Do you make ads?

I believe that the first rule of making an ad is by not thinking about it.
I often tell my boys: never make ads. Frankly I don't know if they got it or not. Most of the times, they actually let me see that we are all human, and it is hard not to think the way the old way of thinking actually conquer us and kill the whole options that we actually has.
They are all still thinking about making ads.

Then let me ask: what is an ad?

Could we go through the whole meaning of an ad to actually realize the meaning of its being?
I believe that it is first come from the need to sell something. "TO SELL" is the first objective it carries. Then by time, it comes as to differentiate the product that we are putting on the ads. "TO DIFFERENTIATE" comes second. Then as the educations and intellectuality comes and conquer the world, we understand the needs of branding, perceptions, positioning and humanizing the brand and building it. "TO BUILD A PERCEPTION ABOUT A BRAND" comes as the final approach that it might carry.

So, to recap: Ad is a tool for selling, differentiate and building a perception about a brand.

Apparently, we call it an ad. (We actually can call it anything we want, but now we call it an ad, do you agree?)

Why don't we start to see it as a blank page that we can draw and type anything we want, any size we want and any look we could build. And without a template or a jot of thinking that we have from another book and references, even with any ad that win awards format. Because we are not aiming for awards. We are aiming to sell, differentiate and build a perception about a brand.

A blank page is interesting, because we can start with any problem and comes to any solutions, and since our aim is to communicate. Then communicate. And solve the problem.

Does it have to have visuals? Does it have to have copy? Does it have to have a logo? Does it have to be moving? Does it have to have a voice? Does it have to be understood? Does it have to have a name?
The answer is whatever, as long as it solve the problem, communicate, sell, differentiate and build a perception about the brand.

Then begin with blank paper. Think different. Outside the box (different than any reference and ads that you have ever seen). Make it really different.

Really different.

But solve the problem.

So, are we still making ads?