Draftfcb Engage

Neuromarketing — Mad Scientists Meet “Mad Men”?

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

The rise of neuromarketing’s recent popularity is due to a natural but not always discriminating rush to try new things. Especially in this area, where new technology has the potential to expose the workings of the brain, many are being led to suggest that with neuromarketing, marketers can potentially flip a “buy” switch in consumers.

Why a Number Paints a 1,000 Pictures

Wed, 26 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Mark Fiddes, Executive Creative Director, Draftfcb London

Where do you start having ideas? I asked my first creative director that question and he replied that he got them from a barman in Soho, who got them from a bloke who came in every Thursday, who got them from a carpet salesman in Liverpool. And where he found them, he had not a clue.

Our most vivid and resonant ideas come from impressions of the real world about us, not the concoctions of pure fancy. Allow me, then, to contend that there may exist a property in numbers and what they tell us that is intrinsically creative. Less proscriptive than words. More prescriptive than pictures. A better springboard for creative thinkers.

Add Art to the Science of Qualitative Research

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 00:00:00 GMT

Jamie Shuttleworth, EVP, Chief Strategic Planning Officer, Draftfcb Chicago

Steve James is an award-winning documentary filmmaker who’s been in the game for a long time. Curiosity, seeking to understand, and developing empathy with his subjects drive Steve’s successful work — and when we are at our best as an agency, we do the same. Recognizing that connection, we invited Steve to visit Draftfcb to share his art and his methods, and explore what we could learn and perhaps link to our own work.

Here are six practices now in our planning toolbox. They bring art into the science of understanding and can help any agency or client improve their development of empathy and insights.

Use Permission and Trust to Keep on Tracking

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Are you among the 68 percent of consumers who object to having your online activity tracked? Or is tracking okay with you because you count yourself among the 51 percent who “like the idea of getting offers tailored to my needs?” Those two juxtaposed groups represent an increasing bind and a key challenge for marketers.

Notes from an ad hoc anthropologist

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The numbers in and of themselves are staggering: mainland China has more than 13 cities with over 5 million people. In a country with 1.3 billion inhabitants, its measured ad spend alone this year totals $20 billion. Ninety-two percent of China’s broadband users contribute to social media while its beer market leads the world in volume with 1.35 billion gallons consumed. Growing a brand’s presence in China is no longer a competitive advantage but an exigent demand.

13 Commandments That Matter For Recovery

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The marketing industry has been talking recession for a year now. It’s led some to focus on the past, clinging to reactive thinking or lessons from a history that has little relevance to the current environment.

Ubiquity Never Looked So Sweet

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

This transformational era in advertising is challenging our industry to find new perspectives, new frameworks, and new standards for reaching consumers. Long accepted marketing strategies for reaching consumers have been retired, replaced by the highly measurable and participatory contexts now shaping our digital economy.

The Global View

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

David Jaye is Draftfcb’s executive vice president of digital for the agency’s Europe and Middle East regions. With prior experience as a journalist, consultant, and top agency executive in both the U.S. and Europe, David offered his insights on today’s global digital landscape.

Start Taking Risks on the Impossible What the Current Recession Taught Me

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Baby boomers and big spenders aren’t going to help us in this recession. Neither is playing it safe on the marketing field. Their stars have dimmed as fast as their portfolios and so will the companies who traditionally market to them – traditionally.

Committing Sacrilege

Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Today what matters is attacking the moments consumers are online in original and striking ways. Do you remember that old word “creativity”? That is what we need, now more than ever.