Seasoned observers such as the Royal Mail's Tim Hamill and Suki Bunker of Oystercatchers (and your reviewer) agree that advertising, as we used to call it, faces cataclysmic change.
Wherever you look, agencies are reinventing themselves – how they produce creative, their range of services, charging structures, you name it.
Post-recession, they've never had a greater incentive to multiply their income streams. Everyone wants a big fat slice of the digi-pie while former pure-play digital agencies are busy repositioning themselves as comms generalists.
How does this affect how agencies market themselves? Let's quickly look at two famous names and for contrast a cheeky upstart.
Where better to begin than , Creative Review's "Agency of the Year". BBH adopted its black sheep icon from the 1984 Levi's ad and uses the line "When the world zigs, zag".
Does the website live up to the mantra? Not really. Nowadays, it seems, BBH is more concerned to stress its global reach than rage against the machine. And while the site is elegantly designed, the copy's somewhat stilted: "Our objective is effectiveness. Our strategy is creativity." Hmmm. Hardly stirring stuff.
On to , 北京赛车pk10’s "Digital Agency of the Decade". Apparently Dare want to have their cake and eat it.
"The ideas we favour... differ from traditional advertising ideas in that they are participative, or interactive, in essence. This is what defines them as digital – although often they will have the potential to live beyond digital channels." Nice try. And thanks to its minimalist design, the site even has a look of all things to all men.
Finally, , who are too new to have won any awards. Yet. But wait a minute, Marmaduke, Grimwig & Co says it was established in 1859. Ah, all part of the gag.
Copy and decorations are nineteenth-century pastiche, giving the site oodles of charm. But there's substance as well as style. In one report from Cannes 2010 it was pointed out that of 13 Grand Prix, only three were for ads. The other 10 were for PR/event/experiential ideas and platforms.
Marmaduke and chums are well-placed to exploit this trend, promising to use everything from theatre and dance to film directors and fly posters to create unique brand experiences. I can well believe it. Here's an agency that not only understands but demonstrates the value of insight, big ideas and surprising execution.
Simon S Kershaw is a creative consultant and a former creative director at Craik Jones.