I'm spending today judging cases as a Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) Awards as a Multi-Disciplinary (Second-Round) Judge.
It's the fourth time I've had the pleasure of serving as a CMA judge, and I always enjoy seeing the incredible work our industry produces each year.
Next up on my screen: a campaign I actively and publicly disliked when it launched.
Can I remain impartial?
There's no doubt in my mind: absolutely, and without question.
I know this for sure because I know that when I first saw the campaign, I saw it as a consumer. As a marketer too, sure, because that's a huge part of who I am. But as a marketer without data: all I had was my opinions.
Now I have the data as to whether the campaign was successful in meeting its objectives. And ultimately, that's all that matters, not whether I personally liked it or not.
A former Coca-Cola President once told me, "Opinion versus opinion, the boss wins. Opinion versus fact, the fact wins."
That's good advice, don't you think?