Charting creativity in advertising.

Those who remember the internet bubble might recall what some considered a small renaissance in TV commercials, spots that were quirky, entertaining, and sometimes even memorable. And when the bubble burst, most of those spots disappeared in an instant. In doubtful economic conditions, advertisers reign in the dollars, demand and expect concrete results from what they spend, and forsake what they think of as luxuries in strategy and message, much as consumers behave with household budgets.

Some advertising types argue that this is exactly when an advertiser should go out on a creative limb, and there’s certainly a strong case for that. But when people are getting laid off at agencies, those remaining should be adaptable enough to shovel coal into the furnace and come up with the diamond in the rough for the more bold of clients. It’s just that there will probably be more shoveling for a while.