Have we lost the ability to make what we make interesting?

Here are 27 lines used in consumer facing marketing communications from the last 5 years:

1. Find Your Beach
2. Find Your Strong
3. Find Your Greatness
4. Find Your Fit
5. Find Your Epic
6. Find Your Forte
7. Find Your Happy
8. Find Your Hair Happy
9. Find Your Edge
10. Find Your Flow
11. Find Your Fun
12. Find Your Volcano
13. Find Your Force
14. Find Your More
15. Find Your Essence
16. Find Your Unusual
17. Find Your Flavour
18. Find Your Fave
19. Find Your Extraordinary
20. Find Your Naked
21. Find Your Grit
22. Find Your Belfast
23. Find Your Tribe
24. Find Your Freedom
25. Find Your Own Lane
26. Find Your Dancing Feet
27. Find Your X

“You’ll see many of them on a street, screen, or shelf near you. Again, what’s worrying is not the linguistic similarity, it’s how they’re almost strategically identical. All of these, along with their “Find Your____ ” siblings, try to sell you something by telling you to “be yourself” or “be unique”. But of course by doing that, as pieces marketing communications, they become anything but. I used to think the problem lies in the fact that everyone reads and follows the same “millennial trend reports.” And that’s a part of it.”

— SHAI IDELSON, BBH LONDON

So many brand/comms ideas feel so similar nowadays and it’s not just because everyone reads the same reports and does the same research. It’s because we, as a profession, have lost confidence in our ability to make what we make interesting, writes Shai Idelson, Strategy Director and Creative, BBH. Good observations on the status quo concerning brands, social media and advertising, read more of this here.

(via BBH Labs)
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