Ad agencies (still) don’t get social media

Stella Artois’s recent campaign lacks authentic engagement with fans

I have nothing against advertising agencies. Some of my good friends work at top firms and I admire their creative brilliance and verve.

Many agencies do a good job with integrating social media into their work, and I am not in the habit of taking potshots at specific ad campaigns. But the new Stella Artois campaign struck me as such a perfect example of how some agencies take a bone-headed, campaign-is-king approach to social media that it begged for a discussion. Here goes:

The campaign for Stella Artois is offering up a contest to attend the next Cannes Film Festival. The premise is that “Jacques d’Azur” — a made-up cosmopolitan playboy and movie magnate — has gone missing and only his rightful heir can be awarded his spot at Cannes.