Sir John Hegarty: ‘the big idea’ still matters for the future of brands

The Media Leader Podcast

Advertising legend Sir John Hegarty speaks to The Media Leader editor Omar Oakes in the first of a two-part interview — the second of which will be at our Future of Brands event in London (25 April).

Despite the media ecosystem continuing to fragment, with fewer people watching above-the-line ads at the same time, Hegarty insists that “the big idea” is still the most effective way to sell products and services to consumers.

He pulls no punches when describing the state of creativity in marketing today — “I’d give it a four [out of ten],” — and is critical of a UK corporate culture with a glut of businesses run by accountants who are driven by efficiency instead of putting marketing at the heart of operations.

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The Media Leader Podcast launched last October and has featured interviews with ITV’s CEO, BARB, champion footballer Jill Scott, TikTok, Future and some of our leading columnists. Check out previous episodes here.

Business of Creativity: Sir John Hegarty will lead an eight-week course to equip marketing professionals with tangible tools to help them win through the application of creativity. Find out more at businessofcreativity.com.