It has been said that advertising is the second oldest profession. If that is so, then creative services must be older than dirt. Which begs the question in today's turned on, linked-in, digital age (we aren't talking fingers and toes here), does creative still have the value that it did in days past? I mean, are impressions and clicks more important than the message? Does pounding the message home in plain old black and white Times New Roman or Arial do the same heavy lifting as a thoughtful, creative, crafty and well-executed ad, video, sound bite, etc.? Or is beauty merely in the eye of the beholder? With more and more people gaining access to more and more technology and more and more tools that were once the domain of the creative genii, that distinction becomes fuzzier and fuzzier. Suddenly it seems that almost everyone is a "designer," "photographer," film-maker," or "internet guru." Does that trump the odd "SEO Master" or "Conversion Specialist?" Hell no. They all have their roles and they all have their importance. And as media and marketing continue to that finely honed point of conversion to gain the eyes and ears and dollars, Euros, yen and pesos of consumers (and we are ALL consumers of one sort or another), creative approaches to messaging will still be vital, needed and valued. Smart marketers know this. Smart consumers respond to it. No matter what the language and no matter what the conventional "wisdom" of the frijole counters. It still helps to know beans about creative messaging. -- Mark Stacey
