I came across this article the other day, and then again while perusing the industry app "Fishbowl" today.
https://musebycl.io/musings/those-advertising-yes-we-are-curing-cancer-here
The article is written by Jordan Doucette, an Executive Creative Director at Leo Burnett (hey, that rhymes!), and it makes a pretty bold, provocative statement right up front, in the form of the headline: "To those in advertising: Yes, we are curing cancer here"
For anyone who's worked in the ad industry for any measurable amount of time, you've undoubtedly heard this facetious comparison of what we do to the work of doctors, surgeons, ER workers and the like. "Hey, we're not curing cancer here"..."We're not saving lives, people"..."It's just advertising..." Whether it's a colleague, a jaded partner, or a flippant junior creative making the remark, it's something you hear often throughout your career. And Jordan is quick to acknowledge that.
To give a little more context to the article, Jordan starts things off by talking about her father's recent passing from cancer, which goes without saying, is a tremendously difficult thing to have to grapple with. I can't even imagine. She then goes on to say that having gone through this horrible ordeal, she started to reflect on her choice of career and question its importance and value to the world. An existential career crisis. She brings up the aforementioned statements, e.g. "We're not curing cancer" to point to how we are constantly diminishing what we do for a living. But that this was our choice, and the people we work with chose this job, and that, "I'm sure they could have been architects or doctors or lawyers. Instead, they've dedicated themselves to using their creativity to solve problems." Finally, she goes on to list some of those problems - inequality, racism, bullying. She gives examples of how advertising addresses these issues, in the form of things like the Fearless Girl statue, Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty, etc. Making the point that our jobs are in fact meaningful, and that what we do makes a real impact on the world.
Now, I don't know Jordan personally. But with all due respect, I couldn't disagree with her more. I don't even know where to start.
First off, I actually love hearing the words, "We're not curing cancer." Or, "It's just advertising." Maybe it plays to my cynicism and acknowledgment of the realities of what we do. Maybe it helps to alleviate some of the daily stress. Or maybe it's just a reminder that people don't die if I fuck up. If I make an error, or forget to take care of something, or miss a deadline. The worst that happens is you get a little stressed out, or get reprimanded by a supervisor for said mistake, and then you take a breather, pack up your life lesson and move on to the next thing on your to-do list. And life goes on.
In addition, the statement "We're not saving lives" actually makes our jobs sound fun and not so cumbersome and heavy all the time. And for the most part, our jobs are fun – especially when you compare them with people whose jobs involve actual human beings' lives at stake.
One other thing that doesn't resonate with me is that these coworkers she references could have been "architects or doctors or lawyers," but that they chose this business. From my personal experience, and this applies to the majority of creatives I know, we acknowledge that we don't have any other skills, albeit a bit hyperbolic (at least for some of us). And, I'm pretty sure you need a unique set of skills to be a doctor, architect or lawyer. I think, more often than not, finding advertising is a revelation because we lack interest or innate talent in other fields.
But, my biggest gripe about this article is the statement that what we're doing is important.
It's not. Not in the slightest.
And that's ok. Who says it has to be? Who's to say we can't have a career where we use our creativity to "solve problems" and then do things to help the world outside of our day jobs? Very seldom do people work on cause-based campaigns in this industry, ones that actually help to make any kind of difference. And even when you do work on them, it's not world-changing stuff. It's generally brands trying to latch onto whatever the current social and/or cultural trend is of the day. It's usually self-serving for the creatives and the agency, to get recognition and win awards. An attempt to stay relevant. What it absolutely is not is an altruistic deed. Such as - oh, I don't know - donating to a charity. Or helping to feed the homeless. Or volunteering time in other ways to help save the planet. Which can all be done on your own time, and likely will have a greater impact on the world around you, not to mention your sense of self.
I get it. Some people's entire identities are attached to this business, especially creative people. Their sense of purpose and self-worth. There's been a lot of articles that have come out recently by creatives that defend this business from the people who are continually proclaiming its demise. And at the end of the day, it is a great job and should be defended. Personally, as a creative, I can sit at a bar and think about crazy multi-million dollar ideas for clients, sell the idea, and then watch producers and directors and other people with genuine talent emerge from the woodworks to make that stupid idea I had at 3 in the morning happen. And it's a beautiful thing. And we're all lucky to do it.
But it's not meaningful. Not when you compare it to doctors. Or teachers. Or people who work for non-profits. Or even art, for that matter - music, film, books, paintings - things that really help people cope with their lives and the craziness of the world.
Toward the end of Jordan's article, she talks about the theme of hope, and the power of creativity. The idea that our industry is one that's built on those things. We tackle everything with a "What if..." attitude. And it may be the one part of the article where I wholeheartedly agree. There is an optimism at the heart of all ideas we sell to brands. And at the end of the day, we should be optimistic about our industry, we should celebrate the best of what we do.
But please, please, please. Let's not pretend we're curing cancer.
Because for an industry that (rightly so) favors work that taps into real human insights, work that is authentic and not using bullshit as a tactic to sell product - we sure as hell buy into our own bullshit.