compression, spam, ricky martin

Jeffre and I have been talking about compression a lot recently. Thinking that there's a metaphor for brands in there - compression as an alternative to reduction. A good communication (or a good strategy) compresses a lot of information into a dense small package, rather than stripping it all out and making a thin, small package.

But here's another laboured attempt at a compression-related analogy.

Alex Ross has been writing about compression in music, it's a technique audio engineers use to give particular tracks, or elements of sound a bit of a kick, a bit of oomph, to make them stand out a little. (He explains it much better than I can. And there are great links in there. Especially this one.) The problem of course is, that everyone is starting to do it all the time. The chart above, for instance, shows you the dynamics (the highs and lows) in Ricky Martin's eponymous 1999 album  i.e. there aren't any. It's all loud. And when everything's loud radio starts sounding unbearable and everyone switches off.

Sound familiar? This is precisely the same arms-race that so much marketing communications is in. We're constantly looking for new ways to shout, new places to shout. We're in an attention arms-race and no-one can win that. Too much clever urban spam will make the average street look like that Ricky Martin chart. And that would be bad.

Comments

[Erik Larsson]

Great comparison. I've done quite a bit of this "compression" myself and getting loads of tips on how to make songs sound "professional" , after a while I just decided to compress it and "brand" my songs my own way, sounds more interesting.

Sort of reminds me of something I read somewhere along the lines of "When everybody screams, whisper" etc etc.

Btw,
When are you posting the next assignment?

[Tom Guarriello]

What'd the guy from Absolut say? Something like, "the way to get attention in a noisy world is to whisper."

[jeffre]

Compression, getting more stuff into less space, has at least a couple of applications, both positive and negative, as a marketing metaphor.

Audio compression (making everything sound louder) is like the constant, grating shout of radio ads or the visual miasma of "intrusive" outdoor advertising.

Data compression (getting more information into fewer bits) is like the very simple ad that you can't stop thinking about, that unfolds in your mind into something much bigger.

[Matt]

One other exploration could be the use of compression, and particularly the technique of 'decompression' in comicbooks, esp. Manga.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decompression_(comics)

as it says, Mr. Warren Ellis is notorious for the use of it in his storytelling.

[Max]

I was at the mall the other day and had a good laugh at the Hermit Crab vendor. I mean, can one really make a living out of selling Hermit Crabs?

I wonder.

It struck me that the Hermit Crab and this vendor presented an interesting opportunity for a planning metaphor.

From this particular vendor you can purchase a crab and its little biome for about $10. You can pick from the traditional hermit crab with its very standard shell. Or, you could pick from crabs that had adopted other unconventional, yet practical shells. Like a timble or a small morton's travel salt shaker.

It's ridiculous when you think about it.

As we all know hermit crabs have their shells and when they out grow them they look for alternatives. The thing is that they will use anything if it works, like a soda can. My point is if the hermit crab is the brand, then as planners we have to help them find new shells to grow in...Even if the shell is odd fitting at first, eventually they'll grow accustomed to it.

Moreover, its when they switch from the old shell to the new shell that they are the most vulnerable..much like an exciting new brand idea..we have to protect them as they make their transition.

Ok, I'll put the bong down now and get back to work.