First things first, I’m sure you’ll be pleased to hear that my ticket for the industry’s “must attend” event – the marvellous DMA Awards (have you got your’s yet?) – is on its way to me and my love for the dashingly handsome Chris Combemale knows no bounds…again.
I just hope that the recipient of the inaugural Busty Balls Awards has got his place booked, too, otherwise I might have to dish it out to his arch-rival.
Talking of dishing it out, I see the Festival of Marketing got off to a great start this week when Lord Sugar opened up the proceedings by telling the gathered throng that they were, and I quote, “marketing tossers”.
Well worth the £400 entrance fee on its own, no doubt. But ever mindful that its readership like to think they are quite important people really, Marketing Week enlisted that other little big man of business – no lesser luminary than Sir Martin Sorrell – to interview old grumpy pants himself. (At least he couldn’t argue back by saying pick on someone your own size, I guess)…
Anyway, “Big Al” spent the whole interview basically slagging off the ad industry. Our favourite nugget had to be when “Big Marty” asked him what he thought of the Internet as a marketing medium, to which he responded: “Internet advertising – subtle adverts appearing in the corners of websites – are where a lot of advertisers are placing their money. I haven’t got a clue how they’re supposed to work but nevertheless the advertising fraternity doesn’t care. It says ‘never mind, we’ll take your money – we don’t know how it works either’.”
Ouch. Even the man who makes millions of pounds a year on the back of the ad industry was forced to respond “That’s a little bit cruel”, although he hardly mounted a stiff defence, sound in the knowledge that he makes millions of pounds a year on the back of the ad industry.
Of course, what everyone would love to have seen is the two battling it out under Queensbury rules. Sadly that wasn’t on the cards; no doubt it would be pretty hard to get both of their egos in the same room, let alone a 16ft x 25ft boxing ring. As one one wag was heard to mutter: “Never mind ‘dwarf-tossing’, these two really are a couple of dwarf tossers.”
Now that really is cruel…
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