HispanicBusiness

NEW ORLEANS, LA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/12/13 -- The 4A's, partnering with IPG's McCann Truth Central and Momentum, today released, "The Truth About Advertising," that revealed an impressive 69% of consumers think advertising can change the world for the better yet 70% of the industry believes the best days of advertising are in the past.

A key finding of the study is that 79% of people who work in advertising agree that 'we're good at selling our client's businesses but not our own.'

"Insularity is our Achilles heel," said 4A's President-CEO Nancy Hill. "We forget how inwardly focused we are and that most people have no idea what advertising is all about. In truth, as an industry we spend too much time talking to ourselves as agencies struggle to project their purpose to the outside world."

Chris Weil, global CEO of IPG's Momentum and 4A's Chairman added, "The study revealed that 87% of consumers believe that if people understood the real value advertising brings to the economy it would change people's perceptions for the better and attract a new generation of talent to our industry."

Therefore, the 4A's is initiating a contest to find the best creative idea to market the industry to a broader audience. Mandatories: Must be an idea that can live on any channel and run in any market. All submissions must be in a 5 minute video format and sent to thebrief@aaaa.org by May 15. The winner will be announced at the Cannes Lions Festival in June. The 4A's will underwrite the production of all materials that will be provided to members in a toolkit.

Here is The Brief:

•Problem: The advertising industry is too insular and this affects how its members view themselves, how the world views the industry and its ability to attract new talent. •Target Audience: The industry operates in a B2B model (i.e. trying to attract clients and impress other members of the industry) therefore it needs to incorporate a B2C model to attract new talent. •What Should People Think: Advertising is the #1 place to be creative and creates 15% of the nation's jobs. •Tone: Honest, inclusive and proud.

The findings of "The Truth About Advertising" study include:

The Sad Man in the Mirror
The industry suffers from something akin to a persecution complex the study said. When asked how people perceived their profession, advertising professionals used words like "charlatans, manipulators, greedy and dishonest."

Data from the study indicated that people in advertising have negative feelings about aspects of their profession. For example:

•70% think the best days of advertising are in the past •80% think the industry is a sink or swim environment •56% think people in advertising secretly wish they were doing something more creative •39% think that people in advertising are more likely to suffer from anxiety/depression