Heartbreak Hotel

Since I attended Kevin Roberts' media presentation of his book Lovemarks I have felt admiration for his chutzpah and disquiet about aspects of the Lovemarks brandstory that I still feel today.

What prompts this post is a video on the Advertising Age website where Mr Roberts fesses up to what everyone in the advertising business has known all along. Lovemarks was the credentials pitch for his agency that you bought from Amazon.com.

I don't have any issue with that - David Ogilvy's books preceded Roberts by a long chalk. I remember reading a conversation with Ogilvy where it was put to him that Ogilvy on Advertising, with its recipes and rules, gave the secrets away. Ogilvy, the shrewd Scot replied 'Do you really think they will do it for themselves?" - or words to that effect.

Of course Ogilvy was right. Client's don't want to do their own advertising creative - but I wonder how many ad presentations have come a cropper because the client would ask a question of the executional style where it did not conform with the Ogilvy mantra.

I wonder how many clients have read the Lovemarks Riot Act to their agencies?

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

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