Will better times spark creative renaissance?

The Three Graces/Primavera (Allegory of Spring)
Italian Renaissance painter Sandro Boticelli

Stuart Elliot of The New York Times reports growing optimism along Madison Avenue on predictions that an economic rebound in 2011 will bring heftier ad/PR budgets. 

It won't be business as usual though now that the digital genie is out of the bottle.  The terrible economy actually drove growth in digital advertising, according to Geoff Ramsey, chief executive at eMarketer.  Online marketing is the new reality and to be successful brands need integrated (offline and online) communications.   

To achieve this advertising, public relations, promotion firms can no longer operate in silos. The digital frontier demands interdisciplinary teamwork - the kind that will revolutionize brand marketing with strategic and creative innovation.  

Hip Fashion Brands Showcase New Collections & Emerging Music Talent

A recent story in the Financial Times looks at how fashion labels are connecting with young audiences through music. Example: Burberry, the venerable British brand now targeted at 20-something hipsters, launched Burberry Acoustic, described as part record label, part talent scout – devoted to showcasing emerging artists. Visit live.burberry.com to see the brand’s smart (and efficient) use of music across its digital/social platforms. Burberry will do well should it extend into narrative transmedia. It’s got creative vision, a vibrant brand story and an engaged multimedia audience to boot.

The FT article cites other brand-music collaborators, most notably Gucci, Hilfiger and the British lifestyle brand Jack Willis.