Don't ignore the bleeding obvious: Lark

By By Wenlei Ma | 15 October 2012
 

The mundane, boring and innocuous ideas in advertising should not be discounted for their flashier cousins, argued Commonwealth Bank’s chief marketing and digital officer Andy Lark at the Caxtons.

Lark said often the most simple and obvious concepts are exactly what consumers are clamouring for. He added young marketers often propose complicated campaigns which involve the latest technologies but overlook the mundane.

He said: “The boring, innocuous stuff can work, you should do the run of the mill stuff.”

As an example, he said services for the elderly were voted as the most desired by CommBank consumers, which he said is something young marketers may not have on their radar. He said: “How young marketers think is different because of their life experiences. They want flashy tech experiences.”

Additionally, Lark gave examples of other utility-based services such as explaining the effects of the federal budget for customers or blog posts as simple marketing activities that have proven popular. “Don’t be afraid to say the obvious to the client,” he added.

Lark argued brands need to be vigilant in listening to customers and engaging with them upstream by identifying a future need. He said: “This is the era of mass personalisation and that stems from listening and building products from that listening.”

Lark was part of the speaker line-up at this year’s Caxtons Seminar and Awards held on Hamilton Island in Queensland over the weekend.

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