Is the role of 'creative' dying?

The way we're consuming media is killing off the need for creatives. Why? Because consumers are in control. They choose what content to watch when they want to watch it and are even contributing their own content. 

That cuts out the need for people like us to try and engage their interests. 

In 2007 I was told the average person sees up to 5000 ads per day. But, with the rise of social media changing our habits, this statistic is probably no longer accurate. Social media is littered with irrelevant messages, causing a steep incline of adblocking software. And rightly so - there's nothing more irritating than having a Youtube mix interrupted by some ad telling you how to apply make-up. 

As advertisers, we've missed our chance to capture the imaginations of consumers online. They've quickly grown tired of the feeble attempts and have shut the door on us completely. Let's face it, 95% of the stuff you see online is utter shit.  

So, consumers are creating their own content. It's easy. Everyone is capable of doing it. The trouble is, it's this content that creatives depend upon to earn a living. 

Let's take Apple's award-winning Shot on iPhone 6 campaign. All the content you see plastered on billboards came from ordinary people. And this is only just the beginning. 

There are now specialist companies such as SnapApp or Stackla, that will search the web for branded content - even if it hasn't been tagged. So for example, if my younger brother Instagrams himself at halftime drinking Lucozade (and let's say it's the perfect image and exactly what Lucozade has in mind for an upcoming campaign) but has only been tagged #stillundefeated #buzzing, how do Lucozade find it? Well, that's exactly what these specialist companies are paid to do. Find it. And, once they do, brands often have to pay next to nothing for the image rights. 

But it doesn't stop there. Oh no. In some cases, fans will produce content for freebies. 

British Youtuber Joe Weller has over 2.6 million subscribers (at the time of writing) or the 'Buxton Army' as he likes to call them. Yes, as in Buxton Water. 

He regularly uploads videos of himself that relate to bottled water and has even released Buxton Army merchandise for his fans. He's pleaded with Buxton in several videos to become their spokesperson. Of course, It's all a pisstake and Joe's idea. But with his fans commenting things like 'you've actually converted me to Buxton' and 'Once you've gone Buxton you'll never go back', I'm sure Buxton has seen an increase in sales. What does he get in return? Probably fuck all except a few free bottles of water. 

Essentially clients can cut out the stress and money involved in working alongside agency creatives and rely directly on their consumers. How can we compete with that? We can't! 

We had better start thinking about what else we're good at.