Billboards, Bulbs, and Battleships

The other day, over lunch, my wife asked me if I still liked what I do for a living.  That's a fair question for the one who has listened to the daily woes of this job for 23 years to ask.

I laughed and said, "I think so.  I'll give it another 10 or 12 years then I'll let you know."  But something had happened earlier that day that reminded me about how things had changed.  The guy who changes the light bulbs on our billboards brought in a photo album of his work in our industry from a few years back.  He used to be a sign painter, and a damn good one at that.  His book was filled with photos of brand images that he had artfully recreated over the years. I could recall all of them, and I could even tell you where most had been displayed. 

Not that long ago things were much different.  By necessity, planning was done months in advance.  Artwork was in the studio for days or weeks before it got out on the streets, and once it was out there it was permanent.  Artwork was big, bold, and impactful like a battleship.  And like a battleship it took forever to turn around.

Today's campaigns are planned in days, implemented in hours, and sadly too often filled with images that deliver the payload of a jetski.  Impact has been traded in for nimbleness.  It doesn't have to be that way.  Speed and impact aren't mutually exclusive.

So, the question was do I still like what I do?  The answer is absolutely!  Many people in our industry don't understand the powerful medium at their disposal, but I do.  Somebody has to let them know that our medium, like that sign painter, can do much more if given the chance.  Be creative!  Think big!

I'll see you on Route 21.