Paid Attention: Innovative Advertising for a Digital World

by Faris Yakob

Overview

The advertising attention marketplace is a confusing and vast playing field where the rules have changed drastically over the last decade. Make yourself heard and win the attention of your target audience with the new edition of this ultimate guide.

Paid Attention delivers new and innovative insights into advertising ideas: what they are, why they are evolving and how to use them in day to day strategy to ensure commercial stability within a changing digital landscape. Packed with real-world examples of advertising campaigns such as Google, Sony and Old Spice, it provides a robust model for influencing human behaviour and toolkits that offer best practice on brand behaviour and effective communication.

This second edition includes two new chapters exploring the latest evidence about attention spans and trends in online advertising, as well as new case studies on compelling brand ideas. In a world where being a consumer is confusing, learn to take control of the situation and make yourself heard in today's crowded attention marketplace.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781398602519
Publisher:	Kogan Page, Ltd.
Publication date:	11/03/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Faris Yakob, Based in New York City, New York, is co-founder of Genius Steals LLC, an ideas and innovation consultancy and of The School of Stolen Genius, an online learning community for marketers and creative thinkers. He is former Chief Innovation Officer at MDC Partners, EVP&Chief Technology Strategist at McCann Erickson, plus Global Digital Strategy&Creative Director at Native Communications. Yakob is a prominent international speaker, guest lecturer for a number of universities and has written for publications including the Financial Times, Forbes, Advertising Age and Media Week.
Faris Yakob is co-founder of Genius Steals LLC, an ideas and innovation consultancy and of The School of Stolen Genius, an online learning community for marketers and creative thinkers. Based in New York City, New York, he is former Chief Innovation Officer at MDC Partners, EVP&Chief Technology Strategist at McCann Erickson, plus Global Digital Strategy&Creative Director at Native Communications. Yakob is a prominent international speaker, guest lecturer for a number of universities and has written for publications including the Financial Times, Forbes, Advertising Age and Media Week.

Table of Contents

• Section - ONE: Paid attention;
• • Chapter - 00: Introduction - Paid attention - How much is it worth?;
  • Chapter - 01: Logocentrism - What’s in a name?;
• Section - TWO: Attention deficit disorders;
• • Chapter - 02: Uncovering hidden persuaders - Why all market research is wrong;
  • Chapter - 03: Advertising works in mysterious ways - Modern theories of communication;
  • Chapter - 04: Is all advertising spam? Communication planning in an on-demand world;
  • Chapter - 05: The spaces between - The vanishing difference between content, media and advertising;
• Section - THREE: Attention arts and sciences;
• • Chapter - 06: Do things, tell people - How to behave in a world of infinite content;
  • Chapter - 07: Recombinant culture - Talent imitates, genius steals;
  • Chapter - 08: Combination tools - How to have ideas - A genius steals process;
  • Chapter - 09: Advertising for advertising - Is the industry paying attention?;
  • Chapter - 10: Integrative strategy and social brands - Be nice or leave!;
  • Chapter - 11: Prospection - Planning for the future we want;
• Section - FOUR: 2020 Foresight;
• • Chapter - 12: Everything is PR;
  • Chapter - 13: The quantity, quality, qualia and cost of attention;
  • Chapter - 14: Epilogue - Talkin’ about your generation

Editorial Reviews

"The most useful, entertaining and insightful examination of communication theory and commercial creativity that I have read."

Catherine Coleman-Jinks

"What next for media, brands and even humanity now we have reached peak attention? Faris powerfully explains and expounds the future in his trademark smart, witty and always surprising tone."

Sara Tate

"Paid Attention is the most stimulating and useful blueprint for genuinely fresh thinking about advertising and communications that I have read in the last ten years."

author of Eating The Big Fish Adam Morgan

"At a time when almost every pundit seems to be questioning whether advertising has a future, Faris is offering some answers."

Will Collin

"In a world where the rate of technological change is ever faster, this new edition is a must for any ambitious marketer, strategist or creative."

Laura Jordan Bamback

"A must read for anyone in the communications industry."

Head of Brand Strategy & Planning at TikTok Lisa Batty

"Faris's book is a roller coaster of a book - full of ideas on ideas, it held my attention at every turn. Packed full of theories and evidence to weigh and consider, this is the advertising/communications/ideas book of the year."

Adam Ferrier

"The brand communications playbook has changed little in the last century. I think it's safe to say the world we live in has changed dramatically in that time. Paid Attention is a hugely useful playbook to draw from in order to develop communications for the world today, not the world of yesterday."

Gareth Kay

"Faris's phaser is set to stun as he reverses the polarity of the ad industry in a cautionary tale against old media thinking. Salvation comes in the form of numerous helpful thoughts starters for those genuinely interested in exploring the future of marketing."

Johnny Vulkan

"Faris managed to eloquently encapsulate the ongoing radical transformations of marketing and communication as a practice. From behavioral sciences to the genesis of creativity, this book keeps on traveling between both sides of our brains in view to intelligently explain the productive tension between arts and sciences, and the recent shift towards a less intuitive, thus more evidence-based scientific approach to marketing... without, importantly, killing creativity, but au contraire, enhance it by rendering ideas more relevant and efficient."

Christophe Cauvy

"We don't think of it this way, but advertising is an industry with a history of its own, shaped by heroes, epiphanies, disasters and luck. It's not often analysed like other industries, but in his book, Faris has laid out a rich and intricate landscape that not only frames the state of advertising today, but the events that contributed to it, and how advertising should evolve in the face of that fast-arriving future we've heard so much about. Grab a thesaurus and get ready for a Billy Madison-esque learning montage"

Amber Finlay

"Paid Attention is a must read for anyone struggling to understand media's changing relationship with consumers in a world being transformed by digital. Funny and provocative, and packed full of great examples, it'll get you thinking differently, whether you're an advertising professional or a media entrepreneur trying to reposition your business to take on the next generation of opportunities."

David Flynn

"Faris has hosted sessions for my students on our many trips to New York. His passion and particular lexicon have both challenged and inspired students from around the globe. His new book is about the now and treats digital as the norm that it has become. Unusually for this genre of book, it is light of touch, eminently readable and seamlessly integrates different cultures so as not to appear out of the US. Philosophy, yes in part, but with the common touch."

Bruce Sinclair

"Paid Attention gives a comprehensive view of how the advertising industry has evolved and how new technologies and social media have affected what people demand from brands today. Faris covers philosophy, psychology, behavioural economics and social behaviours to look at how planners and creatives can ensure their work is relevant, engaging and appropriate. He covers a great deal of information in an approachable and straightforward way, with stacks of recent examples of successful advertising."

Emily Hare

"Most useful for those looking for a background on advertising in the digital world, including how people process information and theories behind how advertising works. Packed with ideas drawn from philosophy, science, and literature, the book offers a comprehensive look at the theory behind advertising in the attention economy"

Foreword Reviews Stephanie Bucklin

"What Faris does a great job at is walking the reader through the recent past to the now in advertising, punctuated by case studies that help add color along with good footnotes. It is the evolution of tools at our disposal that have really changed the way we communicate, and to a degree, what we communicate."

Adland.tv Jane Goldman

"Great ideas happen when you ask a lot of questions. If you want to ignite culture, you need to challenge conventions. Faris is one of the brightest and most curious minds in advertising, and in Paid Attention: Innovative Advertising for a Digital World, he asks questions that every advertiser and marketer should be asking themselves today about breaking through in an increasingly on-demand and attention scare world. In the process, he arrives at some revealing brand tactics and strategies that will help you create advertising people seek out not skip. Recommended reading for anyone in the advertising and marketing business."

Winston Binch

"The most over-asked question by five-year-olds is the most under-asked questions by adults - 'why?' Why do we do things this way? Why do we make certain assumptions? Why don't we try a different method? Faris steps into the role of advertising's irritating toddler in an effort to understand why the industry is in the state it's in and what it can do to regain its relevance. Faris asks the questions the rest of the ad industry are too scared to ask. And now that he's done it, it'll be interesting to see which agencies will make the changes the rest of the industry will be too scared to make. Here lie the nuggets of wisdom you'll hear repeated in ad agency board rooms for years to come. Take a read, collect some quotes and sound like the smartest person in the room before someone else does."

Dave Birss

"An interesting and challenging book that allows any person in charge of marketing or advertising a business to rethink their advertising system."

Small Biz Trends Charles Franklin

"A lively, penetrating, thoroughly intelligent investigation of how content wins attention...or fails to do so. Let Faris be your guide to new ideas and best practice."

Affiliate Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Grant McCracken

"Faris is one of the smartest people working in marketing and communications, anywhere in the world. This book will only enhance his reputation further. It is a door into his thinking, a door which reveals the breadth of his thinking and the practicality of his answers to "so what should you do differently?" A joy to read - and not just once. I predict it'll be one of those books we come back to again and again. There are few people today who've thought so deeply about communication and marketing as Faris Yakob. Fewer still who've examined the big issues of the day from such a broad set of perspectives - digging around in the best evidence the industry has produced as well as looking outside to what's happening in technology, in leading-edge cognitive and social science. If you want to fast-track your thinking about what's next and what you need to do about it, this book is for you. And if that doesn't convince you, remember: your competitors will be devouring it, so maybe you should have a look, too!"

The Herdmeister Mark Earls

"A new marketing philosophy for our time."

Ben Richards

"In the digital age and beyond, marketers can no longer buy attention. That means how we define strategy, creative ideas, media, and even the role of the consumer has to change. Faris Yakob has spent a career writing and speaking about these topics. Few thinkers better understand the challenges that confront marketers, advertisers and agencies in the years to come. Finally, we have his knowledge —captured in a clear, logical text that offers readers an understanding of the recent changes, and what we can do to prosper."

Edward Boches

"Great ideas, as the book explains, are borrowed bits of other great ideas recombined in new and interesting ways. Paid Attention doesn't just explain the concept, it lives it, combining ideas from economics, psychology, philosophy, media studies, and, of course, advertising, into a coherent narrative for this particularly incoherent time. The book is well worth your attention and you're sure to find a few ideas to steal for yourself and your brand."

Founder of Percolate Noah Brier

"In today's global, 24/7, hyper-connected environment, our attention is the most prized commodity. New media call for new approaches to strategic communication. Drawing upon a rich and highly interdisciplinary body of scholarship on the links between cognition, symbolic expression and behavior, Paid Attention is a primer for the praxis of persuasion in the 21st century. Clearly fluent in both academic research and marketplace realities, Faris Yakob offers a welcome bridge between theory and practice. Scholars and professional communicators alike should pay attention."

Gwenyth Jackaway

"What Faris does a great job at is walking the reader through the recent past to the now in advertising, punctuated by case studies that help add color along with good footnotes. It is the evolution of tools at our disposal that have really changed the way we communicate, and to a degree, what we communicate."

Adland.tv - Jane Goldman

"Faris Yakob, you most certainly have my attention. But, then again as one of my most valued advisors in this world of communication and creator of the LIA NEW Category, you always have always made me pay attention. What a marvellous read. Intentionally or unintentionally, you have put into perspective the way all media are converging with one another and share similar methods for success, despite which platform they come from or how content is now consumed. Brilliantly, you examine how crucial it is to distribute your work in order to achieve your goals. It is incredible how the concepts, like sharing, which were learned as toddlers in the sandbox, are now the governing rules for a fruitful,
profitable campaign. I know this book will be the gold standard for understanding modern concepts about media. But then again, technology changes so quickly, that by the time you finish reading my review, this book will need to be amended in your enviable style. A MUST-read for anyone living in this world of infinite content. I really Paid Attention to every single word."

President, London International Advertising Awards - Barbara Levy

"Sometimes, reflecting on a broken mirror is a fascinating thing. When chaos disrupts the perception of order it can offer a fresh perspective and jarring insights. Faris brings indisputable advertising credibility to the fluid timeline of the now. The ongoing polemic of conversation in advertising and the precision and force of his thought, against an ever changing context, not only makes Paid Attention a powerful read, but a necessary one for any practitioner in marketing today and likely for years to come. I’m not usually one for grand pronouncements, but this could be the most important 'tool' I equip myself with for a very long time."

Union Creative - Michael Kasprow

"A lively, penetrating, thoroughly intelligent investigation of how content wins attention...or fails to do so. Let Faris be your guide to new ideas and best practice."

Affiliate Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University - Grant McCracken

"[A]n interesting and challenging book that allows any person in charge of marketing or advertising a business to rethink their advertising system."

Small Biz Trends - Charles Franklin

"This fantastic book will challenge how you think and view the world – it also happens to be incredibly useful for anyone who wants to understand the current and future direction of advertising. Faris takes us on a journey through communications theory, neuroscience, and the history of media, and leaves us with practical and actionable ideas on how to do better work. An absolute must-read!"

Head of Innovation and Reseach, Dubizzle - David Passiak

Great ideas, as the book explains, are borrowed bits of other great ideas recombined in new and interesting ways. Paid Attention doesn’t just explain the concept, it lives it, combining ideas from economics, psychology, philosophy, media studies, and, of course, advertising, into a coherent narrative for this particularly incoherent time. The book is well worth your attention and you’re sure to find a few ideas to steal for yourself and your brand.

Percolate - Noah Brier