO Geoff Clarke on the value of experience in agencies. Not to mention quoting lines from Pulp Fiction.
The Iconic Teams Up With 5 Aussie Athletes For Latest Campaign
Fashion label brings in the athletes for new campaign, many of whom appear to have prepped with re-runs of Zoolander.
Seven West Media Secures New Director Of News & Current Affairs
After a tumultuous few weeks, Seven unveils director of news & current affairs. And B&T never uses tumultuous lightly.
Seven Network Expands NSW Sales Team With Two New Group Business Directors
Seven ramps up its NSW sales team. Both of whom are well versed in pronouncing Manu Feildel's croque-monsieur.