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LaughlinOutLoud

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The Tower of Babble

Posted Aug. 18, 2008 by Steve Laughlin

Filed under: Advertising, Branding, Marketing, Trends

A little vibration on my thigh signals the arrival of a text message.  The billboard up ahead is digital, sending out a different message every 8 seconds.  The elevator pitches me lunch options on the way to the lobby.  News, weather and sports are on 24/7. Whatever it is I may become interested in next, there’s a magazine, cable channel and three thousand blogs about it.

Despite the endless flow of information we are presented with everyday, it seems as if no one’s got the time to read.  Thank you for taking an exception here.  Item: Publishers are decrying the fact that young men simply don’t read.  Item:  More and more we’re becoming a multi-lingual nation where we no longer read the same language, and when we do, it is difficult for everyone to understand the same idioms.  The result: Clever headlines aimed at catching people’s attention are not getting the reaction they are looking for.

So I better choose my words carefully, here.  We all should.

We’re spewing more words to less effect than any time in our history.  An art director friend of mine suggested we should respond by simply spewing more pictures.  I think he’s right.

The successful marketers are emphasizing design throughout their brands.  Simplicity has become the essence of cool.

Martin Luther said, “The fewer the words, the better the prayer.”  Apparently, not a lot of people got the message.  The cathedrals of Europe sit empty.

Marketers better listen or their pews could sit empty too. That white noise you’re hearing out there is saying, “Keep it simple.”

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