So how do advertisers reach the 71 million “Millennials” in GenY that spend over 200 billion dollars annually and will soon replace the baby boomer generation as the largest percentage of the workforce?  The answer: Advertising can no longer be a group of old men deciding what is best for consumers.

According to the book, Trust Us, We’re Experts: How Industry Manipulates Science and Gambles with Your Future, Sheldon Rampton and John Stauber attack the 20^th Century model of marketing and public relations for misusing their power as “experts” in the eyes of the consumer.

Products and services used to be validated using this “third-party technique”, where an industry would purchase the services of so-called independent experts (a.k.a. advertising agencies) to promote a message that would monetarily benefit a specific industry.  The advertising spin-doctors would then shape a message to flatter the product or service, while simultaneously discrediting or attacking the competition.  Sometimes they would even go so far as to suppress or manipulate problematic data about the product or service to make it “sell-able”.

But advertising has taken a turn – consumers no longer rely on the experts.  Not only do they not want to be told what to buy, they don’t want to be pushed into what to think, who to vote for and how to raise their children.

Today’s advertising is about the consumer deciding what they want to see and buy.  For example, according to a national survey from Arbitron and Edison Research, 48 percent of Americans 12 years and older have a profile on one or more social networking sites.  On Facebook, the most visited website, consumers can “like” a note or post a page. Advertisers code the site to recognize those favorites and use this information to target the needs of consumers.  All of the sudden on your Facebook page there is an ad for your favorite band on tour in your area or a new restaurant to try on your street. No more pop-up ads flashing shiny letters and “experts” selling you catchy phrases and manipulated data.

Advertisers finally realize that it’s not about how much spin they can put on a product or service to increase sales – it’s now all about YOU.

However, just as Doug Pray conveyed in his documentary film, Art & Copy (which premiered in the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and was funded by the non-profit advertising organization, One Club) – “Hate advertising? Make better ads”.  Pray bases his documentary on the idea that advertising may actually be a unique and rebellious accomplishment, similar to what most of us know as “art”, rather than the manipulative “Devil’s workshop” with which the industry is typically associated.

“Sure, [advertising agencies] were just selling us stuff, but along the way, their ads actually inspired us, entertained us, or might have even been socially redeeming,” wrote Pray in his film synopsis.

Art & Copy details some of the greatest advertising since the 1960s and unearths the creative mavericks behind these ad campaigns and innovations that have literally defined mainstream culture.  The cast includes the real “Mad Men” of today’s industry, including: Dan Wieden and David Kennedy of Wieden+Kennedy, who helped turn a then little-known athletic shoe company into a trend for decades with the slogan, “Just Do It”; Lee Clow, the man behind Apple’s  “Think Different” ads; Mary Wells, with the help of Creative Director Charlie Moss, who fashioned the “I (Heart) New York” campaign; and George Lois, whose “I Want My MTV” campaign elevated the booming channel into the mainstream (and into a song by Dire Straits).

These are examples of the commercials and campaigns we can never seem to get out of our heads.  We may not appreciate advertising that treats us as needy, unintelligent or easily manipulated, but we do appreciate when advertising is clever, brilliant, funny, or emotionally charged, as these creative and innovative campaigns have been.  Advertising is the daily language of our entire system of commerce, and it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.

As one of the top creative minds in advertising says in this inspiring film about creativity, art and innovation, “That’s advertising, baby!” –George Lois.  Art & Copy was released on DVD in May 2010, so I suggest you buy a copy in order to be introduced to the real “Mad Men” of advertising.

The champion crusader of the event was keynote speaker David Spark of Spark Media Solutions, whose presentation on the 14 Successful Techniques for Building Your Industry Voice with Social Media provided clear insight into social media’s prowess.

Some favorite tips:

Ride current hot news and cultural memes.
As sure as Crystal Bowersox is going to sweep American Idol, connecting your industry topic with buzzworthy news is sure to drive visits to your blog.

Own a phrase.
David Spark did an experiment here to see what it took to be the number one return on a google search of the phrase “making money with podcasting”. Over the course of a few months, he posted a series of 15 interviews with successful podcasters on the topic and tracked his google progress. Each part of the series included links between the blogs, a technique to drive traffic.  The result? By the end of the series his articles were returning the top hits in google when users typed in “making” “money” and “podcasting”. The trick is title your articles with a phrase that is common enough to be searched but not too common to reign in.

Take advantage of contests by using a social media layer.
Your company’s active online community is a resource. Boxee, an open source social media center, created a contest to staff their convention booths. The contest entrants submitted a video demonstrating their presenter ability. The 4 winners were flown to Las Vegas where they successfully represented the Boxee company. The best part is that the people who take the time to enter your contests are passionate enough to be stellar advocates for your product or service.

These are just the tips of the social media iceberg. Cleverly working known SEO triggers, engaging your company’s online community, and being active and consistent will ensure your social media plan packs a superhero punch.