Thierry Henry’s Hand, Co-creativity and the Power of Viral Media.
In a previous write-up of mine, the focal point was meaningful collaboration between brand custodians and consumers, in the form of co-creative interpretations of brand identity and communication elements.
As far as this article is concerned, I have resolved that the pictures will be left to do the talking.
I also remember making reference to the following quote in that earlier article “’Every consumer with an idea and an iMac is a potential visionary, willing and eager to step into the vital role of brand ambassador”.
The morning after the now highly (in)famous crucial world cup qualifier between France and Ireland, I logged onto royalmail.co.uk and that’s where the inspiration to put together this article came from.
Check out some of the interesting virals created by people (who by all means are consumers in their rights), and circulated all over the world within 9 hours or thereabout of the conclusion of the football match. It’s amazing how much viral media has transformed the course of our lives dramatically! The following images were culled from the Royal Mail website, from virals which ordinary people (consumers!) had created and uploaded to the internet.
Marketers are inviting their customers to take part in the creative process. Commercials, print ads, tag-lines and a lot more communication elements are being produced by the very audience they’re intended for and, at first glance, it somewhat appears that many functions within the larger marketing community are becoming rapidly obsolete. While it still holds that branding is the most critical element of commercial success, some fundamental laws and pillars that have been relentlessly preached for ages are presently being called to question, such as the one that preaches “Create advertising around an aspirational image associated with the brand”. In truth, much of these traditional and conventional big bang promotional methods still work for many products and services, but the clearly emerging truth is that in order for a brand to ‘stick’ i.e. to have a real impact on culture, it has to collaborate with its users, its constituency.
In the past, the technical skills and distribution capacity (budget inclusive) required to create and deliver an impactful marketing campaign were significant and far beyond the means of any one individual. With the proliferation of personal technology, social media and the rise of interactive networks, the entry barriers have become almost completely obliterated.
Interestingly, what this essentially translates into is that you’re just as likely to find the next great creative director in an uninspiringly obscure university dorm room as in the hallowed studios of any of our highly revered advertising agencies. This is some intriguing food for thought, especially for those of us in creative circles who are tempted to believe that ‘creativity ‘is our exclusive preserve!
Tomi Ogunlesi, a professional member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (UK), is presently an account planner in Strategy and Business Development at BatesCosse, Lagos.
