Categories: Articles

The Conflict Of Media… And Digital Media

Well, this is uncomfortable.

I spend a lot of time – in boardrooms and on stages across the world – trying to explain to brands why a digital marketing agency is so fundamentally different from a lot of traditional advertising and media agencies. It can get uncomfortable. There is no doubt that many of these traditional institutions have done a great job, at adding in digital services, hiring the right people, or have attempted to transform their businesses. In a simplistic way, my train of thought is this: while many agencies and companies are doing their best to transform into being more (or fully) digital, this is the kind of work that Mirum has been doing for the brands that we work with for over fifteen years. So, while traditional agencies try to evolve and transform, we have been what they are trying to become for over a decade. There is a difference. Chris Hughes was one of the founders of Facebook. He then went on to be an integral component in the online organizing for Barack Obama‘s 2008 presidential campaign. After that, he purchased the magazine, The New Republic. His Silicon Valley approach to the traditional magazine/publishing legacy created a well-documented friction with some of the best journalists in America. Hughes recently discussed the situation on Charlie Rose. It’s a tough watch. On one hand, the evolution to digital is one that Hughes is very capable of leading. On the other hand, it feels like Rose is schooling a second year journalism student on what it means to be a journalist, and in the media. No matter which side you may choose to defend, one thing is for certain: we are not yet through this moment of purgatory. The new entities will continue to disrupt. The traditional entities will claim that they have already migrated, but the truth will be obvious to most.

If you’re fascinated with media, you must watch this…

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.