Part of the entry of new media into the world of marketing and advertising is that companies are losing control, and have lost their ability to monologue their message to us. This does not mean that the end of advertising is nigh, but rather that marketers need to rethink and reinvent their strategies, and actually work to gain our “permission” rather than hold us hostage in the middle of our favorite TV sitcom.
One of the blessed results of this loss of control is that ads are becoming more and more entertaining. Take this ad from about a year ago:
The following ad takes advertising to a whole new level: Martin Scorsese has created an ad for Freixenet, the Spanish winemaker, that makes advertising an art form. If you are a Hitchcock fan, this little movie is a treat. The cinematography, the colors, the music, the references to Hitchcock movies…it’s just plain fun.
If this is what ads are going to become, I’ll be happy to watch them!
Update Dec. 17, 2007: BusinessWeek published the best ads of 2007, and they really are great. Take a look.