The Marketing Journal
  • About
  • Interviews
  • Articles
  • Videos
  • Book Reviews
  • Views
  • Subscribe
“Can Ads Save Humanity from Self Destruction?” – An Interview with Iain Patton

“Can Ads Save Humanity from Self Destruction?” – An Interview with Iain Patton

July 23, 2019

Iain Patton is the Director of Ethical Team – a communications consultancy amplifying the sustainability agenda to make it relevant and attractive to people who don’t care. It does this by building partnerships, advocacy, outreach and capacity building, stakeholder engagement and challenging business to embed sustainability at its heart.

A passionate PR, media relations and communications professional with a track record of innovation, entrepreneurism, and creativity, he is noted for amplifying stories and creating a voice for purpose-driven and cause-related brands and organizations. We caught up with him to talk about advertising and the common good, and the 19th Annual EthicMark awards.

How did you get into this world of ethical PR?

We understand that the natural capital we’re exploiting will simply run out one day. Today’s business leaders have a responsibility to future generations now more so than ever.  For us, ethics means embracing and embedding values to ensure we preserve our environment, stop climate change, safeguard habitats and prevent further species decline. It’s about ensuring a common sense business approach that’s based on long-term stewardship of the earth’s resources instead of short-termism.

Look, as an industry we haven’t been half as clever in dealing with the bad stuff: overconsumption of resources, pollution and massive social inequality which sit alongside the growth we’ve helped create. This was the basis for a small group of like-minded independent professionals to get together to create a new kind of team.

But can advertisements change the world?

It can be argued that the communications industry as a whole and the advertising industry, in particular, have long held a reputation for relying on people’s weaknesses to drive sales while compromising access to finite resources by future generations. This thirst for short-term profit has allowed global corporations to make unsustainable consumption patterns the norm and encourage addictive and wasteful behaviour. In addition, communication campaigns have often been complicit in perpetuating negative social stereotypes in the process.

Now as mental health issues across the world reach untenable levels, many unregulated communications campaigns persist in highlighting our inadequacies and aim to make us feel we lack seemingly important things in our life such as cheaply made new clothes, luxury cars, the latest wireless tech or even more exotic adventure to holidays to far-flung remote destinations.

Not to mention Fake News and social media…

While some campaigns rely on making us feel inadequate and unsuccessful, they are also partly responsible for humans drifting further and further away from the meaning of happiness. While all the research tells us that happiness is about gratitude, being ourselves, and living in the moment with what we already have, many communications campaigns take the easy route of relying on making us feel exactly the opposite: perpetually inadequate, wanting to be someone else, and constantly chasing the future rather than being happy with our present.

According to global research director George Tsakraklides, 2019 was a landmark year for the advertising and social media industry in two respects. First, micro-targeting political Facebook ads that were implicated in swaying election results across the globe brought to the surface a brand new, much more impactful way of exercising influence on consumers. Using the power of Artificial Intelligence and the sophistication of personalised algorithms, micro-targeting has proven to be so effective that it has raised the question in some circles of whether this level of mind control should even be legal. The new digital ecosystem, where 87 million people’s personal data can easily be bought and sold without approval, and where Dark Web money sponsors algorithmic campaigns that appear and disappear overnight, revealed that we are potentially entering a dangerous age where those who have the money control the truth itself. They are the ones who get the final word on what is fake and what is real news. This is likely to become a reality unless we have serious conversations about regulation in the digital space.

This was also the year when many people working in the related worlds of market research, marketing, media and advertising, began to realise that their profession is one of the most carbon-intensive ones. When one factors in the consumerism that our industry fuels, their roles are some of the most carbon-emitting across all industries. 

In this fast-developing backdrop, this couldn’t have been a more relevant time for the EthicMark Awards, running for their 14th consecutive year. That’s what I’d like to explore more deeply with your readers.

Tell us about the EthicMark Awards.

The Awards aim to continue to raise the bar on socially responsible communications and advertising and highlight the role that the industry has in society. Rewarding ads and media campaigns that “uplift the human spirit and society”, EthicMark has launched its Call for Nominations for this year, the winners to be announced at the SRI Global Conference Nov 11-15.

While equality and diversity have always had centre stage, winners in recent years have increasingly been represented by campaigns highlighting the urgency and rising importance of climate breakdown and the state of the environment. 2019 most likely will not be an exception.

Who are some of the past winners?

The 2018 winners include For-profit DONG Energy which is now Ørsted from Ørsted Energy in Denmark. On their homepage, Ørsted explains its transition from oil and gas to renewable energy, emphasizing that the planet is home to all of us.

The winner in the Non-Profit category is Trash Isles, from the Plastic Oceans International and LADbible. This marketing effort demonstrates the sad state of our oceans by petitioning the United Nations to acknowledge a new ocean state – the Trash Isles.

What are we looking at in 2019?

Hazel Henderson, president of Ethical Markets Media, founder and co-chair of the EthicMark Awards said recently that she expects the 2019 Awards to continue highlighting the force communications, advertising and global media owners, including social media platforms, have to enlighten the public and inspire companies to new levels of creative, responsible marketing worldwide.  That really what we mean when we say ads can change the world.  They have the power to uplift us, to change our minds, and even change the trajectory of human history.

So where can our readers vote?

We want the readers to nominate the stand-out examples of a brand or organization that has been using the power of communication to encourage a more sustainable world by July 31st.

INTERVIEW by Christian Sarkar

Related Posts

“Technology and the Common Good” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler

Advertising /

“Technology and the Common Good” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler

“Wicked Problems” – An Interview with Philip Kotler and Christian Sarkar

Brand Activism /

“Wicked Problems” – An Interview with Philip Kotler and Christian Sarkar

“The Power of Superconsumers” – Christopher Lochhead, Eddie Yoon, & Katrina Kirsch

Content Marketing /

“The Power of Superconsumers” – Christopher Lochhead, Eddie Yoon, & Katrina Kirsch

‹ “The Ecosystem Journey: Getting Closer to the Customer?” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler › “Death of the department store: don’t just blame the internet, it’s the dwindling middle class” – Jason Pallant and Sean Sands
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Recent Posts

  • “Technology and the Common Good” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler
  • “Cultural Presence: The Social Function of Milan Design Week” – Barbara Dal Corso
  • “Wicked Problems” – An Interview with Philip Kotler and Christian Sarkar
  • “Dragon proofing your legacy brand” – Grant McCracken
  • OP-ED: “Autopsy Of a Brand: Tesla” – George Tsakraklides
  • “The 5th P is Purpose” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler
  • “The CEO-as-Brand Era: How Leadership Ego is Fueling Tesla’s Meltdown” – Ilenia Vidili
  • “The Future of Marketing is the Quest for Good” – Christian Sarkar and Philip Kotler
  • “Questions for the New Year” – John Hagel
  • “Enlightened Management – An Interview with Gabriele Carboni”
  • “If you’re not thinking segments, you’re not thinking” – Anthony Ulwick
  • “Does Marketing Need Curtailment for the Sake of Sustainability?” – Philip Kotler
  • ‘Social profit orientation’ can help companies and nonprofits alike do more good in the world by Leonard L. Berry, Lerzan Aksoy, and Tracey Danaher
  • “Understanding Hallyu: The Impact of Korean Pop Culture” by Sanya Anand and David Seyheon Baek
  • “Go-to-Market (GTM): A New Definition” – Karthi Ratnam
  • “Jobs-to-be-Done for Government” – Anthony Ulwick
  • “The Power of Superconsumers” – Christopher Lochhead, Eddie Yoon, & Katrina Kirsch
  • “Zoom Out/Zoom In – Making It Personal” – John Hagel
  • “Regeneration or Extinction?” – a discussion with Philip Kotler, Christian Sarkar, and Enrico Foglia
  • “Climate scientists: concept of net zero is a dangerous trap” – James Dyke, Robert Watson, and Wolfgang Knorr
  • “The allure of the ad-lib: New research identifies why people prefer spontaneity in entertainment” – Jacqueline Rifkin and Katherine Du
  • “What is ‘ethical AI’ and how can companies achieve it?” by Dennis Hirsch and Piers Norris Turner
  • “How the US military used magazines to target ‘vulnerable’ groups with recruiting ads” – Jeremiah Favara
  • “Ethics and AI: Policies for Governance and Regulation” – Aryssa Yoon, Christian Sarkar, and Philip Kotler
  • “Product Feature Prioritization —How to Align on the Right List” – Bob Pennisi
  • “The Community Value Pyramid” – Christian Sarkar, Philip Kotler, Enrico Foglia
  • “Next Practices in Museum Experience Design” – Barbara Dal Corso
  • “What does ESG mean?” – Luciana Echazú and Diego C. Nocetti
  • “ChatGPT could be a game-changer for marketers, but it won’t replace humans any time soon” – Omar H. Fares
  • “If Your Brand Comes Before Your Category, You’re Doing It Wrong” – Eddie Yoon, Nicolas Cole, Christopher Lochhead

Categories

  • Advertising
  • AI
  • Analytics
  • B2B Marketing
  • B2C Marketing
  • Big Data
  • Book Reviews
  • Brand Activism
  • Branding
  • Category Design
  • Community
  • Content Marketing
  • COVID-19
  • Creativity
  • Customer Culture
  • Customer Engagement
  • Customer Experience
  • Dark Marketing
  • Decision Making
  • Design
  • Digital Marketing
  • Ecosystems & Platforms
  • Ethics
  • Go to Market
  • Innovation
  • Internet of Things
  • Jobs-to-be-Done
  • Leadership
  • Manipulation
  • Marketing Technology
  • Markets & Segmentation
  • Meaning
  • Metrics & Outcomes
  • Millennials
  • Mobile Marketing
  • Non Profit Marketing
  • Organizational Alignment
  • Peace Marketing
  • Privacy
  • Product Marketing
  • Regeneration
  • Regenerative Marketing
  • Research
  • Retail
  • Risk & Reputation
  • Sales
  • Services Marketing
  • Social Media
  • Strategy & Business Models
  • Sustainability
  • Uncategorized
  • Videos

Archives

  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • September 2024
  • March 2024
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • October 2022
  • August 2022
  • May 2022
  • January 2022
  • November 2021
  • September 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016

Back to Top

© 2016-19 The Marketing Journal and the individual author(s). All Rights Reserved
Produced by: Double Loop Marketing LLC
By using this site, scrolling this page, clicking a link or continuing to browse otherwise, you agree to the use of cookies, our privacy policy, and our terms of use.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy