Egotism in Advertising

When I first discovered this website, I was naturally surprised by the name. The Boston Egotist! In Seinfeldian terms, it’s Krameresque: “I'm out there, and LOVING IT!!”

People are intrigued by the idea of egotism in advertising. We don’t want a selfless Don Draper.

In any work, but especially a supposedly glam business like advertising, there is good and bad in egotism. Pros and cons play in your mind like a game of ping pong.

Here are some of the ways egotism helps and hurts in the ad biz.

Starting Out

GOOD: You need a strong ego to break into the business. You don’t find many people who encourage you. To the contrary, people already in the game usually don’t advertise the benefits. They tend to dwell on the negatives. (“It’s a dog eat dog world, and you will be a Chihuahua.”) And people on the outside don’t see a lot of redeeming qualities either. (“It seems manipulative. Have you considered landscaping instead?”)

BAD: If you’re too self-centered and cocky, you probably won’t get hired by a good firm. Sure, many of us are a little arrogant starting out. When we heard “the world is your oyster,” we thought, “I deserve a better oyster.” But feigning humility is not a bad idea in a job interview.

Brainstorming

GOOD: You need confidence to propose and fight for an idea. Maybe the idea is half-baked, but if you don’t have the nerve to explain its beauty and potential, it won’t go back in the oven.

BAD: If you are so self-involved that you don’t really listen to others or give them proper attention and credit, don’t be surprised when they fail to praise your ideas. It’s human nature. “Show me the money” is another way of saying, “show me respect.”

Research & Development

GOOD: If you have a strong sense of self, you might feel that your intuition gives you more insight in understanding what a particular audience wants to hear. That egotism – the notion that you know best – can motivate you to develop new ways to pitch, position and persuade.

BAD: If you make the mistake of thinking that your view of a product, service or situation is the only reasonable one, you will compound that error with many to follow.

Collaboration

GOOD: If you feel driven to succeed, you need your team to prevail. You’ll use your leadership skills to encourage others to participate and then you’ll be generous in sharing credit with them.

BAD: If you see others only through the prism of narrow self-interest – how they could help you look good – you will not be genuinely collaborative. You will not bring out the best in others, and the group dynamic will suffer as a result.

Client Relations

GOOD: Most clients understand that creative people have strong, sometimes sensitive, egos. Depending on the personalities involved, clients often see that in a positive way. They realize that creative people must believe in their vision; otherwise, they won’t see a project through.

BAD: Very few clients want to work with arrogant people, no matter how talented. They want creative people to be confident, but also flexible and resilient.

Here is a provocative question: How do Boston egotists compare to egotists in other cities?

Well, we’re too humble to answer that.

Alex Poulos is the President at LaunchPad Media.

LaunchPad is an award-winning creative agency specializing in interactive media production – creating websites and driving traffic to them through advertising, search optimization, and PR. Headquartered in Watertown, Massachusetts, LaunchPad serves clients throughout the U.S.