Battle of Big(ish) Thinking

I really enjoyed the day, although I was kinda disappointed with the way the audience voted... seemed to go for style over substance, particularly when it came to Beattie - whose biggest idea was to fill the kettle up after using it, and who actually kicked off with the most trite line imaginable:

Big Thinking, Big Schminking. Hmm.

What was really disappointing was that one of the other speakers in the communication agencies section, Chris Clark from Nitro, delivered true big thinking: stop selling communication ideas and start applying that creativity to your client's entire business, a la Bill Bernbach and David Ogilvy.

But the audience went for filling the kettle. Interesting.

One great thought that came out from the day: green consumerism will change everything. Totally agree, and love the sentiment - particularly seeing as we as an industry have helped rewire people's brains to crave shit they don't really need, thus fuelling consumption of natural resources. Loved some of the digital thinking too - nice to hear digital dudes say something a little more insightful than "Yeah, social networking, um, blogging..."

Thought Nick Hastings' attempt at sounding smart by reversing the way messages are devised was ludicrous. Painfully transparent attempt to look smart. "Yeah, we've, like, sooo flipped it on it's head..." No, you haven't.

You've just delivered pseudo-intellectualism at its finest.

Very disappointed on the planning side of things... Jim Carroll - marketing is based on seduction... err, no shit Sherlock. And Russell Davies was great, but a shameless attempt to buy the audience's affection with his homage to "the best job in the whole world". (It worked; he was voted Biggest Thinker of them all. Nice touch.)

What else would I have liked to see? More on co-creativity... more on China and the cultural change it'll effect... more on storytelling and drawing consumers into compelling narratives.

But nonetheless, it was a pretty good day.

Richard Cordiner

Comments

[Liz]

I agree with you re big thinking from Chris @ Nitro on applying creativity to all aspects of your client's business - maybe the audience (including me) went for 'fill the kettle' because it's an easier idea to make happen?

[Kate Hamilton]

Don't think I agree with Richard about the communications agency section. I thought Chris Clark delivered a fairly bland puff piece for Nitro; we've never heard of applying creativity across the board before? He didn't even start to tackle how to do that, which might have been interesting.

Trevor did have something to say about ideas and inspiration, and the dehumanising pressure we all put ourselves under by promising BIG. I'd say he was a worthy winner.