I’ll be at this conference on September 27 in Toronto. I went to the first one in 2005 and found that my observations on the advertising agency world I was living in were confirmed: agencies were struggling to be relevant in an environment where customers had become vastly empowered, largely through the web and online media. This year’s theme “Changing Minds. Changing Models” aims at the roots of a reinvention. Should be a fascinating day.

In my view, connecting with customers takes a different mind set today, and in future, than the one that was honed 30 or 40 years ago when brands were powerful and consumers followed.

With my own independent consultancy, I can step out and up in search of customer relevance and creative business solutions. These solutions aren’t going to be about marketing or advertising per se; those are tools that can serve a greater purpose, though. The business solutions that will matter are the ones that are about connection, about meaningful relationships and understanding what an organziation can do, uniquely, to build them with its customers. I think, authenticity, not spin, matters.