The art of ‘selling shit’ beautifully
The worlds of advertising and art have more in common than most may realise, argues Simon Lee, executive creative director and partner at The Hallway.
Not so long ago, I was talking shop over drinks with a group of marketers and ad industry folk, and someone chimed in with a line I’ve heard many times before: “What we do is basically sell people shit they don’t really need.”
There were a few laughs, a couple of resigned shrugs and the conversation moved on, but this old cliche of a line stuck in my head and got me thinking. Of course the work we do has to “sell shit”, but when I look at the passion, talent and creative energy that gets poured into the work, it’s clear many of us are at least striving to do more than just fulfil this primary function of selling. But what is that “more”, and does it matter?
