TFM 2019: Mad Men vs. Math Men

“The future is about being imaginative, not about being right”. John Bensalhia talks to entrepreneur and TFM keynote speaker Igor Beuker about why technology and innovation has transformed advertising and marketing forever

March 1973. A hugely popular TV show starring Lee Majors makes its debut. The Six Million Dollar Man was watched by millions around the world, including a young Igor Beuker, a moment that left a lasting impression on the future entrepreneur.

“As a kid, I watched TV series The Six Million Dollar Man, in which astronaut Steve Austin crashed his space ship and next he was rebuilt as a cyborg,” says Igor. “Looking back at my life, that’s where my fascination for technology and science fiction comes from.”

It might have also planted the first seeds for Igor’s purpose, which he says is to inspire the idea that people can and should use technology as force for good and positive change.

“Through technology, we can cure diseases and save the environment, expedite education, exchange knowledge and create equal opportunities for everyone on Earth,” he says. “My dream is to make science fiction a reality.”

Igor recalls how his fortunes changed in his 20s, after he was kicked out of professional football and expelled from University.

“Age 25, I was a complete misfit. I fell in love with marketing and the Internet and transformed myself into a radical marketing visionary and modern-day serial entrepreneur. I’ve also become one of the prominent speakers in the international business speaking circuit.”

Mad Men vs. Math Men

This year’s Technology for Marketing will see Igor on the Keynote line-up, talking about his insights into current and future technology trends. “I will share my foresight and predictions on Industry 4.0, the trends and technologies that impact business economy, and society.”

With respect to using technology for boosting marketing campaigns, Igor explains that over the last 25 years, he has developed a theory called Mad Men vs. Math Men.

“Advertising may win quarters, innovation wins decades. It shows why incumbents are slipping away every day and why new players are taking over entire industries within a decade, which is unprecedented. What can we expect in the future? What will be the impact on brand marketing, media, publishing, PR, and advertising?”

Surveying the past year, Igor says that the most notable marketing technology trends have been Adtech and Martech, which have “already changed the game forever.”

“Marketing used to be an art, now it’s a science too,” he says.

I asked Igor what he thought are the biggest challenges when using technology to boost marketing campaigns.

“The biggest challenge for each and everyone in the marketing, media and advertising industry is that our linear minds are unable to keep up with exponential technologies. The future is about being imaginative, not about being right.”

Igor adds that marketing is also about new business model muscle, digital transformation, plus new skills like marketing to algorithms and not consumers.

“The Fourth Industrial Revolution is about sociology, not technology: data and consumer intelligence fuel customer centricity.”

Returning to the aforementioned battle of the Mad Men vs. the Math Men, Igor predicts that there can only be one outcome when it comes to technology in the marketing sector.

“The Mad Men will be wiped out by the Math Men generation. Advertising, consultancy firms, R&D and backward-looking market research? Applying old and outdated value systems to this 21st century? It will never work. We have to step up our marketing game in massive pace. Or we will be left behind.”