'Happiness Advertising' ― What is the growing sense of crisis on the ground?

A book for thinking about the next communication.
This time, we feature Naoki Imamura's "Happy Advertising."

The book jacket states "A growing sense of crisis on the front lines." Author Naoki Imamura is an active commercial director. He has been at the forefront of commercial production for over 30 years, recently directing commercials like Sharp's Aquos featuring Sayuri Yoshinaga.
As a copywriter, I once had the opportunity to work with him. He is a director who embodies the word "craftsman," dedicated to sincere, quality production.

Drawing from his long experience on the commercial production front lines, Mr. Imamura states that around the late 90s, "before you knew it, the atmosphere had completely changed."

Broadly speaking, this shift stemmed from the stagnation of mass production and consumption, coupled with changes in the media landscape, making commercials themselves less effective. Consequently, directors were forced to literally act as "on-set supervisors" in environments where "there was no budget" and "no schedule." Viewed solely through this lens, it might be dismissed as simply "the flow of the times."

However, seeking a more fundamental cause, Mr. Imamura enrolled in Waseda University's graduate school for a year starting in 2010 to pursue his own research.

His passion for attending graduate school well into his mid-50s is truly admirable. But looking at it another way, perhaps this reflects just how deeply the sense of dissonance had grown within him.
"What exactly is this disconnect between commercials and the current era?"

Starting with the fundamental question, "What is advertising?", through defining unfamiliar terms and discussions with his advisor, it gradually became clear that the more fundamental problem was not changes in economic or media structures, but rather the "loss of trust between advertisers and creators."

Communication, including advertising, exists to create connections. If the relationship between "advertisers and creators" isn't sound in the very arena where positive relationships between "companies and consumers" and "products and users" are forged, then meaningful communication can never emerge.
That was the obvious conclusion we reached.

To substantiate this hypothesis, Mr. Imamura interviewed key players in what he considered successful advertising communication campaigns and conducted case studies. For example, Suntory's Oolong Tea. For example, Sanwa Shurui's Iichiko. For example, SoftBank's series of commercials. What these production sites had in common was a "trust-based relationship between advertiser and creator" – specifically, a connection between individuals driven by strong personal conviction.

"People facing each other. Equally, on a level playing field. Trust and the continuity of advertising can only be the result of that. That, I believe, is what is common to 'happy advertising production sites' – that is, its universality."

Commercials born from such "happy production sites" where individuals connect ultimately create "happy connections" with consumers. This happens because the creators' passion is conveyed through the commercials to consumers, accumulating over time to build a "strong brand."

Incidentally, the keywords Mr. Imamura mentions – "equality," "individual to individual," "connection," and "trust" – are also keywords for today's internet era. Or rather, aren't these words themselves the "essence of communication," an essence that has become increasingly apparent with the advent of the internet and social media?

Looking back, even during the heyday of mass media, talented professionals in the field understood that one-way information dissemination by the sender wouldn't reach the receiver, and they practiced this understanding.

Mr. Imamura strongly fears that, due to various circumstances facing companies and creators today, an atmosphere has emerged in the field that "does not permit prioritizing the consumer's interests." He concludes one section with these words:

"True, I may be a 'sender' on the mass media side, but I have never once vaguely aimed to communicate something to some abstract 'receiver' or 'consumer'."

"Advertising and commercials, as forms of communication, should aim for a relationship of mutual trust between individuals, whether in creating the ad or delivering it to consumers... (omission)... Even if this is something advertising finds difficult, it should fundamentally be the essence advertising strives for."

Mr. Imamura's words, born from his sincere engagement with communication on the front lines, carry strong persuasive power. Isn't this the fundamental truth that applies to all communication and engagement—whether it's TV commercials, social media, or the connections between companies and consumers that transcend media?

　　　　　　　　　　[Dentsu Inc. Modern Communication Lab]