❧ Eric Portelance

Zeus Jones’ Adrian Ho recently blogged about his advice to young planners, and provided this great answer on the future of planning. I couldn’t help but copy it here as it’s so dead-on.

As you know, I believe that marketing is about doing things for people rather than saying things to them. A direct implication of this is that marketing ideas are things we do, not things we say.

I also believe that strategy is about deciding what we will do, not deciding what we will say. And this means that our practice of separating strategy and ideas no longer makes sense. It is a relic which holds us back instead of moving us forwards.

I hope the next generation of young planners will work to redefine the output of their agencies rather than simply trying to redefine their role within the agency.

I hope the next generation of young planners will remember that the role of planning is to move the industry forward, which may require leaving planning behind.

— Adrian Ho

✳ strategy ✳ planning ✳ marketing ✳ digital