Does client conflict still exist in the age of consultancies and McDonald's?
McDonald's has just proved conflict is going extinct...
Could the UK pass the Amazon test?
There's a clear danger that the UK will be left behind in the global competition for new industries, Y&R's global president warns.
There's some bloke called Mac who's after your job
Programmes can already turn data into news stories for sport and finance. Professor Philip M Parker is one of the most prolific authors on Amazon, thanks to the 200,000 computer-generated books he has "created". A programme could easily turn product information into a message and image from a data bank of options, create a banner, place it, test responses, refine it, use webcam face- and eye-tracking to gauge emotional response, refine again and rapidly not only create but optimise an effective ad - with no human creativity needed at all. If Google can create a driverless car, it can surely manage this. If a magic spark is lacking, will many clients care if it is proven to be effective and dirt-cheap?
From fad to failure: why size does not ensure success
Only agencies that present the big picture can guide their clients through an age that may be defined by fads and failures, David Patton says.