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At first Don Dickison feigns a playful, hard-edged skepticism. "What is this freak show that you've asked me to be a part of?" he roars with a hearty laugh.
 The truth is, the ex-BBDO and Ogilvy creative has been logging onto reveries.com with reckless abandon (237 hits at last count) and can't wait to join the circus. For many creatives, such would roughly translate into an ego-induced monologue about famous campaigns created and coveted awards won.
Not Don Dickison. Sure, he's happy to talk about how he got where he is. Now president/creative director of Westport-based Dickison & Company, he's not reluctant to mention accolades, either. But what this creative really wants to do is rattle some cages because he thinks too much of advertising has lost its way.
Sit back, then, and enjoy Don Dickison's peaceful, easy ranting over what appalls him about advertising today.
 There's a lot not to like about advertising these days. An astounding amount of it has nothing to say. No concept. No information. No message. And type that all too often defies readership.
Let's aplaud the progress we've made in eliminating obnoxious advertising, but let's not forget what ad agencies are paid to do.
And let's stop imitating ads that win awards. Have you ever noticed how advertising copy all tends to sound the same? How many last paragraphs have you seen begin with the word "So..."? How many times have you seen the word "Hey!"? Count them sometime. You'll be dismayed.
About seven years ago, I decided not to enter any more creative competitions. I didn't want to be under the influence of award show annuals and the latest trends in advertising. I wanted to set our own course and be our own judge of what's good and what isn't.
What a difference it makes to write from the heart and do what you believe will be best for your client. One of the campaigns we did that way was for a bank, one of the lowest interest categories in advertising.
During the four years that campaign ran, I had more people compliment me on what we had done than on any campaign we've ever created. I can't tell you how many friends came up to me and said, "I opened an account because of your advertising."
I don't know about you, but that makes me feel better than any award I've ever won. And I've won over 200 of them.  |
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