In this discussion Orlando Wood (Chief Innovation Officer, System1) explains how advertising effectiveness hinges on the interplay between showmanship and salesmanship.
He traces back to a change in 2005–2006, a digital pivot, after which we have seen the erosion of emotional creativity. Orlando explains the power of fluent devices, platform-specific behaviours (including TikTok), the 3 Fs framework, the true nature of creativity, and the enabling—albeit maybe limited—role of AI.
Find out more about Orlando Wood and System1-> Here.
Key Take Aways
- The effectiveness of advertising depends on balancing two schools: showmanship (narrative, emotion, cultural resonance) and salesmanship (direct, rational persuasion).
- Showmanship is the primary driver of long-term profit and growth; it builds salience, preference, and memory, and makes salesmanship work harder.
- Since 2005–2006, the industry has over-rotated to salesmanship, driven by digital targeting and instant performance data, depressing effectiveness.
- Short-termism (IPO pressure, real-time sales dashboards) reinforces transactional tactics and undermines cumulative brand effects.
- Broad-reach, rich media (e.g., TV) naturally favour showmanship through story, characters, and emotion; fragmented digital channels have narrowed creative ambition.
- Fluent devices (recurring characters/scenarios) are potent memory assets; their decline reduced distinctiveness, though signs of a return are emerging.
- On platforms like TikTok, both schools exist: salesmanship converts in-window buyers; showmanship also builds awareness, trust, and brand image.
- System1’s 3 Fs—Fame, Feeling, Fluency—provide a practical brand-building agenda for marketers seeking durable growth.
- Overreliance on sales activation can create a “death spiral”: without salience and preference, conversion deteriorates despite more targeting.
- Creativity requires incubation and breadth—drawing from culture, history, and adjacent fields—not linear sprints; rushing yields “vanilla” ideas.
- AI is an enabler, not a substitute: it helps shape and iterate but lacks lived experience and movement-based cognition essential to human insight.
- As AI accelerates hyper-personalised salesmanship, showmanship becomes more critical to set preferences and create cultural relevance.
Innovatation
- Applying System1’s 3 Fs (Fame, Feeling, Fluency) as a concise operating system for creative effectiveness.
- Reframing recurring brand characters/scenarios as “fluent devices” that encode memory and recognition.
- Using historical and cultural analogies (e.g., lithographic posters, modernism, Roman era shifts) to diagnose current creative deficits.
- Distinguishing two schools on modern platforms (e.g., TikTok) to optimise for both conversion and long-term brand effects.
- Structuring creative process guidance around broad, open attention and incubation, not linear sprinting.
Key Statistics
- 2005–2006 identified as the inflection point when digitisation (e.g., launch of YouTube; rise of Facebook) coincided with declining advertising effectiveness.
- Reference to 1970s–1990s TV era as a period of broad-reach, narrative-led showmanship.
- Historical anchors: 1890s–1900s rise of mass-produced colour posters; 1905–1910 emergence of scientific salesmanship in North America.
- Course intake date mentioned: 22 September (Advertising Principles Explained).
Key Discussion Points
- The definition and contrast of showmanship vs salesmanship and why both matter.
- How media context (broad-reach vs targeted digital) shapes creative form and effectiveness.
- The shift since 2005 to short-term, data-led optimisation and its unintended consequences.
- The role of emotion, narrative, and cultural bonding in creating durable brand memory.
- The decline—and re-emergence—of brand characters/mascots (“fluent devices”).
- Evidence from TikTok: salesmanship drives conversion; showmanship also builds awareness and trust.
- Risks of over-targeting and short-term KPIs leading to a growth “death spiral”.
- Practical guidance via Fame, Feeling, Fluency to prioritise salience, affect, and instant recognition.
- The creative process: breadth, incubation, and cross-field synthesis vs linear sprinting.
- AI’s limits in generating genuine human insight; best used as a supportive tool.
- Cultural parallels (e.g., modernism’s “stare”, reduced emotional expressivity) as signals of current creative challenges.
- The future balance: as AI-enabled salesmanship scales, showmanship’s importance rises to set preferences.
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