"CREATING DESIRE"
DISPELS ADVERTISING MYTHS
AND SHOW MARKETERS
HOW IT SHOULD BE DONE
While we tend to dismiss ads and commercials (useful only as a break to allow you to get something to munch on), the advertising industry is actually a multi-billion ringgit one. Large companies regularly allocate several million ringgit for their advertising budget, and for the players, ads are no laughing matter.
Off the top of your head, which ads do you remember from TV? The Satria ad? Adam's new slice-of-life ad? Or the interminably long Astro promotion? It is not enough, says Machado in Creating Desire, for consumers to be able to remember a commercial. They must also be able to associate it with the product in a positive manner.
In this extremely lucid and easy-to-read book, Machado explains the theory behind advertising, its importance and uses with global and Malaysian perspectives.
Divided into nine chapters, Machado takes the reader step-by-step into the creative world of advertising. Among the points he makes are the importance of research, when to adhere to rules and when not to (Machado is a firm believer in breaking the rules), presentation techniques, even tackling contemporary issues in the industry such as fraudulent or hiked up claims in ads. He even devotes a chapter on the future of the industry, both locally and the world over.
But the chapter I liked most was on the "World's Greatest Campaigns". Though Machado liberally sprinkles examples throughout the book, this chapter is a real blast and a perfect introduction to the concept of "there are no rules in advertising".
For instance, when the UK Coal Board decided to advertise, the creative agency concerned - Cowan Kemsley Taylor - had to find a way to highlight the advantages of coal without reminding the audience of its negative images.
So what did the ad agency do? It took the emotional route. It figured that a coal fire turns "your house into a home" and planned a commercial around it. The result? An award-winning smash, starring a fierce bull dog, a cat, a mouse and a roaring fire.
Machado has reprinted some of the ads in the book to highlight their effectiveness.
The life cycle of Creating Desire began between five to six years ago when Machado first conceived the idea.
"I thought, funnily, when you read about advertising, the most interesting books were written in the 1960s.
"However, in the 1980s, there were mainly 'how-to' books. Now, these books struck me as being cold - I missed the personalities who did really great writing, those from the 60s.
Machado wanted to let people know what the real problems are in the advertising world.
"I took a 'journeyman's approach'. It was a three-year journey which ended up with the first version of the book being sent for advance reviews to important people all over the world," he said.
"When these advance reviews came in, I saw several commonalities of opinion. One of them, interestingly, was common sense.
"In many books on advertising, a common sense is a very rare commodity. But this book made sense to them because it did not theorise. I asked, 'how can this product solve the consumer's real problems'?"
"I wnat to change the idea that advertising is there to transform people's minds. I want to tell them that advertisers have to respect the consumers. If they don't then there is no way that a consumer is going to buy their product."
Machado elaborated the importance of understanding the consumer in his book.
"The moment we see the mass consumer as an individual, and really understand his needs, is the moment all the powers that be - the strategies, tactics and techniques of persuasion - will come to our aid to make a friend of a person who is a representative consumer of our target market".
And the results of his three years of sweat and toil?
Consider these quatoble quotes:
- "Advertising doesn't sell anything... it creates a propensity to purchase. Creating Desire is a veritable handbook on how to wield this incredible power of persuasion."- Rishya Joseph, Managing Director, Dentsu, Young & Rubicam Sdn. Bhd
- "Creating Desire captures the essence of what our business is all about. It not only will serve as a basic textbook for neophytes to the business, but also as a motivator for seasoned veterans."- Steve Price, President, Publicis/Bloom Advertising, Dallas.
- "Creating Desire shatters the myths of advertising and reveals its true essence. John covers a serious subject in such an easy, conversational, story telling style that you are moved to read on to the finish in one sitting."- Shahreen Kamaluddin, Managing Director, Shahreen Corporate Communications Sdn. Bhd.
Creativity to Machado is not sitting in an ivory tower waiting for inspiration. It is not thinking up pretty pictures and even prettier words to go with them. And it is not designing a beautiful ad that stands out in the newspaper so thousands of readers will say, "what a great looking ad".
"Creativity, great creativity, is doing it in a way they will never forget," he emphasised.
One flaw in the book is the typography. I don't know if the copy I received for review is the final 'finished' product, but I hope it isn't. Machado's brilliant musings on the advertising industry certainly deserves to be better packeaged.
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