Erwin Ephron On Advertising Engagement

Following my recent and innocent pondering over the state of advertising engagement, advertising theorist and engagement critic Erwin Ephron chimed in today via his Mediaweek “Blunt Pencil” column:

It is our inability to define what we are talking about as more than a wild card that makes engagement dark and troubling. Engagement should be a principle (or several principles) that can be tested.

I agree with Erwin, though I’d suggest the engagement initiative is only in its infancy and should be given a chance to prove itself through a multitude of experiments going on. Still, his scrutiny is not a bad thing and it will hold anything engagement to a much higher standard.

See Erwin’s full column here, which lifted key passages and reader comments from my recent MediaPost column noted above. Also related: see below my video interview with Erwin, filmed last year during the Advertising Week 2006 festival.

Published by Max Kalehoff

Father, sailor and marketing executive.

Leave a comment