Don't Be A Frog Hammer
Thursday, February 12, 2009
I recently discovered a fantastic (old) Canadian TV show called "Slings and Arrows." The show is about a struggling regional Shakespeare theater. The theater has received a grant to "re-brand," and in this scene the General Manager goes to the "hot new" ad agency, Frog Hammer (!), to hear their pitch.
The truth is the new lie.
This guy's spiel sounded at once both hilarious and eerily familiar. This guy is spewing so much bullshit. And, yet, it's not too far off the bullshit that I'm guilty of spewing every now and then.
Sometimes we spend so much time in our own little echo chamber (talking about the power of social media, engagement, and relationships) that our words loose their meaning. Every agency I've worked at has been guilty, from time to time, of drinking its own Kool Aid. Believing its own hype. We convince ourselves that our own ideas about the way things should be are beyond question. We fall into the trap of believing that our theories, for some reason, no longer warrant proof.
I'm as guilty of this as the next person. So, think of this as a friendly reminder to check yourself the next time you start to slip into a meaningless jargon-y buzz-word-filled sales rant about the wonders of the internet. Don't be a Frog Hammer.
This guy's spiel sounded at once both hilarious and eerily familiar. This guy is spewing so much bullshit. And, yet, it's not too far off the bullshit that I'm guilty of spewing every now and then.
Sometimes we spend so much time in our own little echo chamber (talking about the power of social media, engagement, and relationships) that our words loose their meaning. Every agency I've worked at has been guilty, from time to time, of drinking its own Kool Aid. Believing its own hype. We convince ourselves that our own ideas about the way things should be are beyond question. We fall into the trap of believing that our theories, for some reason, no longer warrant proof.
I'm as guilty of this as the next person. So, think of this as a friendly reminder to check yourself the next time you start to slip into a meaningless jargon-y buzz-word-filled sales rant about the wonders of the internet. Don't be a Frog Hammer.
5 Comments:
Brilliant! I'm on my own quest to stamp out adverspeak.
Really outstanding post. I've been reflecting on the narcissism of the social media world lately, and this post speaks volumes to that end. We've become obsessed with our own opinions and jargon, and lost sight of the fact that social media is just one component in the whole of marketing.
Did you ever consider that some of the things that Sanjay says are actually not too far from correct? Authenticity is important. A message that doesn't fit with the truth isn't going to go far with customers. What Sanjay says here is reasonably accurate. It's the execution of the Frog Hammer campaign that makes it comedy.
If you're saying that Sanjay's speech is strictly BS, what is your take on this?
http://www.marketingprofs.com/7/truth-is-the-new-lie-shipley.asp
True. It is as you said, one of your finest posts of 2009. I love the line "Truth is the new lie". I intend to borrow this...
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