Advertising. It’s the wasp at the picnic.

Firstly, I stole the ‘wasp at a picnic’ analogy from an old CD, the marvellous Steve Henry.

And I must warn you, there are plenty of analogies in this post.

So if your Kryptonite is analogies, fly away now.

Wow, you’re still reading.

Good, let’s continue.

So if (in general) advertising and promotion is the wasp, then good advertising and promotion is the cocktail sausage, the houmous dip or perhaps the Scotch egg instead.

Simply put, advertising is an intrusive business.

And as an agency or a client we should always be conscious of the fact that if we’re not inter­esting, relevant or enter­taining, we’re likely to get swatted away.

Imagine you’re walking down the street.

Minding your own business.

And boom, you’re confronted by a ‘chugger.’

Annoying isn’t it?

Ok, well imagine you’re walking down the street.

Minding your own business.

And boom, you see a guy handing out leaflets for…

…who cares?

You side step, avoid him, glide on by.

Now imagine you’re walking down the street.

Minding your own business.

And boom, you’re confronted by a sampling team.

They give you a biscuit, a smile and then wish you a good day.

That’s quite a nice surprise.

There is instant value to you as the consumer for taking notice.

You’re more likely to go and buy the biscuits in the future.

Simple.

I think it’s the same difference between a poster that plainly tells you there’s a new washing-​​up liquid, and a poster that makes you smile with its wit and charm that relates to a new washing-​​up liquid.

However, you could argue that you’re just as likely to remember something more intrusive, like the chugger.

But you’re not going to build a brand and affinity that way.

“Oh yeah, that chap from Amnesty was a bit of a Twerp, maybe I will donate £10 a month after all.”

Unlikely.

So, do you remember the last ad you skipped on YouTube?

Or the web page takeover you saw?

Or even what the last ‘targeted’ post on your Facebook wall was about?

Doubt it.

But try recalling the last genuinely funny ad you saw, the last loyalty reward you received or great deal you got?

For me it’s still the Audi: Clown Proof ad (https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=EhmUmGOBJS0) and more recently Bodyform #wombstories (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZoFqIxlbk0). And for loyalty and customer experience, Loaf and Nespresso continue to lead the way.

So, how can we judge our output’s relevance?

Well, I think you should, subjectively as possible, ask yourself ‘why would anyone care?’ (Or would I welcome it at my picnic?).

If you struggle to answer, or your answer has a laboured whiff of BS, you should probably just buzz off…or just donate your marketing budget to Amnesty perhaps?