Finally, amid the fierce competition in direct marketing, those who create and tell the stories — the imaginative creative voices — are gaining back their seat at the solution table.  And, they should.  Media, marketing, technology.  None of it will spark interest if consumers are not first engaged, then captivated.  It’s the work of the designers, the writers, the artists, that capture that moment.

Strategy and creative are twins and need to live side-by-side, breathing life into ideas. With communication as complicated as it is today, the message must be seamless and integrated.  That can’t happen without intimacy, and intimacy happens best when there is a shared sense of purpose and priority.

Since the onset of Google’s rapid rise, creative work has fallen with a thud to a distant second place.  Making multi-channel messages clear and compelling is certainly not for technologists or marketers. Consumers know a strained or out-of-context creative, instantly.  It’s partly behind why I think some social media, like YouTube and MySpace, haven’t caught on as commercial venues.

Although some argue that advertisers want deeply specialized agencies, we are beholden first to consumer’s needs.  That connective tissue is what delivers an optimal experience and result.

The creative voice has to be at the table from concept inception, having a vested interest in the outcome and ensuring that design execution and artful writing are integral to the appeal. I believe that creative talent on-staff, employed by marketing services companies and agencies, delivers better product and is a good investment in delivering what matters, most: performance.

Chris Paradysz is CEO of PM Digital.