The 1/2 life of an advertiser

Just reading a super interesting post about the new science of advertising in the 21st Century. The essence of the post is:

"The old agency model of is long past its use by date. If you think hiring the best creatives, art directors and writers is what is going to win you business in the future then you better think again. In the future advertising agencies will be more interested in employing graduates who understand game theory than color theory and the old science of advertising was based on psychology the new science of advertising will be based on mathematics."

I couldn't agree more! The rise in influence of social media has bought about the convergence of Advertising, PR, Digital and Branding into one altogether more exciting and dynamic industry.

Advertising has moved:

From push to pull is the macro-economic driver

From story telling to systems thinking as the advertisers core competence
From psychology to mathematics at the heart of the agency
From traditional paid media to social earned media
From learning the old to creating the new in universities
From designer-led to consumer led to align yourself to the needs of your audience
From marketing metrics to web analytics ushering in a new era of transparency

I just hope they're teaching this in university! In my experience the industry moves far quicker than learning institutions. If they were I wish this guy was my teacher. He gets it. My favorite quote, " … if you're not curious in a world of constant flux, you're screwed".