Professor Christy's Blog

Art and Science and Advertising

Advertising is not wholly art.  Advertising is not wholly science, either.  Good advertising does not necessarily need to be artistic; nor does it need to be created through testing and retesting.  Rather, good advertising, effective advertising, needs to be interesting enough to be noticed, but “scientific” enough that some level of measured return can be assessed.

There is a tendency to think of pretty pictures when we think of art and think of numbers and statistics when we think of science.  But such narrow perspectives limit our thinking surrounding a phenomenon like advertising.  The definitions of “Art” are many.  The word “Art” relates to more than simply aesthetics.  Art can also denote skill, workmanship, craft; art is more than pretty pictures.  It is, at its purest level, a form of communication and expression; it reveals something about an individual to the rest of the world.  In this sense, advertising is an art form - it reveals a product and/or brand to others.  It is also a craft - advertising is something that requires skill and aptitude.  However, it is not art for art’s sake.  It is created for something more than just being beautiful.  Enter science...

Science is more than metrics.  Science denotes process toward a particular goal.  Science is directive, purposeful, and advertising should be also.  Science also denotes progression and curiosity.  Creating advertising also requires a great deal of curiosity, and arguably can lead to societal progression.  However, advertising stops being science when we think of science as a set of facts.  When trying to understand the chaos that is human behavior, no matter how hard we try, we never attain the irrefutable facts.  Human “truth” is malleable, and is too married to perception to ever be immutable.  So advertising should not involve science any more than it involves art.

From a strategic standpoint, what is the optimum balance of science and art?  Should advertising be more artistic or more scientific to be effective?  What factors surrounding advertising affect the optimum balance?  Do winners of strategic advertising awards like the Effies seem to emphasize art or science, or do they seem to create an equal balance? 

Advertising Strategy Introduction

Strategy is at the heart of every advertising task.  Smart, directive thinking  lays the foundation for everything from creative to media to agency-client relations to pitching new business.  Deeply understanding people and cultures, possessing the knowledge to effectively communicate, and injecting creative and critical thought every step of the way results in message strategy that transcends average thinking.  These qualities increase the likelihood of developing advertising that both attracts viewers and stimulates individuals to think, feel, and behave in a certain way.  Creating straight-forward messages is simple.  Creating "out-there" messages is arguably just as easy.  Finding a balance between clarity and engagement, between boring and out-there, is necessary make-up for strong advertising.  Achieving this balance requires insight into both the human psyche and the essence of a brand.  It requires the courage to break from the constraints of linear thinking and view the world more abstractly.

Advertising planning, by and large, is problem solving.  As such, it is a strategic process that entails identifying a business shortcoming, setting goals and objectives, gathering relevant insights, weighing the options, and deciding on the best course of action.  This blog is created to help individuals develop their problem solving abilities and become more strategic thinkers.  The site is meant to supplement the Advertising Strategy course taught at the University of Oregon's School of Journalism and Communication.  However, participation in discussions and activities is open to all so learnings are not confined to the classroom.

Each week a new topic will be presented that corresponds with class discussions.  Such discussions should not be temporally limited, but rather should continue as new ideas are formulated and context-altering events surface.  Often, these topics will be accompanied by a relevant exercise and/or examples of work submitted by Advertising Strategy students.  This blog will hopefully assist those looking to improve their thinking, and create an ongoing dialog that transcends the classroom and creates a more effective learning environment.