Years ago, seemingly in another lifetime, advertising made sense.
Clients and agencies understood that good work took time. And money. And most importantly, the right people working on the business.
In agency land there was an unwritten, unspoken, but undeniable hierarchy of top tier talent. Names like Fallon, Chiat, Weiden, BBDO, Crispin and Droga.
There were also agencies -- I won't name them -- who could be counted on to do the dreck. And do it in volume. These were huge places, driven by the bottom line, who were more than willing to say, "Yes" to everything and crank out anything the client wanted. Or what the client's wife wanted. Or what the client's husband wanted (woke alert.)
Similarly, on the production side, there was a corollary pecking order among directors. In fact it was so well delineated, you not only had A list directors, you had A+ list directors.
Take for example, Johns & Gorman. (Full disclosure, I'm friends with Gary Johns and Jeff Gorman and we all share Chiat lineage)
These hugely talented guys were at the top of their game. In fact, in a brilliant ju-jitsu marketing campaign, they would run ads in production magazines daring creatives to send them storyboards.
In essence this inverted the bidding process and positioned Johns & Gorman as super premium directors. The Delta Force, as it were. Moreover, in addition to iconic creative work they did at Chiat, they have an impressive body of directorial work to warrant such swagger.
I know I run the risk of being the old 44 year old who pines for the glorious days of the past, but contrast that meritocratic approach that twists the law of supply and demand with the shabby, low rent, free for all approach that is all too prevalent today.
If for instance, you were to post a job listing on Linkedin for a copywriter/art director team, and further stipulated that the job was paying $18/hour plus all the LaCroix you can drink, your inbox would soon resemble a Lexington, Kentucky Walmart parking lot on Triple Discount Coupon Black Friday.
That's where we are at these days.
It's pathetic.
And it's funny.
But mostly, pathetic.
Rich, I love your posts. But I can't decide whether you and Tannenbaum infuriate me, energize me or depress me. Maybe all three.
ReplyDeleteWhatever the case, advertising is a dying business. I get most of my freelance from clients who no longer want to deal with agencies. They routinely tell me that agency writers can no longer write.