Aldo Quevedo de Lerma
For Aldo Quevedo, principal and creative director of LERMA/, “flexibility” in every sense will be the key word of 2022. “Let’s start with the most important aspect, which is the way of working. Right now there’s a lot of tension going on between companies and employees about going back to the office in-person. At the same time, a great deal of flexibility will be needed on the part of both agencies and clients, because the old formulas probably don’t work anymore. In the search for ideas, we have to be open to new and different solutions, while taking into account the time it will take to produce those ideas. As individuals, we need to have the flexibility of palm trees in a hurricane,” he said. As for trends, Quevedo favors ideas that reflect the reality of the pandemic. “The new way of relating to others and behaving after the pandemic (and during it, because we still can’t go out), can lead to some surprising and empathetic ideas. And I would expect a return of humor, because people still want to have fun.” Year of resilienceThe year 2021 was a year of resilience and learning. “On a personal level, that year more than any other taught me the power of teamwork. When a group is focused and everyone pursues the same goal, it gets much better at overcoming obstacles. The good thing it taught us was what is important and how to stay focused. And what was bad of last year, well, we all know what that was.” Quevedo let it be known what changes are taking place in the agency. “We’re moving to a new building, a bigger one in a better area and with very good vibes. At any rate we’ll hang onto the flexibility of working from home, though we haven’t yet resolved that completely. LERMA/ has reached an important moment in defining its identity – I imagine that many agencies are in the same position. 2022 looks to be a really good year for business…let’s hope it turns out that way!”What’s comingAn NFT could be a great way to call attention to an idea, but it shouldn’t become the idea, he warned. “We’re working on a project for PRxPR that includes an NFT gallery as an important element. But the idea is much bigger than the technology. As with any other technology that has come to light, creative achievement consists in adding it to an ad in a way that makes sense and helps express the idea.” Among his literary recommendations, Quevedo suggests Is This Anything? by Jerry Seinfeld. “It’s a summary of his work from the 1970s until now. One can detect a change in the humor in the country over the decades. I’ve always liked his stand-up style because it’s full of insights and observations that we have all undoubtedly had or lived through. For me the genius of Seinfeld is that he bounces those ideas back to the audience from a dry, critical and surprising angle.”
