Lord Saatchi on Google vs. Humans
06.07.2007
In an op-ed in the FT, Lord Saatchi argues that Google and the rationalist school of advertising ignore marketing’s most important function, creating demand:
“People do not know what they want until a brilliant person shows them. Henry Ford confirmed the point. Asked if he had carried out research before he invented the Model T Ford, he replied: ‘If I had asked people what they wanÂted, I would have built a faster horse.’”
An example I’ve used before is this. If car companies wait until prospective customers type “I need a new car” into search engines, those customers will end up buying new cars every 12 years instead of every seven. That might be a good thing in so many ways, but not if you’re in the business of selling cars.
Hey, Chas, I see from reading your blog your title at FM is now Publisher and Chief Revenue Officer. This may have happened some time ago, but belated congrats.
Now on to Lord Saatchi. Pure arrogance, imho. People don’t know what they want until some brilliant person shows them….huh? I would argue that what Mr. Ford did was build a faster horse. It was more than that, of course. But people knew they wanted a horse that was faster, more comfortable, and more convenient. The brilliance was not in showing the ignorant masses the true light of their desires, rather the brilliance was in creating the answer to those wants and desires.
Auto advertising is in the same game. What everyone truly wants is an auto dealer they can trust and enjoy doing business with. I don’t need Lord Saatchi to tell me that. Now, how does an auto dealer create a truly great brand that is trusted and enjoyed by prospective auto buyers….therein you will find the brilliance executed. And I would happily purchase from them as often as they suggested.