Another sign was seen yesterday that indicates that the end is near for the advertising/communications business as we know it. According to the respected Delaney Report - the industry newsletter for marketing, advertising and media executives, yet another brand is asking advertising agencies to literally give away their product.
Small appliance marketer Applica is searching for a new advertising agency partner. The assignment at face value seems intriguing - the George Foreman Cooking unit's line of products. You know - the Foreman grill that big old George made famous. As a side note all of his sons are named George!!
The catch - you have to mail in a strategy and creative execution. Yes, that's right - mail! You can't present it and or defend it. It is the ultimate in a creative bake-off. They won't divulge the size of the budget either, so you don't even know if it is economically feasible to chase the business. They'll get to evaluate creative and strategy in the quiet of their own offices. Agencies are working on their own nickel and aren't even afforded the courtesy and or opportunity to sell in their ideas.
It cheapens our product so much that it is worthless. What other service industry subjects themselves to this method of doing business? You don't see lawyers, architects, doctors and designers giving away their intellectual capitol.
How this great business has sunk to these levels is a subject of great debate. The Delaney Report quotes one executive about the Applica move, "Anyone who goes after this should be thrown out of the 4A's." Maybe they should just leave the business. Our ideas have to be worth something, if not we're just a commodity. An idea is a terrible thing to devalue.
Bill, I think your post above summed up nicely what has happened to way some companies view agencies. Just as they did when "desktop publishing" came into vogue and most recently with web marketing, everyone thinks they can be a designer or a marketer. Our mission is to continue to show clients the value of our role in helping their bottom line with insights into trends in their marketplaces and being the voice of their customer. Add in experience from different markets and you have a winner!