The Art Of Creating Simple, Smaller And Smarter.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009 at 09:28AM 
The Art Of Creating Simple, Smaller And Smarter.
Or… Mommy, how I learned to stop making advertisements and start making things that advertise.This is a little session description I wrote recently for POKE’s 2009 Cannes Workshop. I thought I’d share - mainly because I’m particularly angry today.
This session was designed to explore the value of execution over “big” ideas in a hands-on session. People broke into groups where, under a series of realistic constraints, they were forced to focus on being nimble, among other things…
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The Art Of Creating Simple, Smaller And Smarter.
Or… Mommy, how I learned to stop making advertisements and start making things that advertise.
Blech! Recession. Advertising agencies and brands are running scared. “Digital” agencies are renouncing sight, sound and motion. They’re being forced to seek out alternative means of engaging consumers because their excessive marketing habits of the past have been rendered obsolete, both by technology and by lack of consumer interest. Face it, no one wants to be advertised to, online or otherwise.
Do you?
But for many, this movement isn’t just some new fad to control costs during troubled times. Hasn’t the best marketing has always come from creating something entertaining, valuable and useful? I believe people gravitate towards, and like talking about, simple and valuable interactions, and are willing to forgive (and even embrace) branded messages that come with them.
Forget thinking big.
It’s time to think small. It’s time to embrace the art of simple, smart and social. It’s time to stop creating advertisements and start creating useful things that advertise. Your communications can be executed more efficiently and with greater impact than the clutter that’s prevalent today. Let’s explore how.
In other words:
@CannesLions: The “Big Idea” is dead. Learn to embrace small: Simple. Smart and Social. Otherwise, don’t bother. When? Tuesday 23 June • 17:00-19:00 • Where? Debussy Theater
♥,POKE
Reader Comments (5)
The execution of an idea might consist of many small manifestations - and these are my favorite - but the best ideas still seem pretty big to me, no?
That said, as much as I'm in favor of small, social and useful ideas, how do you rank something like the Nike+ platform? It's by no means small in scale, yet certainly has achieved the social and utility needs for millions.
Again, thanks for an inspiring post.
Graham: I think the smaller the better. The outcome (and impact) is usually big, and they always make you go "FUCK ME I WISH I DID THAT". But for the most part, they exist because someone thought and executed "small".
Examples: Whopper Sacrifice,Parking lot wars, Baker Tweet, Four Square, Tumblr...Jesus...even Flickr was the product of a husband and wife in a basement.
But I have to respectfully disagree that the “Big Idea” is dead. You need big ideas to fuel the small, tactical executions. Look at Facebook and Twitter, huge social concepts that require agencies to connect with consumers in small, personal engagements to be effective.
Small ideas paired with smaller executions have an even shorter shelf life. After all, isn't creating usefulness a big idea unto itself?
gc