WSJ’s Foray into User-Generated Advertising
Author of this post: Nomi Altabef | About Blog Authors »
The Wall Street Journal is throwing their hat into the user-generated content ring with the relaunch of their “creative leaders” ad campaign, a series of meta-interviews in the weekend “Pursuits” section that get advertising creatives to talk about advertising, to promote the sale of ad space in the WSJ, and specifically the weekend edition. Originally launched in 1975, the campaign has featured advertising industry heavies such as Jerry Della Femina and Phil Dusenberry. They have relaunched featuring advertising wunderkind Alex Bogusky of Crispin Porter + Bogusky ( cpbgroup.com), the agency known for such ad campaigns as Coke Zero and Subservient Chicken, as well as their own line of gear, including trucker hats that say “ironic” on them.
Set up in a mutually obsequious format, the interviewee gets to offer some insights on just how he or she stays so firmly on the pulse of what connects with today’s audience, provided that leads back to the Wall Street Journal. For Bogusky, photographed in a motocross outfit, that translates into talking about the weekends as a particularly fertile time both for creative innovation on his part as well as receptivity on the part of the audience.
“Weekends are a different mind-set. People are more open to new thinking and searching for new ideas on the weekends. Although some people stay in and watch the game, others are out recreating all day.” As for his own weekends, he says, “I’m pretty much using technology to keep work going and flowing all during the weekend. A stop into the office for a few hours is usually a part of any weekend.” The interviewer then draws the subject back to that integral piece connecting creativity, recreation, and workflow: the weekend issue of the Wall Street Journal. According to the interview, Bogusky relies heavily on the weekend Journal to maintain contact with an audience of unparalleled intelligence.
The involvement of audience participation comes in the form of a contest aspect to the campaign. WSJ is inviting all readers to nominate the advertiser who most inspires them and craft an ad with a photo and interview as per WSJ’s line of questioning. It doesn’t quite jibe with the spirit generally associated with user-generated content– yes, the featured winner gets exposure among a group of creative elite and the chance to actually mingle with them in person, but the ad is quite blatantly shilling for WSJ, without the creative freedom usually associated with user-generated content.
But perhaps this is more in line with UGC Version 2.0: reverse-democratized to the corporate level, unhampered by indie-cred, where seeking self-promotion on the back of a mass commercial endeavor is accepted as a given. In case one isn’t moved to craft an ad on someone else’s behalf, WSJ has generously included in its contest parameters the option to nominate and interview oneself for the “creative leader” spotlight. So…who’s going for it?
