I was listening to the radio when The Kinks “All Day And All Of The Night” song began blaring out of the speakers…
…that sound of the guitar blew me away…
…it was raw, it was emotional, it was edgy…
…it was awe-inspiring.
At first, learning how to play the guitar was miserable. Nothing sounded right, it was all so complicated, and my fingers hurt.
But I wasn’t giving up, I was all-in!
It took me 10-years to get anywhere close to becoming proficient at playing guitar and then another 10-years to hone my craft, develop a style, and find my guitar soul.
Like everything in life, proficiency doesn’t come easy.
All told, I’ve easily passed the “10,000-hour rule” proficiency requirement.
But my music journey didn’t end there, I kept on learning…
…how to play other instruments…
…how to record my music…
…how to better understand music in a more holistic sense.
Making music used to be like that
Fast forward to today and it’s completely different.
With continued advancements in instruments, music software, and recording technology, the “craftsmanship” of making music has been totally disrupted.
You don’t need a band to make music today, in fact, you don’t even have to know how to play an instrument.
You can buy Pro Tools Software that comes bundled with pre-recorded loops for every instrument and sound you can think of – plug in a microphone for vocals and have at it.
You don’t need 10,000 hours.
You don’t need to know anything to make music today.
Kind of reminds me of the state of marketing today.
A Grand Delusion?
The capacity marketing has for delusion has grown immensely.
Just like today’s “digital musicians,” the marketing musicians that bill themselves as “experts” and “professional” have no idea how to play their instruments.
A marketing microphone is all they need to keep the delusion going.
And today’s marketing microphones are plugged into the biggest amplifiers and PA speakers the world has ever seen – capable of reaching billions of “music fans” who can hear the “marketing music” 24/7 on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, Google, etc.
With endless access and distribution, the marketing musicians can spew dirt cheap muzik to the masses and the cost is dirt cheap.
What’s happening to the marketing world we once knew?
Like the music industry, marketing today is filled with imposters, actors, and con men who are very adept at playing the game.
What happened to the importance of putting in the actual work required to become a craftsman?
Sadly, I’m afraid it’s gone.
The inmates are running the asylum and delusion has set in.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – I think it’s time for marketing and advertising to become a certified profession.
And no, I’m not talking about Google Ads certifications, which allows the almighty Yoda (that’s code for Google) to recognize certain individuals as “experts in online advertising,” whatever that means.
I’m talking about the same type of training, study, and process that accountants, financial planners, securities traders, and lawyers go through to get their certifications.
Yup.
There’s big money at stake.
In 2021 Magna estimates the U.S. ad marketplace will reach $230 billion for the year. And Zenith recently reported that digital ads will make up 58% of total ad spend in 2021.
That’s a lot of money to put in the hands of “marketing musicians” who don’t really know how to play their instruments, wouldn’t you say?
Media planning without a plan
Here’s yet another hallucination that today’s marketers have when it comes to media planning…
…they focus entirely on the media channel instead of the strategy.
In the dopamine addicted digitally connected world we live in today; strategy is becoming exceedingly extinct in marketing.
It’s all about quick-fix, instant gratification, and useless digital metrics.
The marketing musicians have created their own version of false reality and easily dismiss anything that is deemed “old” and not “digital” and “new.”
Oh, and it’s way better when it’s “shiny” and “new.”
But, it HAS to be digital.
EVERYTHING is digital. And digital FIRST.
Digital musicians, digital marketers, digital advertising certifications, digital currency, digital-digital-digital.
Maybe this delusion is real, and the world, the universe, and our minds – are all digital!
It’s time to wake up and smell the analog beauty found in the physicality of life.
To your multi-channel greatness ~