Web 2.0 Complements Traditional Methods

We’ve all seen how brands like Doritos have turned crowdsourcing into advertising campaigns.  In Doritos case, it resulted in a series of Super Bowl slots for the last four years, and full engagement with a community of snackers to promote their brand.  Fretful Madison Avenue types have been quick to disparage this effort as unlikely to succeed with regularity.  But they cannot ignore that more brands are at least exploring/considering this highly cost effective means of generating creative content.  And it is contributing to the debate about the future structure of traditional agencies.

We’ve also witnessed the intriguing drama of ‘Friday’ and Rebecca Black:  a song so BAD it went viral, and led to a variety of amusing knockoffs (I like the Bob Dylan version here in particular – it almost sounds like a good song).  Once again, the creativity of the masses has weighed in, not just with lots of LOLs but with some creative input.  Again, it’s a case of the masses having their voices heard, and in many cases creatively interpreting the music in ways which used to be the preserve of late night comedians and SNL.

So what is the message here, in the wonderful world of Web 2.0? 

Is it to just enter a contest, instead of spending time in training to be a copywriter in the advertising profession?  Call me old fashioned, but if you want consistently good ideas which build a brand, you need people who are vested in it as a livelihood.  You need what Leo Burnett called 'the lonely man'.  Social blogger Geoff Livingston views crowdsourcing as little more than a source for sophomoric content.

Is it to enter contests like Idol or X Factor, or self-publish from a dorm room, and not develop the skills of Sinatra by working two bit clubs and pressing the flesh with a demo tape?  Or is it to produce something so awful that you’ll get noticed?  Let’s face it: great music, versus one hit wonders, comes from not just being discovered but also having some experience and refinement to the craft of musical entertainment.  Even Justin Bieber, one of the internet celebrities, has developed a stage presence, refined under the tutelage of Usher no doubt.

One interesting application, if you haven’t heard about it, is the application of crowdsourcing to publishing, with a charitable goal.  The 2:46 project, or #Quakebook on Twitter, is a soon to be published compendium of words, art, and photos covering the immediate aftermath of the Japan earthquake/tsunami.  Proceeds go to the Red Cross to provide relief to people in the stricken areas of Japan.  Does this mean the end of publishing as we know it?  No.  It’s simply a way, globally, to connect people in a manner which would have been difficult years ago.  It’s the Web 2.0 version of Live Aid, I guess, with a noble goal.  It doesn't supplant calling, wiring, or mailing a donation to the Red Cross, but complements the fund raising. 

Web 2.0 is highly egalitarian, enabling many who are undiscovered to surface, allowing creative talents to flourish, and changing how business is done in the world.  Check out the top 10 celebrities ‘discovered’ via the web.  Certainly it has changed the world of marketing and music.  And countless others. 

But we need to keep it in perspective.  Web 2.0 is a complement to the ‘traditional way’, not a pure substitute.  We’ll still have writers who enter the advertising profession, learn their craft on various accounts, and deliver the truly outstanding idea which transforms a brand.  And we’ll still have singers and bands who work their way up from the Cavern Clubs of the world to the Hollywood Bowl.