At the revitalised centurion the Waldorf last Friday the great and the good of the ISP (now is that a contradiction in terms?) gathered to celebrate the organisation's 75th anniversary and - not least - to hear what guest speaker Sir Michael Grade had to say about the industry. 'This ought to be good,' I thought, given the panning ITV's image and pocket have taken from Ofcom over the course of the past year or so. Indeed, they've even signed up to the ISP ranks, such were the reverberations of the aftershock. (Nice work, Ofcom.) However, when the much awaited speech came, I'm sure I detected a bit of a sales pitch for ITV. (Well, a big bit, actually.) This was all very interesting, but it did get me thinking again about the old chestnut of the ISP's brand identity. From the inside, looking out, it's clear (promotional marketing of all kinds that leads to a sale or measurable action on behalf of the consumer, usually creating a legal contract), but the other way round, it just can't be so plain. Sir Michael noted how pleased he was to be among fellow salespeople. Hmm... kind of, but... well. Then there were all the reasons to choose ITV over Sky or Facebook or the Daily Telegraph. (Are we selling advertising space to our clients? I thought we were supposed to be media-neutral types.) Maybe an inebriated planner had been delegated the task of sketching out the speech... but probably not. I reckon it's another straw in the wind that says maybe a change is due. As Chairman Clive Mishon mentioned in his address, the 75-years-young ISP hasn't always been called the ISP... so maybe the time has arrived for a new monica that will sweep it through to its centenary with the same youthful energy that echoes about the Waldorf's marble halls. All submissions on a postcard, please.
