Welcome to the loud and clear podcast where we talk to people
who give a shit about advertising.
I am Emily Puig a digital strategist at Richard's Lerma
and I'm Alvaro Polanco a brand manager here at Richard lamb as
well today. We are talking Going to Victor
Garcia A Creative Group head here.
Hi, Victor Hi, how are you guys? Great doing great.
So we know that you're here to talk a little bit of to us about
South by Southwest and we know that big topic from that is
privacy. So we decided to take a little
of our expertise when it comes to privacy and did some stocking
on you. Yeah, we found something really
interesting. You actually started in brand
management Heidi. Yeah, you want to tell us a
little bit about that and why you decided to To move to
creative. So I guess the question would be
why did I decide to become an account executive to begin with
because that's that was advice that I got from a professor in
college was like I don't know what to do when I graduate and
he was like virtue you probably would degraded as an account
executive. So that's where I got my first
internships and after working at a couple of agencies.
I ended up working at proximity in Madrid.
And executive creative director there for whatever reason
decided to single me out in a good way of saying hey, do you
want to try this copywriting thing?
That's like yeah sure why not? It should be it should be fun
should be interesting and I guess part of it part of it was
that I really what what first really draw me into advertising
was my love for ideas. I love ideas.
I get excited about ideas regardless of the position of
the different positions that I've had in this industry.
I've always been in love with ideas and I've always been in
love with coming up with those ideas were helping ideas get
better or bigger. So I think that was that was a
natural thing for me. Also, I knew how to write a
little bit so that Health. Yeah, definitely also well
knowing that ideas are kind of your lead driver.
I'm curious if that's the same thing that led you to focus in
on digital or to care about digital or was there some other
Factor there was that just the future of the industry.
So I'm an old dog. I I started my career as a
creative in a direct marketing. The agency and direct marketing
with with a Rayborn birth and race of the detail environment
cannot died down and everything turned into into digital and all
those points of contacts with different clients and different
customers were more about the detail experiences.
When if you you're not going to remember because you're young
but those microsites that Branch used to create a Created
experiences and to me that was that was amazing in the sense
that you can bring this thing to life in whatever way you want.
It can be something just graphic that moves or it can be a video
or it can be an interactive experience.
But what really drove draw me towards that was the
interactivity aspect of it the fact that you had the chance to
give the consumer an opportunity to Answer back rather than just
putting out an ad and hoping that somebody will see it.
Now. I have to ask the consumer
themselves comparing stain to the United States.
Do you think the interaction levels are different especially
then that it was an early phase like was didn't start off slow
with one country more that I guess.
Yeah, I guess the access to technology in Spain came a
little later not a little later probably a lot later than it did
in the US. But as technology has evolved
through the years it's been its technology has been created in a
much more native way for consumers.
So regardless of where you are and how early or late you adopt
Technologies their design now to make a seamless interaction with
you. So it's easier now for someone
that has never touched a computer to just sit down in
front of a computer and knowing what to do.
Whereas before the butyric. Syrians had to be a lot of a lot
more thought out when user experience in those in this
environment was new to everybody.
So and I suppose having the consumer react like that.
Now more easily just more naturally it brings another
level to the game. Right like in the way you think
of ideas. Thus it does make another
another level all Because the consumer has gotten a lot more
Savvy in the ways they interact with contributed.
They have a patch in their eyes to cover up anything that has to
do with advertising and now you have to create content but that
content has to be both relevant to the audience you're talking
to has to be entertaining has to be has to that touch so many
boxes and check so many boxes that is changed a lot in the way
in the way consumers interact with Brands online.
And that's what South by Southwest is all about.
Right? It's all about this new.
Emerging digital environment that we all live in all about
interactivity interconnectedness creating better customer
experiences. I'm curious how you as a
creative with multiple countries under your belt what your
thoughts on South by Southwest or what were the big takeaways
for you? I think one of the biggest
takeaways is that I felt like we're maturing when it comes to
technology like before Nothing was about coming up with the
flashiest shiniest new technology and new thing whereas
now I think companies and developers and technologists are
looking into the consequences of those things that they're
designing and they're taking into consideration privacy
concerns. They're taking into
considerations of usability of different Technologies.
So, To me, it feels like there's been there's been a what's the
word tration maturation. Thank you of the of the whole
technology thing see but I find that interesting because on one
side you have these consumers that are more savvy than more
intelligent. They want to protect themselves
more they're caring about the laws that are being placed
online. But at the same time, I feel
like all the product Trends were going out with Alexa with the
Google nest with Nothing, it's going more towards the
convenient side. So if you were kind of in a
weird riff right here, how do you see that?
Oh, there's no Rift privacy is dead.
There is there's no raped and and it's not only a Lexus and
it's not only Google homes or Nest camps or we're talking
about bone recognition. We're talking about different
technologies that can identify and Recognize even how you feel.
So that goes beyond voice that goes beyond.
Behaviors. It's even we're going to get to
a point where technology most knows more.
Alex is going to know more about you than yourself and it's a
scary it is scary. But at the same time, I think
I'm going back to what we were saying before I think companies
and developers and technologists are a little bit more conscious
of that when I when it comes to creating these Technologies and
as long as you have a purpose, As long as you have some safe
ways and safe rails to control what to do what to do with these
Technologies. I think we should be fine.
But at the same time going back to the original question, I
think privacy is that in the sense that we as humans tend to
go for convenience and regardless if of his Alexa knows
that I just order Popcorn, it's fine.
Fine, I don't care. I'm going to get served a bunch
of that about popcorn even though I already bought it
Amazon take note here. But um, but I think convenience
for us is a lot more is a lot more important.
Are you are you hearing that most brands in most companies
are currently designing for convenience or are they
designing for privacy? Knowing that you know, what they
do with our data with people's data is going to be more
scrutinized or do you think to your point about people will do
whatever to get with most convenient that that's going to
be their bottom line which one of those is going to win out.
So if you if you look at the last three years after the
Facebook I was going to say downfall but there is no
downfall. It's still out of it.
Yes. Up, and that's the that's the
whole point. I mean it was a huge Hearing in
the Senate. There was a huge controversy
about can beat any league and the Lady Gaga that raised a
bunch of questions about what Facebook is doing with our data
and people didn't give a shit. Yeah people didn't care.
They do they keep posting pictures of their kids and on
Facebook and on Instagram and they don't care so At the end is
going to come to I think it's going to come to how much are
you willing to give away for what you're getting if that
technology that you're offering me is going to make my life a
lot easier. I'm willing to give you more of
my data if and and returning privacy and we're training
personal information into into a currency pretty much.
Yeah, I think it's very similar to terms and conditions.
Yeah, most people don't just simply you want to scroll down
you want to get to what you're actually trying to open.
So I think I think I've never read any terms and conditions
and probably my first born belongs to someone else.
Yeah. And on that same note Facebook
Google Amazon know everything about me, but I don't really
care as long as my package comes within the first two days.
Yeah, exactly. Give me what I want.
That's also the best part because it because yeah, and if
you look at it from an advertising And point there's
always a good thing about getting ads that are customized
for you whether that information is a little bit in my
perspective from my perspective is a little bit outdated in the
sense that whenever I get those served.
I probably have already solved the problem.
I'm not always looking for that kind of product or by the time I
get those hats. I'm already I had already made
my decision, but I think being able to get or to offer
consumers. Yes, and more relevant and
appropriate advertising makes a lot of sense for the amount of
information that we're dicers get which is bulk.
Well, we know that another speaking of Designing adds to
better serve what people actually want, you know that
design in general was a huge topic this year at South by
Southwest. So, where do you see the future
of design going? What's what were people talking
about Itself by? I think we're designing General
is moving towards. Towards creating experiences and
towards designing to make people feel a certain way before
whereas before we were designing to make people use the things in
the way that they were supposed to be used and make them pretty
and I'm perfectly visit abusable.
Now, we're designing products products and services that they
both have a cause behind they have a solution.
In to provide but they go beyond that and offer you an
experience. So it's not just about the
physical product that you get it's more about the whole
experience that you get with the brand that offers a product and
I think taking into consideration of the all of
these things that we've talked about.
There was a very interesting talk about usability and of
usability and how one when we were designing a new technology
or when we're Towing around with a new technology.
We're also taking into account the possible consequences of
what this technology can be used for and I think that's also
something that scares a lot of people if you look at Black
Mirror, for example, that that's a perfect example of taking
these technologies that you have available today social media and
that episode I think is the first episode of the third
season where you have a social Value and every interaction gets
reviewed and and that's a scary sticky here.
It's a spooky but if that that kind of thing or it exists in
China, they're controlling how much you can move and how much
you can travel around China and in an in and outside China based
on your traffic fines. If you have any debts if you
have any thing any problem with the so it's a still scary and I
think that Designing to keep in mind those things and also at
the same time designing to make people feel things rather than
just use them. It's where we're heading.
Are there any brands that you think are doing that well or
re-planning that right now? Or maybe we're all failing.
Who knows? I think no, I think there are
brands that cuz one of the things that I've done also
struck a chord on me at South by this year was this idea that
people are leaning more towards brands that have a cause behind
and that support something that I feel strongly about.
So putting those two those two things together putting a great
product really well designed that makes and Tie it to a cause
that makes sense with the product and the vision of the
company that makes a great environment for the for the
brand and I think Brands like Patagonia are doing stuff like
that Yeti has an amazing product and it's also very vocal about
their defense of public spaces and national parks and
especially Patagonian this case but more and more Brands if you
look at Toms, for example Thompson was born with that.
The idea of having a social purpose behind it.
And I think that enhances not only yes, you can have a really
good product. But you have to have that social
that cause part that allows me to feel more more feel closer to
your to your brand. And did you see any rent
specifically at South by vocalize that like they were
really trying to show either this is our new message or we've
always had These are causes that we really care about because I
feel that's a hub right there. But just so many people that
they could impact. Was there anyone that you notice
I was like wow, they're really kind of be a big player here.
There was there were a couple of there were couple of talks about
that can't remember exactly because I didn't attend them but
there was there was a bunch of companies there that were
waiting in all of those installations that are around
Austin doing those days. There was a bunch of companies
that were making sure that their social responsibility was coming
out and their causes the causes that they defend they Doubt were
visible. I think Lululemon had something
on that but I can't remember. But yeah, there was there was
there were some brands that were there with those messages but I
think it was more other people mentioning those brats are the
things that those retirement are doing rather than those Brands
themselves, which I really appreciate it because it's
little bit of a humble. Yeah, we're not talking.
We're not here to talk about ourselves all their stuff about
ourselves. Down to earth with a real
genuine. I do find it really funny though
because the whole point of advertising initially is to make
people feel some kind of way about your brand but now we live
in this world where we don't really care about your brand
unless you're actually helping X Y and Z groups X y&z people as
long as your brand is also tying back to something I actually
care about then maybe I'll care about your brand.
It's like a whole shift of just advertising in general because I
don't actually care about anyone brand unless I can connect with
them on something we both have in common and I think we as
consumers were we've gotten a lot more a lot savvier in the
sense that we can identify the bullshit.
Yeah from afar and the fact that companies are taking stands in
certain issues that are relevant for their product or service.
I think it's a good thing and I think it helps them with the
storytelling and I and that's another another really
interesting thing. That I got a buzz word that I
heard a lot at South by. It's it's this idea that yes,
you can have a great technology. You can have a great product.
But if there's no story behind it if there's no human
connection if there is no cause you got nothing, but see that's
where I say that we're in a very weird place now because it feels
like if everything's going to be tailored and custom to each
consumer and it's going to be different.
I feel like brands are going to get lost.
Been a moment where instead of having one core messaging
strategy, you're going to have too many maybe and since its
customizable. Maybe you're making different
people feel a different way. So how can Brands really make
sure that even though they're trying to get these messages
across the different types of people.
How do they make sure it's consistent?
That's a that's that's a tough thing to do, especially when it
comes to telling yourself to causes or things that are
important for people because those things change with time
but I think we've seen Brands change and evolve through time
and at the end in in advertising what we're trying to do is stay
we're trying to stay up to date in what two people is talking
about in what people is interested about and I think at
some point brands have gotten really good at adapting their
message to the times So yes, there's going to be a moment
where you're going to get a different message from Metro by
T-Mobile than Emily and Emily is going to get a different message
because whatever mental vitamins telling Emily or upsetting you
it's important for you or Emily in a different way, which is
something that the detail environment allows you to do.
So going back to my full full circle here you have we have we
have Brad and as advertisers have the opportunity to serve
customized messages to certain people.
Based on what they really want that we need your data for that
beautiful full circle moment. This has been so great to talk
to you it is time for us to wrap up.
But before we do do you want to tell the people where they can
find you online on all the platforms so you can find me on
Twitter at Tapper where he ubber wher e and on Instagram the same
Tupperware, but with a underscore I mean both sides.
So I underscore Tupperware underscore I got hacked and I
had those Hunters course. Oh, wow.
Well, my account was stolen was your privacy breach.
No. No, they started posting picture
pictures of a girl and I'm like, what is this?
And I told the girl. Hey, somebody's stealing your
pictures and posting them in the account that I had a deleted
everything from my account. So I had to start over years and
years of curating beautiful in Macomb probably agree to it when
you were agreeing to one of those terms and conditions.
Yeah, you probably gave that guy really knows my bad.
But thank you so much for coming week.
Totally really appreciate having the time with you.
Thank you. Thank you for having me.
It's been a pleasure. I'll see you around.
All right, thanks for tuning in today.
We really appreciate your time. And we really appreciate you
listening in on our chat with Victor.
I'm Emily Puig digital strategist Richmond Claremont
and I'm out bro Polacco brand manager here at Richard's Lerma.
This is Ben episode 5 of loud and clear you can subscribe
wherever you find your podcast keep an eye on your feed for
more interviews coming very soon.