In response to a recent new biz request from the good folk at Five by Five, I came up with this. The brief: “I want an agency that can help me with thought leadership for the next 3-5 years”. A chance to say our piece and inject my own thoughts and build on some recent activity from some splendid world wide webbers. I blatantly stole the headline from the recent AdAge Power 150 bloggers article too (see a few posts back). I’m enjoying the freedom to come up with this type of stuff. More to come soon. What do you think?

Crystal Ball 2.0

We could talk to you for hours about how we’ve evolved from web 1.0 to web 2.0 and what cool and funky new things you should be involved in. We could even start to blind you with the black art that is the semantic web, or web 3.0 as some unimaginative web folk have termed it.

Or we could just say this…

If you think in three years that you’ll start with the intent of having 60% of your budget on TV, 20% on Press, 18% on PR and sponsorships and a generous 2% on digital (up from current 1% of total spend), then we’ll happily work with that 2% and magic up some digital greatness.

But…

… your starting point tomorrow should really be the same as today.

Strategy and ideas.

Why?

The best idea always wins.

That will never change. Whatever new-fangled digital technology comes our way in the next three to five years, if we set out to “do a You Tube channel” or “have a group on Facebook” then we’re missing the point entirely. Chasing after the next big thing (or Big Shiny Object Syndrome) pushes you toward tactical execution rather than strategy.

Digital will never be about one piece of technology or ad format. It will never be about a destination site alone. Or just banners driving to it. Great brand strategy is and will continue to be delivered by utilising the world of digital marketing opportunities. Detaching it. And then having your brand advocates distributing the message, rippling it through their social network.

Great strategy and execution is, and always will be, under-pinned by great insight.

As the digital world evolves, so must the process for garnering these insights. No longer just pontificating and navel gazing, digital planners need to listen. And observe. Using a variety of emerging methods beyond the focus group: Facebook, Twitter, Pownce, Utterz etc. You’ve probably heard of Facebook. If you have no clue about the rest, better come talk to us now.

As we evolve, so will our digital marketing opportunities, especially co-creation. We need to let go of the legal and corporate reins and allow our consumers into our world. Collaboration leads to innovative experiences. And brand engagement.

Just talking (advertising) and having a destination site is not enough today. Certainly not tomorrow. Experiences, participation, being personal and attentive, continuous learning and evolving is.

Evolve with us.

Inspiration:

Katie Chatfield – Get Shouty : http://katiechatfield.wordpress.com
Matt Dickman – Techno//Marketer : http://technomarketer.typepad.com
Paul Isakson : http://paulisakson.typepad.com

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