By MARK DIGIACOMO, founder Digital Elixir Studios
At the dawn of the Industrial Age, the craftsmanship and artistry that defined all eras before it began to be subsumed by mass production. An artists filligree on a clock became a repeated stamp pattern. Without doubt, the practical benefits of this transformation of society and culture can not be understated. But thankfully we are entering a new era once more, and with it comes the need for a realignment in our thinking.
At the dawn of the Industrial Age, the craftsmanship and artistry that defined all eras before it began to be subsumed by mass production. An artists filligree on a clock became a repeated stamp pattern. Without doubt, the practical benefits of this transformation of society and culture can not be understated. But thankfully we are entering a new era once more, and with it comes the need for a realignment in our thinking.
In these very uncertain times of change, how do people with exacting skills and creative dreams formulate a working career or business that both fulfills their yearnings while also maintaining a profit? Can this even be done effectively? Newspapers inform very well, but they're failing almost universally as a relic of a structured era who's stamp has yet to fully evolve in our consciousness. Papers attempt to entertain, but can't compete against flashy new electronic forms of communication. Must we compromise and stoop to either the lowest common denominator or turn to the field of real estate to make a buck in this new era? That last part is a joke, in case you missed it...
Films, television and video games produce profitable creative material every day. Video games are increasingly cinematic. But these fields are rather rarefied and not everyone needs to smite the surly forces of Kazzadoom to run their lives, or communicate with their customers.
We've observed over the past decade or so that from city planning to coffee selling, branding creatively and building an experience that people crave works in business. People come to rejuvenated small towns with historical sign posts and shady walks. They seek out expensive coffee for a moment of meditative connection to a richer, more aromatic life each morning. These trends are clues to the future of all business.
For those of us in the trenches of the hard-nosed world, it's become increasingly clear that approaching your customers and clients with these tenets in mind matters. But there's more to discern yet. We have another critical quiver in our arsenal that goes beyond what movies and coffee shops need to do to survive. My 3rd-grade son has taught me from school that it's called Pie. That is, P.I.E.: "Promote, Inform, Engage." And it's dead-on.
It's our job as creative people working with clients, customers and business to do more than just entertain. We need to go further than just build a brand. We need to go further than just inform. We need to do all of these things, and do them with originality and unity. Promote ideas by actually informing and educating the audience. This, in turn, is done by engaging them creatively, tapping into the imagination pertinent to the present and the future to come. The unity of PIE is more akin to a meticulously crafted religious mandala than the soap flake ads of old. It should reach into deeper emotion. Deeper connectivity and meaning.
That's our job. It's really as old as the Lascaux cave paintings. Set the stage for your message, offer real information and make it all engaging as hell. The Inustrial Age is over. Time to dismount the old stamping machines and look at business - at our lives - creatively, perhaps even spiritually, again. It can be done, but I'd argue that it must be done.
It's good business.
Films, television and video games produce profitable creative material every day. Video games are increasingly cinematic. But these fields are rather rarefied and not everyone needs to smite the surly forces of Kazzadoom to run their lives, or communicate with their customers.
We've observed over the past decade or so that from city planning to coffee selling, branding creatively and building an experience that people crave works in business. People come to rejuvenated small towns with historical sign posts and shady walks. They seek out expensive coffee for a moment of meditative connection to a richer, more aromatic life each morning. These trends are clues to the future of all business.
For those of us in the trenches of the hard-nosed world, it's become increasingly clear that approaching your customers and clients with these tenets in mind matters. But there's more to discern yet. We have another critical quiver in our arsenal that goes beyond what movies and coffee shops need to do to survive. My 3rd-grade son has taught me from school that it's called Pie. That is, P.I.E.: "Promote, Inform, Engage." And it's dead-on.
It's our job as creative people working with clients, customers and business to do more than just entertain. We need to go further than just build a brand. We need to go further than just inform. We need to do all of these things, and do them with originality and unity. Promote ideas by actually informing and educating the audience. This, in turn, is done by engaging them creatively, tapping into the imagination pertinent to the present and the future to come. The unity of PIE is more akin to a meticulously crafted religious mandala than the soap flake ads of old. It should reach into deeper emotion. Deeper connectivity and meaning.
That's our job. It's really as old as the Lascaux cave paintings. Set the stage for your message, offer real information and make it all engaging as hell. The Inustrial Age is over. Time to dismount the old stamping machines and look at business - at our lives - creatively, perhaps even spiritually, again. It can be done, but I'd argue that it must be done.
It's good business.
