Interesting video featuring Clay Shirky – without doubt one of the wisest media/marketing commentators, despite his alarming resemblance to that annoying bloke on Masterchef … Clay is the one on the right … I think.
I am grateful to Rory Sutherland – another scarily smart person – for bringing the video to my attention.
I love Shirky’s comment that if something looks too perfect – like your multi million pound campaign Mr Tourism Australia - consumers won’t touch it, as “it leaves no space for me”. In contrast, smart crowd surfers know that a degree of messiness encourages interaction.
My esteemed partner in literary crime, David Brain, makes a similar point about “everything should be seen as a work in progress.” “People don’t want the glossy image of the company that appears in the brochure … they prefer to deal with something a bit rugged around the edges.”