Why the long pause in publishing on this blog?

The more perceptive of you (not that you had to be very much) might have noticed that we haven’t posted on this blog for a while.

Well… not ideal. Here’s why. Hope you’ll understand.

Some of us have moved countries in the meantime.

Lazar has swapped the ’15-minute city’ that is Belgrade for the ‘it always takes ages-city’ that is London – after a 6-year sabbatical and a personal pivot towards teaching and academia.

Moving a family home to another country, even if going back to the old ‘hood, is always complicated.

Paul was busy with the family too, and his writing projects.

But, there is another reason, a moment of weakness that I (Lazar) had experienced after the blog went live.

Namely, it was completely ignored, despite being the only one – as much as we can attest – that openly talks about ethical issues in the marketing industry, particularly its promotional wing. And written by people with a pretty solid history in the profession.

We don’t know of any other of our peers (present or former) who have adopted the same position. The stress is on the ‘same’, not ‘similar’, as there are some kindred souls around us coming from the same space and looking in the same direction…

Oh yes, we got some messages of support from various colleagues who share our feelings about where the industry is ethically now. However, except literally just a few brave souls, all those messages were private, not public. There was very little sharing of the blog’s link and not a lot of commenting.

No one from the trade press, not even personal blogs, wanted to mention it. I know, I’ve sent them the link and some info about it. Even followed up on it.

It was dispiriting. After all, we tried to approach the topic with a cool head and evidence. To avoid both the ethically oblivious platitudes and the self-back-slapping of the industry but also the enraged attacks on it from the various ideological extremes.

The industry, it seems, is just not interested in this debate.

And I got into a funk. Is it worth trying at all, given how high the mountain we wanted to climb is? What’s the point? Since when an action by an individual made a difference in anything today?

Until I was reminded, by kind and supportive friends, of all the situations in life and history when it actually did. When it does, as it is still happening, all around us.

And when also the same people pointed out that we are still the only ones talking about this issue. Better one then none, they said… The ripple may be small, but at least it exists. It’s the first step.

And it made a difference. I/we felt better.

We’ll do it just because it needs doing. Who would have said that Tesco’s ‘Every Little Helps’ will have such a broad meaning!

We’ll do it for our karma, if nothing else. Calm and unperturbed. Always ready, though, for a reasoned debate, to which we will try to contribute even more strongly.

We will even relish the role of a contrarian, the only true one in the promotional industry, as it talks not about how to do the job more effectively in the commercial success terms, but whether we should keep doing it at all the way we have done it so far.

We are continuing, with a renewed vigour.

Expect us in your feeds soon.