So, at last there’s a home for direct, data, blah, blah, yawn… whatever. More importantly, at last there’s a home for salacious industry gossip. And who better to deliver it than me? As Jagger once sang, “please allow me to introduce myself, I am a man of wealth and taste”. To be fair, I have neither of those qualities but, ladies and gentlemen, I am Ivan Idol at your service (Idol Gossip – geddit?).
Anyway, rewind a minute. So, there I was sitting in the spare room pretending to do some work when the phone rang – a pretty rare occurrence these days. “Would I like to be the new gossip columnist on DecisionMarketing?” Never one to turn down hard cash, and the prospect of free lunch, I jumped at the chance, although, dear readers, I must admit I hadn’t got the foggiest idea what it was all about.
Then it struck me, oh yeah, DecisionMarketing, it rhymes with something else and has DM as its initials. Quite clever really, so long as they pay me…
So, it’s been nearly two years since the demise of the DM trade press, yet I seem to be suffering from a nasty case of déjà vu. But if you’ve been out of the loop, here goes:
• Any agency which claims to have more than 150 people is being highly economical with the truth;
• Former executive creative directors are now in agencies you’ve never heard of;
• Most data companies have gone bust, or phoenixed into businesses with weird names;
• Agencies on the COI roster aren’t looking quite so smug (are you listening Marc?);
• The DMA has gone anorexic, allowing Colin Lloyd’s ego to move back into the building (only as a tenant with the Institute of Promotional Marketing though);
• Most group marketing directors now toil away in their spare rooms, ahem, ‘consulting’
• Everyone has ditched the extra-marital affair and gone back to their partners;
• Phil Andrews is still stinking rich;
• Mike Cavers is an expert on Happy Meal toys;
• and even the lovely Grimsey is back in full-time employment.
There, that didn’t take long did it?
Finally, a little teaser for you: Which DMA executive thought she was on to a good thing when she started dating one of the offspring of Joy of Sex author Dr Alex Comfort? Not only did he have a large portion (of his father’s estate), he was also bound to know ‘everything’. However, she claims that, although he was definitely loaded, he’d definitely never read the book…
(Got anything you’re dying to get off your chest? Email me, discretion guaranteed! ivan.idol@hotmail.co.uk)
his parents probably never talked about sex?
Well, you know what they say, a cobbler’s children are always the worst shod. Stands to reason then that a sex guide writer’s kids are bound to be crap in the sack!