For decades, the "creative process" in marketing looked the same. A brand hires an agency. Strategies are briefed. Creative directors sit in a room, brainstorm concepts, storyboard ideas, and pitch them. Months later, a polished, focus-grouped 30-second spot hits the airwaves, hoping to interrupt your life just enough to be noticed.

That is no longer the case.

But this week, we got a masterclass in how that model has been inverted. For the record this is exactly what Gary Vee. has been saying for the last few years if you haven’t been listening.

The new reality is simple: The audience decides what is cool. The brand just has to be smart enough to listen.

If you were watching the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night, you saw something unusual. Amidst the high-budget, cinematic commercials, Dr Pepper aired a spot that looked... different.

It wasn’t filmed on a soundstage. It was a remix of a TikTok video posted by a creator named Romeo Bingham (@romeosshow) just a few weeks ago, on December 23rd.

The video was simple. Romeo, a caregiver from Tacoma, Washington, sang a homemade jingle: "Dr Pepper, baby, it’s good and nice." No high production value. No script. Just genuine, unpolished affection for the product.

In the old world, this video would have been a blip. Maybe the social media manager would have commented with a "👀" emoji. But the audience had other plans. The video racked up over 25 million views. It sparked remixes. It became a sound.

The internet decided this was the new Dr Pepper jingle… and they listened.

Here is where the story gets interesting and where the "pay day" comes in.

Usually, brands are terrified of losing control. They have brand guidelines, legal teams, and pre-planned media buys. Dr Pepper had already purchased those expensive slots during the National Championship game. They had slick, professionally produced "Fansville" spots ready to go.

But as Ben Sylvan, Dr Pepper’s VP of Connected Media, admitted to Ad Age: "The signal was so loud that ignoring it wasn't really an option."

They scrapped the plan. They cut a deal with Romeo (licensing the jingle and paying the creator). They contacted their agency, Deutsch, not to shoot something new, but to edit a spot around the creator's hook.

Instead of fighting the current, they rode the wave.

This moment highlights a fundamental shift in the creator economy. We are moving away from an era where brands are the "gatekeepers" of culture, deciding what we should like. We are entering an era where brands must act as "amplifiers."

Romeo Bingham didn't need a pitch meeting to get her idea approved. she published it. The audience approved it with their attention. Dr Pepper simply signed the check to amplify what was already working.

I am sure this is not the last we have heard of Romeo Show, even the video of her giving herself an award is viral.

So you see… the"Dr Pepper Pickle Girl" moment from last year and now the "Good and Nice" jingle prove one thing: The smartest Creative Director in the room is no longer a person. It’s the comment section.

Read the whole story @ The Root

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