Execution Isn’t Good Enough
“If an ad looks good, that isn’t enough. An Attractive ad without an idea is just a decoration. Sure, the execution of any ad should be brilliant. Why not? But execution alone is not advertising. We encourage our art directors to think in terms of copy, much as every good copywriter thinks visually. It’s not important where the basic idea comes from—it can come from the writer, the artist, or the elevator operator. The important thing is that the advertisement, to do a job, must have a basically sound idea. Truly brilliant execution invariably grows from such an idea.”
This guy was a creative director and eventual president of Young & Rubicam, a big ol agency.
But what I like best about him was his team was the one who came up with the tag line for the movie Alien: “In space, no one can hear you scream.” Ugh, so good.
