By Richard Croxford, Copywriter, UK

I was recently reading a book called “Hegarty on Advertising” in which the titular author, Sir John Hegarty, explores the concept of ‘ideas’ within the very first chapter and concludes with “if we constantly insert irreverence into [our] creation, we’ll keep [ideas] fresh.”

Irreverence – or “the lack of respect for people or things that are generally taken seriously” – might seem like an odd, or even counterproductive, thing in the marketing space.

Aren’t we, as individuals who are closely tapped into the nature of our customers, meant to have a healthy respect for that which they deem important?

Why does Hegarty claim that irreverence then is so key to formulating exciting, engaging, and potentially game changing ideas?

It’s an interesting concept and one I wished to explore further in a short article.

(I generally find that writing about a subject is the quickest way for me to fully understand it, so let’s explore it together).

Why irreverent ideas matter so much in marketing

Hegarty begins by making the claim that “ideas are what advertising is built upon. We worship them, we seek them, fight over them, applaud them and value them above everything else.”

In my experience, I’d have to agree.

Within the agency in which I work, ideas are indeed valued by the team, management and rookie (me) alike.

We are constantly sending each other emails with interesting articles from which to build a campaign or brainstorming social media posts, blogs, and articles on things we find intriguing.

When you begin working in marketing, you first start by learning the craft – which for me was copywriting – and then increasingly you find yourself inputting ideas into the collective pot.

It’s an interesting mix of technical proficiency and creativity.

Many original ideas – including plenty of my own – are shot down by constraints, budgets or simple feasibility, but they often open up other avenues of thought that lead to better, more well-rounded ideas.

Hegarty says ideas “are everything, otherwise advertising is just information. The trick is to make information interesting and relevant.”

For a copywriter like me, the key question to ask is:

“How does one create that great idea that turns the raw information into advertising that will engage and entertain as well as inform?”

Where do great ideas come from?

Personally, I find my best ideas generally come from looking between the lines of acceptable and unacceptable, pushing the boundaries, developing thoughts that, perhaps, shouldn’t be shared.

The same goes for Hegarty, who says:

“When I examined my own process, I realised there was a common thread that was clearly identifiable in all the work I did and in the work of others I admired.

“The common thread was irreverence.”

Why would that be the case?

Because the questioning of the status quo is a human instinct, though often it is pushed to the back of our minds.

Historically, questioning the powerful forces in this world wasn’t the best idea – you’d often face consequences – but nowadays we have the freedom to do so.

And, those that do show a healthy irreverence for things, are generally quite attractive characters.

They’re exciting and they give us, as the viewer/reader/listener the chance to come on this exciting journey too.

Irreverence, by its very nature, is groundbreaking and new and ensures that your brand remains stimulating to the audience.

I think it’s important we all remember that “great creative companies inject irreverence and experimentation into the system to stop the warm comforting blanket of mediocrity taking over.”

As Hegarty says: “The companies that understand the power of irreverence are the ones who will constantly succeed. They will be the thought leaders, the ones that challenge established thinking and constantly break the mould.”

The Absurd Insights view

Without realising it, or even reading his book, we’ve somewhat followed Hegarty’s advice at Absurd Insights.

That’s where Hegarty’s “irreverence” comes in.

That’s the phrase I’ll be using when I refer to the development of great ideas in the future too. Irreverence.

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Sir John Hegarty is still a key voice in the marketing field. You can find his LinkedIn profile here.