How vision became more than a presentation buzzword

I came into advertising just about when the word vision became a sure winner in the client meeting bullshit bingo. Say vision in a calm and educated tone, and you can still score big on a presentation once in a while.

For some, vision is still scary. Time to time I still see big clients give briefs asking an agency to define their vision – sometimes based on business goals, other times on herded Pinterest moodboards and catchy videos. Once in a while I still see strategists sidle past company visions towards the better known terrain of campaign messages.

But no matter how slow an industry this big adjusts course, the change had begun. Small, privately owned companies are the pathfinders of the new logic, where vision isn't just a slide in the management presentation, but a value communicated above all else, explained with care, making sure it is understood.

All because they realised under the pressure of their limited resources, that a company's vision isn't for the company any more. It is for the consumers.

And now this realisation officially reached the giants.

What's worth to mention here is, that although the way of thinking about the company had changed, the traditions of communicating it didn't. This is still a one minute long, narrated spot with carefully set up and graded shots in movie quality. I'm not saying this is a problem, I'm saying this is the quite expensive price Coke must pay for starting this from the top, rather than from the ground up, like the small companies in the above linked case study had a chance to do.

To watch beyond Coke's new found voice and the fast paced market of the FMCG's, there is a quite good example of where this change could lead in terms of advertising.

GE realised a while back, that as a hidden industry giant it is basically unknown for the general public, and among else this heavily influences their recruitment capabilities. Being a friendly giant became more than a boardroom vision, it became a must to being able to operate and develop.

Carefully planned I think, in the past years they moved step by step to blend the change into their image communication, while changing exactly that communication in barely noticeable steps.

From lovely cautionary tale of "The boy who beeps"...

... they moved to the absurd yet self explanatory "Invention Donkey".

What GE does a bit better than Coke in my opinion is, that they give the magic words into the mouth of the consumer in their spots, creating a more welcoming and open atmosphere on the long run. So when we meet Molly in their latest spot, it is natural to their language even with the down to earth promise of hiring more women.

Watching the row of these videos on a multi-year timeline makes it easy to spot the strategy of translating the company vision to consumers. Making the leap of faith in the beginning is where the genius hides.

Working toward that genius and being able to sell it must be the challenge for the next few years for those who want to turn the helm of the industry next.