The recent election brought home just how much power this network has and, quite rightly, the coalition government has recognised that it isn’t something only useful for the election but in the longer term.   It makes perfect sense to use the heightened engagement in politics from the election to retain involvement from a wider audience.  This view is also directly in line with the greater vision of Facebook – it was created as an entity in its own right, far more than just another site because it enables interaction in a more powerful way than any other.

This is because Facebook isn’t just another website or technology, it is a social utility and should be used as such.  No other channel or media offers this direct, real-time dialogue by which the public can be engaged and understood.  Facebook is more than a network of people, it is a tool to reach out to them, share information and gain understanding which can’t be replicated by other tools available but is invaluable to the political sphere.

Of course, it’s not infallible.  The very nature of Facebook means you can’t censor it and you have to take the rough with the smooth.  But that’s just what makes it such a valuable tool for politicians who need to work more transparently than ever to clean up their profile following the scandals of recent months.  The truth is, a political Facebook campaign isn’t a disingenuous attempt at being cool, it is something that any representative body can’t afford not to engage in in modern times.

By
Richard Perry
Chief Operating Officer
GyroHSR

Twitter: richjperry
Linkedin: uk.linkedin.com/in/richardjohnperry

Having joyfully scrutinized the best print work in the world with my esteemed colleagues; elegantly lead by Mark Tutssel, I realised that the answer lies in the purity and art of print.

We should celebrate the power of well-crafted copy and exquisite art direction which combined with brave ideas is still one of the most powerful tools we have. Print is one of the only mediums you can create an intimate connection with the reader; as you read it in your hands or as it stops you in your tracks.

What we might take from this is to be less digital and more analogue, more real. Print can inspire, intrigue and fill you with goosebumps. It creates more intimacy between the brand and the audience.

Billboard, Almap BBDO Sao Paulo; Scrabble, Ogilvy Mexico; St. John Ambulance, BBH London; Volkswagen, DDB London and Dixons, M&C Saatchi London prove this. Press is alive and flying high.

Despite all this glorious work, press, a category famous for capturing most of the Lions was almost empty. The usual suspects, like cars, FMCG, clothing and home electronics clearly abandoned press. Budget migration to the sexy “alternative media world” was clearly felt.

When it came to choosing the Grand Prix (no point adding further to the massively covered final scandal), we had two clear winners, Billboard and Scrabble. Both celebrated the purity and unseen creative genius of press; pristine art direction, engaging copywriting and an ignitable concept. In the end victory was Billboard’s with its essence of music piece. A concept born for press; but truly expansive way beyond print. The campaign, a golden lion winner in Design and a strong Cyber entry is clear proof of how the new print can interconnect with other disciplines and celebrated without losing power or uniqueness. Like the sunshine, pure print excellence shone in Cannes too.

By
Christoph Becker
Chief Creative Officer

We spent a good deal of time and interactive conversation on ad disclosure, especially the new “AdChoices” icon  that has been implemented on all Yahoo ads. AdChoices offers a menu of additional information, enabling users served a particular ad to learn more about the ad. The additional information contains details such as who placed the ad, where to learn more about ad selection and what choices are available for Internet-based advertising.

We cited a study from the Ponemon Institute in January 2010 titled “Behavioral Notices Study, Future of Privacy Forum” that indicated that applying transparency and choice increased the percentage of those who were comfortable with behavioral advertising from 24% to 40%, a 37% change. The same study also found that approximately 30% are neutral about behavioral ads with or without transparency and choice. Related to campaign effectiveness, we cited another Ponemon Institute study from May 2010 called “Economic Impact of Privacy on Online Behavioral Advertising,” indicating that 98% of companies surveyed have restricted online behavioral advertising because of privacy concerns; however, 63% of companies surveyed rated online behavioral advertising as their most effective form of marketing, an untapped opportunity.

We concluded with a series of Q&A around online behavioral advertising as well as transparency in measurement, and we agreed that these topics are very much in their infancy stages. Thus, we are braced for the roller coaster that we will inevitably ride.

Frannie Jaye Danzinger
Senior Vice President  – Media

World Cup 2010 spectators wave their vuvuzela horns while watching the opening game between South Africa and Mexico in Durban. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA

Now I live close to the Heathrow flight path in TW1 so I probably get used to background noise quicker than most BUT surely, surely, surely the noise and atmosphere created will be one of the key elements that will make this World Cup what it will become –special and unique. The alternative – to ban the vuvuzela – is to celebrate the generic. To long for a World Cup just like the last one and the one to come. Think about it. Ban the vuvuzela? Where would we go next? Or perhaps more pertinently, what would our memories be made of if we had previously thought like this? Let’s take to our time machines, go back to Buenos Aries in 1978 for example and outlaw ticker tape. We could then set a course for the Azteca stadium in 1986 and stop people from standing up and throwing their arms in the air. Yes it’s a simple point yet I’m amazed to see the volume of counter arguments running rampant on twitter and the wires. This World Cup will be great in spite of global brands that sponsor it and the global media owners that cover it. It will be great because of a 30-yard pile driver from someone we least expect, a dazzling piece of artistry from a Messi or Kaka, a crazed celebration from Maradona and inevitably a penalty shoot-out for England. But more than that it will be great because of what Africa and African culture brings to it. It will be great because of the vuvuzela!

By
Richard Mabbott
SVP, Planning
GyroHSR London

There was clearly some kind of counsel strike going on….Each day a fresh layer of black and blue bags piled up; resembling some kind of gruesome flower display. As it went on, I started to feel a bit offended by the sight and smell, and a bit sorry for the visiting tourists confronted by the mounds of ugly rubbish. Not what you really want to see on your holiday.

…you can call me stupid, but after a week and a half it suddenly dawned one me that the bin men weren’t the problem, we were. We’re the ones who produce all this rubbish, they just take it away and put it somewhere we can’t see it. The problem is society is obsessed with buying and consuming, but very little thought goes to where it all goes when we’re done. We make ourselves feel better with token gestures, putting our used papers in the recycling bin, our green bottles in the green bottles bin, using recycled paper… you get the idea.

So I woke up one morning with the thought in my head that maybe the rubbish strike was a great opportunity to make a point and get people thinking about what happens to our rubbish, so that they might spend a bit less time producing it.

I jumped out of bed (not a usual occurrence) and ran to the window hoping that the bin men hadn’t decided to “unstrike themselves” and went and did a little scouting to make sure the rest of the city was still covered in rubbish. It was.

Headed to work and had myself a 8:30 brainstorm with the team. Then a couple of hours later, props and camera in hand we found ourselves wandering through the red light district of the city looking for the most photogenic rubbish piles.

View the video here (YouTube Video)
Even being caught red handed in the middle of the red-light district stuffing a pair of purple tights with bubble wrap by the police didn’t stop us. Uttering the stock phrase, “student project” which sent them happily on their way, smiling and waving at us to carry on.

We set up our little stunt and stood back to see what happened. We got a lot of attention, with people stopping and asking questions and taking photos. We even got onto the Amsterdam news site. Did it make people think any more about the rubbish they produce, I’d like to hope so.

http://www.at5.nl/gespot/41051/it-s-big-and-it-stinks

By
Michelle Henley
Creative Director
GyroHSR Amsterdam

Steve Jobs claims that this experience will have the interactivity of banner advertising and the entertainment value of TV advertising. Is he right?

Well on the surface he’s on to something. The adverts look pretty discrete to begin with but when interacting with them they really come to life. He admits his example is just a mock-up but his Toy Story 3 advert on an entertainment news advert really hits the spot. It has video clips, audio clips, iPhone wallpaper, even a game which he proudly says runs in HTML 5, a cheeky dig at the Adobe Flash mob.

And the best part is that you dont have to leave your app or lose your place when you exit. You close the ad and return to exactly the point you left.

The catch? Apple host and sell the space and will take a hefty 40% of the revenues. Apple claim that this will encourage developers to use this platform rather than some of the maverick advertising currently seen in apps and give developers a revenue stream. But is this really going to make a difference for the solo developers out there? I think theyll continue to point users at a browser where they may well prove to be better experiences outside of Apples platform. And since the new OS promises that more than one app can be run at the same time this should mean there isnt the issue of losing your original app.

It certainly is going to be attractive to the bigger apps/companies out there, I guess well have to wait and see how users behave.

Its another example of how Apple are streets ahead in the app world. Every time I fight the BlackBerry App World on my old Pearl I seriously consider the upgrade, but my pockets literally arent big enough! :-) I’m going to wait for the iTouch upgrade instead and keep the BB for work.

By
Barnaby Ellis
Head of Digital
GyroHSR London

Ash cloud returned, blew over, returned, blew over …
Greece went bust
Greece was rescued
The UK voted
The UK was thrown into political turmoil
The Eagles sent the Owls down

Oh, and one other thing – The World Cup bandwagon got well and truly rolling!

Back in London this week and I feel I can’t move for brands getting in on the act of hyping both the event and England’s chances (2nd round exit to Germany?).

For some brands the link to World Cup 2010 is clear. Adidas? Check. Carlsberg? Yes I can see their relevance to the competition too and the “teamtalk” execution is certainly rousing if it fails to quite get the hairs on the back of my neck standing as high on a second viewing. But Kit Kat and Mars though? C’mon! Give me a break …. (sorry!)

Anyway, the brand that has executed a World Cup idea most beautifully has to be Louis Vuitton. It’s here and it’s cool. It has Zidane, Pele and Maradona in it so how could it not be? Even if their link to the beautiful game is tenuous at best.

http://www.louisvuittonjourneys.com/legends

By
Richard Mabbott
Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning
GyroHSR

Many people are attracted to the ‘glamour’ of our business (myself included) only to be later frustrated by the hard work and lack of financial rewards in comparison to other industries. I often ask myself, if I had my time again would I choose the law or accountancy like many of my peers. Fortunately for me the answer is always no. I love my job and this career is one I had chosen when I was a little boy ( a long story for another day!).

Indeed, without that passion and commitment I really don’t think that this industry is for you.

Over the years I have seen many people make the move from client-side to agencies and, invariably, the motivations they cite are that they are looking for variety, stimulation and fun. Without over-generalising, the vast majority are subsequently knocked back by the relentless pace and intensity of the work. On the flip side I’ve seen so many colleagues move over to client-side roles, where they often become disillusioned with the slower pace and the narrow scope of engagement.

Of course there are exceptions, but I just wanted to illustrate a point. New research published this week by Harris Interactive concluded that a good salary is the main motivating factor in a job. Working as we do in a challenging, fast-paced industry, it made me wonder if us supposedly creative-types really are so shallow and avaricious that we only turn up with the monthly cheque (or BACS) in mind. Certainly, in the first instance, it would seem obvious that those of us who’ve chosen to walk this particular path have done so for reasons other than huge financial reward.

Fredrick Herzberg’s 1966 research into motivation at work is still held up as providing the definitive insight into what gets people out of bed in the morning. He found that certain factors in the workplace motivate people. These ‘motivators’ include achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility, advancement and personal growth. Other factors were found to prevent people from feeling dissatisfied – but they did not directly motivate them. He called these ‘hygiene factors’ and they include conditions, salary, company car, job security etc. His research showed that, while people will strive to achieve hygiene needs because they are unhappy without them, once they have them they are no more motivated than they were before.

In my experience of working through a couple of economic downturns now, there is usually a phenomena that occurs at the ‘leading edge’ of the recovery cycle and that’s a haemorrhaging of junior staff. These are the people who quickly get out of synch with the market, who find it easiest to disentangle themselves from existing contractual negotiations and I guess, being cynical, are most likely to think that the ‘grass is greener on the other side’. The result is a bizarre ‘merry go round’ of junior talent from which only the recruitment consultants really benefit.

The agencies that will be best placed to deal with this are those who have put in place initiatives which approach more broadly how they attract, retain and develop talent. Investment in training, personal development, mentoring and the creation of a workplace ‘community’ (including such initiatives as the GyroHSR Academy which we’ve just put in place to recognise and develop our future business leaders) all help keep people engaged, motivated – and (more importantly), in one place for longer.

Putting this to one side, this business has always been a tough one – certainly on my watch. The gravy train was leaving the station just as I arrived. Its staffed by and large by people with a true passion and commitment for producing effective creative communications. This simple objective is at the heart of our industry’s purpose and is one which serves the interest of every single stakeholder group.

In conclusion, I’ll paraphrase my father: ‘find a job you love son and you will never have to work again’.

By
Danny Turnbull
European B2B Practice Leader
GyroHSR Manchester

“The Lazarus profession: how advertising keeps rising from the dead”