Creativity in Advertising vs. Data

For over 30 years now I’ve been hearing what seems to be a never-ending debate between “suits” of the research orientation and creatives about how advertising should be done. Creatives always complain that research has a tendency to kill great advertising. Research people point to case after case of bad creative that would never have run if people listened to what the research was telling them. The latest input comes from Adam Kleinberg at Ad Age. Here’s the link:

http://adage.com/article/guest-columnists/data-driven-creative-equals-mediocre-creative/239960/?utm_source=update&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=adage

So, where are we today? Is “big data” going to be the savior that many claim? Will good creative go the way of the Dodo? I’ve seen this play out so many times that I find myself with a foot in each camp. But when push comes to shove, and you have to make a decision, I think you have to trust your gut. It’s a little like the other big question in business, the ongoing conflict between marketing and finance. I once wrote a biography about a self-made multimillionaire who told me his motto was “No guts, no glory.” Finance tends to be risk-averse (like research) while marketing wants to take risks (like creatives). He’d built seven successful companies by taking risks more often than playing it safe.