This I believe

Every year the edge asks a question to a group of scientists.  I thought I'd ask some of these (I think from the last three years) here to see if we can get a response from a bunch of planners, strategists, brand thinkers, etc.

I'll post a question every day for the next three days with a thought from me to try and get the ball rolling.

So here's the first question:

What do you believe even though you cannot prove it?

I'll start by saying that I believe nothing will be as powerful in communicating and spreading a brand idea as a piece of film.  Not necessarily television or cinema or web advertising (these are after all just methods of delivery), but I believe that nothing will be able to tell and spread a story about a brand as powerfully as a piece of film.   
I believe in the primacy of the power of film, but I cannot prove it.

Comments

[Emily]

I believe that the closer the production to the birth of the idea, the better the ad. The longer the interrogation or approval process, the worse.

[mark]

I believe that concept of and need for consistency in brand communications and actions is much less valid today than it was 3 or 4 years ago and may well be past it's sell by date. With the degree of change going on in the world right now, people expect and want brands to be doing lots of different, albeit conceptually related, things.

[Ed Reilly]

I believe in brands. It is almost as difficult defining what a "brand" is as it is defining what God is or isn't. There seems to be so much discussion on what brands are, should be, could be, etc. So, I'm going to start with the basics. My professional life is currently built on a belief in brand(s), but the more I learn about the subject, the more I realize I don't know (and hence can't prove).

[Marcus Brown]

I believe that the concept of the ultimate brand idea is a marketing fata morgana.

[Stan Lee]

I believe that blogging has made me a better creative.

[tommorton]

I believe that the ad industry attracts less talent than it did ten years ago.

[Jason Lonsdale]

I believe that the pre-testing (especially quantitative) of advertising is a pointless endeavour that inevitably recommends the most anodyne and category-generic route.
Far better to conduct thorough investigative strategic research into your consumers so that you fully undestand them and their relationship to your category/brand/product.
If you do this, you will know which is the right route.

[Open to everyone]

I believe that agencies would get richer if invested in their young people more instead of paying them peanuts and making them redundant at thye drop of a hat.

[Northern Planner]

I believe agencies will get smaller and nimbler as the old dinosaurs die out

[mvharrison]

I belive that marketing departments should concentrate on getting the makers in their company to make what consumers want, rather than trying to get consumers to buy what the makers want to make.

I also believe that the rise of marketing as an academic discipline has co-incided with a decline in creativity, engagement and success. (Actually, that's provable, isn't it? If I had the time...)

[Brett Macfarlane]

I believe that humanity and sincerity in the voice of a brand (insert Innocent or Nike) rather than corporate speak or value added marketing verbiage (most banks and telcos) leads to greater loyalty and therefore sales.

[Dave Weaver]

I believe that true creativity stems from the existence of real constraints that make a solution difficult. In fact, creativity is only necessary or needed when this is so.

This is why the elegant solution is indeed creative (even when it's delivered on a very small budget tactic) - while the big-budget Superbowl spots, while entertaining, only rarely can be called creative.

[pooR]

I believe that brands should help re-create the world as a better place to live.

[chris ashworth]

I believe that we all spend a large proportion of our time doing what we're expected to do. By the client, by the MD - our proposals are designed to make these people happy and be bought. Net result - we often don't do the right thing. Our ideas need to make customers happy first and foremost.

[Simon Neate-Stidson]

I believe planners are still generally undervalued by most agencies.
[ And no, I'm not talking about people who think I'm rubbish! ;) ]

[Casper Willer]

I believe many marketers could truly benefit from hiring both creative’s and planners internally.

Internal functions working both closely with agencies as well as doing smaller projects themselves and directly with content production.

Coke, Apple and Nike have done it in big corporations and Innocent in a smaller one.

[Mark Earls]

I believe that it is beliefs which makes brands worth bothering with (Lordy, how few of them are...) - beliefs about the world beyond the category or market and what's wrong with it.

By contrast, brands that believe only in money, brands that only pretend to believe in something other than money and brands that ask you what they should believe are not worth your time and attention.

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