The Inkstained Mind: Why online? What online?

28 Dec 2009

Why online? What online?

Online is not a panacea. And there is no panacea online - not Facebook, not Youtube. And definitely not Twitter.

ADVERTISERS need to be very clear about what they wish to accomplish by being online.

AD AGENCIES need to be better aware of specific online tools and the unique communication (and business) opportunities they offer. Selection of applications and tools must necessarily be based on the communication objective. Not fads.

Also, looking at the potential growth of online advertising, investing in domain knowledge via a core team might be cheaper today than tomorrow.

WEB SOLUTIONS PROVIDERS tend to be the joker in the pack. And increasingly, they're seen by agencies as competitors aiming at a bigger share of the advertising pie!

They are uniformly good with charts, graphs and jargon. But rather less consistent in delivering tangible results.

All of us need to make up for deficiencies, and better utilise each another's expertise if we are to see less online campaigns that make us go: "What were they thinking?"

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WHAT IS ADVERTISING?

It's often called the world's second oldest profession.

But while the scope of the oldest one has changed little over time, the evolution in the way we communicate has had profound impact on Advertising.

In the ancient and medieval world, Advertising meant word-of-mouth. In the 1500s with the development of printing it became a 'paid public notice', disseminating the message to many. And it had Copy & Art.

Then came radio, TV, computer, cable TV, Internet, mobile phones, Internet on mobile, and it's still not done... Even what we perceive as 'change' is changing. Continuously.

So what is Advertising today?

Honestly, I don't know.

But I do know from a dozen years evolving with the business, that Advertising is most valued when it can make a tangible difference for the advertiser.

That has not changed. And probably won't.

UPDATE: Nothing's changed. But in a way, everything has.

As you see, my focus has shifted - evolved in a way - to a larger canvas. The shift or evolution was gradual, and may be have been discernable to the more observant reader.

While I was delving into the influence of media in society to better understand how perceptions are created, evolved and disseminated, I chanced upon a thread of knowledge that I frankly never knew existed.

My conclusion is that a deep pool of awareness and consciouness exists beyond the shallow narcissistic boundaries created by the convention view of social media and the Internet.

My aim is to send my readers down any path that can lead to this quenching pool.