IBM: Prepare for “The End Of Advertising As We Know It”

Five years ago, Sergio Zyman, the former chief marketing officer for Coca-Cola, penned a book entitled The End of Advertising As We Know It. Zyman asserted that marketing had strayed too far from its original purpose to generate sales, and he was one of the strong voices urging marketers to make sure their efforts and creativity could demonstrate a solid return on investment. Apparently, many in business listened to Zyman (and others that championed the same message) because most CMOs today will tell you proving a good return on marketing dollars is an absolutely vital part of their job description.

Now, five years later, IBM has released a report with the same title: The End of Advertising As We Know It. According to the opening paragraph of the report, “The next 5 years will hold more change for the advertising industry than the previous 50 did.” The report link above will take you to a full PDF of the report, and there is also a summary available.

The IBM report lays out a series of compelling scenarios and cautions that advertisers, agencies, the media and other major players in the advertising business will face some serious challenges and consequences unless they can implement change and innovation to what is increasingly becoming outmoded models of advertising. The report’s conclusion quotes:

“There is no question that the future of advertising will look radically different from its past. The struggle for control of attention, creativity, measurements and platforms will reshape the advertising value chain and shift the balance of power.”

I don’t think Zyman’s book or the just released IBM report are hyperbole. I was just telling someone in the business press last week that I think marketing has changed more in the last few years than it had in the previous several decades. The IBM report predicts the next five years will continue to see tumultuous change for the advertising industry. For those that cling to the past, it is going to be a rough ride. For those companies that see and understand future change as an opportunity, it should be interesting—and successful—times.