ClearPoint President Brenda Murphree wrote a VIP guest commentary on “Navigating the Changing Landscape of Advertising” for the July-August issue of Builder+Architect.  Here’s an excerpt:

“Advertising used to be pretty straightforward.  In the words of one old-style agency guy,  ‘Advertising is what you do when you can’t go see somebody.’ You have a product or service that people want or need, you put out information about it, and if you’re smart enough, you make a sale.’

‘Advertising, in other words, was how you presented your product in a persuasive, informative way.’

‘Then everything changed.’

‘In the last few years, the increasingly rapid pace of technological innovation has fueled an already growing information explosion and upturned the rules of advertising.’

‘In the first decade of this century the number of websites grew from 24 million to over 206 million worldwide.  Camera phones, first introduced less than 10 years ago, are now practically everywhere, with an estimated 1.9 billion worldwide.  And smartphones, those multi-purpose gadgets with a built-in operating system, are now in the hands of  over 17% of all adults in the U.S. ‘

‘In today’s world, the consumer is the gatekeeper, not the marketer, and the rules of the game have changed from persuasion to engagement.”

You can read the full article in the digital edition of the magazine, which is available online at wnc.builderarchitect.com/digital-editions.  (Scroll down to the bottom for the current issue.)