So, I turned to Twitter for advice on whether Chevrolet's decision to crowd-source its latest TV spot marks a tipping point for user-generated advertising.
As we reveal in our cover story, the US motor manufacturer is working with Idea Bounty - the online intermediary between brands and creatives - to devise a pan-European campaign promoting the range of models it plans to bring to market over the next 18 months.
Chevrolet is the latest in a line of big-name brands to shun the traditional client/agency relationship in favour of crowd-sourcing. Unilever is currently calling on consumers to create ads for 13 of its global products, including Dove, Lynx and Vaseline, while Amazon, Cadbury and Doritos are also experimenting with user-generated content.
Should more marketers adopt this approach? There are some clear advantages, such as greatly reduced costs, a constant supply of fresh ideas and a break from egocentric creative directors.
However, crowd-sourcing can never replace the expertise that a well-run creative shop brings to the table. After all, some of the best concepts could have fallen flat without the planning, production and strategic process provided by an agency.
Opening up the creative process to any and all comers provides brands with an alternative to the traditional model, but it should not be viewed as an out-and-out replacement.
So, what of my attempts to crowd-source this column? Let's just say that while I did get some useful advice via Twitter, most of the responses I received were nonsensical, some were spam and a few contained four-letter expletives; but then, I'm no crowd-sourcing expert.