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.