You Can't JUST Listen: Give Ogilvy a Break

I've got a question. Why are all of us enlightened social media/Web 2.0 gurus picking on David Ogilvy lately? More than once during yesterday's  Business Development Institute conference on The Social Consumer, David's name was brought up in "then vs. now" scenarios. Yet, in 1962, Time called him "the most sought-after wizard in today's advertising industry." (Maybe David Ogilvy did preach to a gullible public, but at least it was interesting and compelling.)

For sure, now we need to connect; we need to listen; we need to -- ENGAGE (there's that word again). But we also need: the wizards, the curators, the maverick renegades to lead the way. Inspiration never comes by consensus.

Perhaps, Ogilvy's now seemingly heavy-handed method worked then because he knew how to hear without the spiffy tools we have helping us today. I think we're losing sight of the dynamic combination necessary which is ever-more critical now that the gullible war-trodden consumer is gone.

Years ago, I worked for a brilliant editor by the name of Phyllis Sweed (although I don't think at the time I appreciated exactly how brilliant she was). When Ms. Sweed was asked by our publisher to survey our readers to ask what they wanted. Her response was "They don't know what they want." And, as publishers do, he persisted and money was spent to discover that the readers didn't really know what they wanted. In fact, it was more powerful that Ms. Sweed and her crew had developed long-standing relationships meeting and hearing their readers. And always posing the question "What if we did this?" That's what gets a b2b print publication closer to its 100th year.

So let's promise each other that there's always something more inspiring, more provocative to be accepted if it just gets pushed a bit. And stop using David Ogilvy as a scape goat. The man worked for the British Intelligence Service for heaven sake's. I'd assume he knew how to listen first before he slammed it home.

Comments

[Marie Tupot]

How in the world did you find this, Robin? LOL! Give all my best to Phyllis. I think about her often...Marie

[robin messing bogdanoff]

I appreciate your characterization of my mother-in-law, Phyllis Sweed Bogdanoff. She just celebrated a landmark birthday and I think I shall forward your clip to her as a belated gift!

[David Levy]

Tim,

As usual, you have found the perfect insight to poke a hole in the latest cacophany that masquerades as "prevailing wisdom." Everyone is smarter than everyone else, yet few people seem to be able to approach the substance of people like Ogilvy.

I particularly like your discussion of Phyllis Sweed, the editor. During the many years I spent at Reader's Digest (fact checker, editor, interactive guy), I discovered that one of the best "inventions" (so to speak) in the world of American business is a good editor. A good editor knows his or her audience, but REALLY KNOWS them. What they want, what they don't want. They know the audience through connections, through taling to them, but also through the incohate processes of non-conscious thought and gut-feel. Malcom Gladwell wrote about gut-feel in "Blink" and Guy Claxton wrote about non-conscious thought in "Hare Brain: Tortoise Mind." Those editors can capture ideas, movements, in moments and make judgements that create great stories (and avoid wasting time on others). Save your market research budgets, and get your self a smart editor.