This morning, our account executive Anna shared with us a piece she read from Advertising Age. The piece, entitled “Why Metrics are Killing Creativity,” really hit home to those of us in the ad world.

Don’t get us wrong; metrics definitely have a place of importance in the ad world. We are realistic, we know our clients have to measure success somehow, to see a return on their investment. But it becomes tough when we’re ONLY thinking about numbers. When metrics inhibit taking risks or executing strategic creative because we’re not considering anything but how many impressions, leads, clicks, conversions, etc. we’re going to get, we’ve become sorely misguided.

While numbers can’t be everything, neither can creativity: don’t do it for the sake of doing it. This is where strategy comes in. Having a cool ad is one thing. Having a fresh, big, new campaign that is targeted at your audience and will resonate with them on an emotional level is another. The latter, if done with strategic purpose, can (and will) deliver the numbers and metrics that we rely on. But to get there you have to put the metrics aside and step outside of the numbers box.

And as much as metrics has become the norm for measuring success, we cannot and must not deny the emotional aspect of branding. Emotional connections are what cause people to identify with brands. Its the break from the norm, the challenge of convention, that stays with consumers. Not the numbers.

If you haven’t heard, Toyota has recently been hard at work cleaning up the mess of its 2.3 million vehicle recall. While it is potentially devastating for Toyota, whose entire brand image has been based on vehicle reliability, it led for some pretty opportunistic moments for others in the auto industry.

Hardly anyone took advantage, but GM stepped up to the plate with an awesome incentive program that helped capture what would otherwise be some pretty loyal Toyota consumers. The best part about GM’s plan is that they didn’t alter their positioning at all. They haven’t made any new promises or changed their advertising. They simply allow Toyota owners (who terminate their Toyota lease, of course) to get up to $1,000 off a new or leased GM vehicle: a pretty good incentive for making the switch. Toyota’s fumble couldn’t have come at a better time for a company like GM; it has allowed them to really push their own promises of reliability and quality to a very tuned in audience with a specific set of needs. So whether or not Toyota is handling their recall the right way is almost beside the point; GM has stepped in at exactly the right time to take advantage of their competitor’s weakness.

As far as any business goes, it is important for your company to be able to handle problems and crises with foresight and grace, but it is just as important to know what is going on beyond your company. Keeping tabs on your industry and your competitors can bring advantageous opportunities to really reach your audience.

When the Tiger Woods scandal broke, the world cringed. But maybe none of us cringed as hard as the folks at Nike Golf. From 1996 – 2006 they supported Woods with $140 million in sponsorships. The deal was renewed in 2006 for presumably upwards of 100 million. So what will Nike do now that Tiger’s reputation is ruined? Support the icon of their brand and let it reflect on their reputation? Or drop him and try to save face before any more bad news surfaces?

This is the very expensive question that many in the advertising world are asking. With huge implications for the brand either way, Nike has a crisis on their hands. What would you do if you were in Nike’s PR/Marketing departments? We took a little poll around the office to see where people stood on the issue. Let us know what YOU think in our comments below.

Darren Easton, Creative Director: I say keep him. According to research, Mr. Whipple was the most hated brand icon in advertising history and yet Charmin was the #1 toilet paper brand for 20 years. People talked about him because they didn’t like him. So what?… they talked about him.

Lucas Hanyok, graphic designer: I’m not sure what Nike will do. I am one who believes someone’s personal problems should be left alone. To me he is still an icon of GOLF. Nike should continue to support him as an icon of the sport. On the other hand your personal life becomes your brand in ways, and will stick with you no matter what you do. Your personal brand is not just one thing that you do, it is the total of all things you do. If I were Tiger I would keep my stance as: “leave me alone, I’m really good at golf”

Dave Cyphers, owner (obviously joking!): I think they should pay him more; he just added a whole new dimension to “Just Do It.”

So there you have it, some insight from our greatest minds. What is your stance? Do you think Nike should give Tiger the boot or support him?

Verizon has more 3g coverage. AT&T’s 3g coverage is faster. At least that’s what they say. Both have undertaken recent advertising blitzes to highlight their respective benefits.

Verizon started it all with the “there’s a map for that” spot, which you can see below (intentionally sounding like the “there’s an app for that” spots from Apple/AT&T).  AT&T sued Verizon, and lost. Now AT&T is coming out with spots featuring Luke Wilson talking about the best 3G coverage, to combat Verizon’s spots that show AT&T with inferior network coverage.

Our thoughts are that AT&T has their work cut out for themselves, in that their position has been lacking for a long time. Verizon has been using the “It’s the Network” USP for years. The brand icon of the dude that says “can you hear me now?” is ingrained in consumers minds (well, our minds anyway).

AT&T has had a huge boost with the iPhone and has latched onto “The best 3G experience” as their message. But is it enough considering Verizon has branded itself as the superior network coverage provider for years? There will still be plenty of people who don’t care about the network because they just want an iPhone and right now, and the iPhone is only available through AT&T. But Verizon is working to get the iPhone too; what happens when you can get it through both providers? Will Verizon’s years of investment in branding pay off?

A couple of commercials are linked below – what do you think?

We would like to officially welcome Howard Mont to The Cyphers Agency as the new Vice President of Sales and Marketing. He will be leading the agency’s business development team to create new client relationships.

We don’t like to brag, but Howard is pretty awesome, and we are pretty lucky to have him. In his 40 years of professional and entrepreneurial experience, he has worked at and owned a number of prestigious firms, including Ackerman, Mont, White, a full service advertising agency in New York City. He is more than passionate about what he does and really knows the biz.

Aside from his professional experience, Howard also loves to cook, and doesn’t hesitate to give us culinary tips and advice. If only he would cook lunch for us every day…

We are happy to have Howard (and his huge ring) on our team here at The Cyphers Agency. We look forward to working with you!