We crave predictability at alarming levels. We strive to place disparate things in pragmatic order. We tend to believe that everything around us must be structured because, "it simply makes logical sense to do so!" And because we think this way so intently, structure permeates our lives... When we're in an unorganized group we immediately form a line, when we drive to work our route never changes and when we get ready in the morning we have a strict order of events that we follow: first comb hair THEN brush teeth. Or whatever.
And when it comes to business, that structure and predictability intensifies: we have quarterly earnings reports, monthly performance recaps, weekly status meetings and daily briefings.
Indeed, we're a country steeped in "everything needs to be in order." So naturally, we carry this thinking into virtually everything--including marketing and creativity.
But marketing and creativity both need room to be random. What do I mean? Here's a random example:
At the agency we have these silly signs on our bathroom doors. Nothing fancy, just a metal clipboard designed to feature different images to designate men/women.
Tonight:
When the clipboards first went up, I recall a brief hallway conversation about process: Who would switch out the signs? How often would they switch? What images are ok? It was a quick discussion and we decided to let it be random. Anyone can post up any image, at any time: cartoons, celebrities, animals, song lyrics, products, whatever. Sometimes the images switch out in a day, sometimes they stay up for a week. But every time a new image appears, it just makes me happy. Why?
-It's something I wasn't expecting to see.
-It's a welcomed break from the norm.
-It's a small moment of entertainment. (And we need more of those these days.)
-It makes me stop and think.
The randomness, in other words, turns something that would otherwise be horribly inane into something kind of special.
And furthermore, the four reactions above are key components of what great advertising does.
In marketing, we need to plan things out, of course, but there's definitely value in embracing moments of creative randomness with open arms.
So as we all trudge into Q4, look for ways that pr, web, product sampling, promotions, guerrilla, employee relations and customer service can use randomness to create special moments for unexpecting consumers.
i remember you're a fan of the random back from the response you left on my "controlled randomness" post about crazyblinddate.com. as i was reading this i started wondering whether all the vagueness and uncertainty we're all facing these days from politics to the economy will make people more attached to the familiar--even if it is innane--an more averse to the infusion of the random in their lives. after all, randomness implies a risk of the unknown, and when there is so much else that is unknown and troubling, will we remember that the unknown can be exciting?
Posted by: jenka | October 04, 2008 at 02:36 PM
a great thought! it's so hard to know where the world is going right now. i definitely think that, overall, people will lean on the side of things that are predictable. i just hope that the random isn't forgotten about or ignored because it can make things so much more fun and thought-provoking. great hearing from you!
Posted by: John Drake | October 07, 2008 at 07:23 AM