The Consumer Knows Nothing

There was a time when advertisers weren't afraid to make decisions. They would trust their judgment. They wouldn't be too timid to have an opinion.

Unfortunately, those days are gone. Now, every creative decision is made by "the consumer"-- i.e., research.

This would be fine if there was a reliable research methodology to determine advertising effectiveness. But there isn't. I've been involved in about a million creative decisions made by "the consumer" and the decision might as well have been made by my cat.

You think Steve Jobs lets "the consumer" make advertising decisions for him?

Consumer research certainly has its value for certain kinds of marketing and strategic questions. But when it comes to creative matters, the research is unreliable and the consumer knows nothing.

And Speaking Of Jobs...
Watched his new iPhone presentation earlier this week. Wonder how he likes his ATT network now?