????對廣告業的描寫跟廣告一樣，總是充斥著陳詞濫調。這種情形對于碼字的人來說是幸運的，但對于當今廣告人來說卻是不幸的，因為這些陳詞濫調正在重蹈“三杯馬提尼酒午餐”的覆轍。

????計算能力的提高和商家可用個人數據的大量涌入使廣告業的業務遭到重創。從廣告位的買賣，到成功廣告推廣活動的定義，如今的廣告業與十年前相比已經發生了翻天覆地的變化。

????當然，從整個經濟轉型的角度來考察，這種變化也是情理之中的事。全球最大的公司，比如谷歌（Google）和Facebook，都是通過向用戶提供更有效的廣告來獲得發展。養活這些科技公司的廣告主與當初那些向三口之家兜售冷凍快餐的廣告主可不是一回事。

????短期內，這種變化對于夢想進軍麥迪遜大道（美國廣告業中心——譯注）或硅谷的人來說或許是有利的，但也許就在不久的未來，廣告人自己或許也會像失業的人那樣，呆呆地盯著夜間的商業信息，以求另謀出路。

????調查公司eMarketer副總裁克拉克?弗雷德里克森稱：“目前，廣告公司數量之多令人吃驚。廣告業從無到有發展到今天的原因是因為我們終于明白了消費者行為數據能用來做什么，以及如何利用這些數據創造出更出色、定位更精準、更容易被接受的廣告。”

????弗雷德里克森表示，目前，向消費者銷售某種商品的過程非常復雜，包含許多環節。過去，一家廣告公司如果希望在電視上投放廣告會與媒體采購人員合作，或者直接跟電視網合作。

????而如今，這個過程可能涉及多達10個層面，從創意團隊到廣告購買團隊，再到數據管理團隊。如今，在廣告投放前、投放中，以及廣告出現在消費者眼前之后都會產生大量的可用數據，我們已經有能力隨時對廣告進行微調，確保廣告能在最恰當的時間投放廣告，因此，這個過程是必要的。

????廣告業的這些新變化為創業者、計算機怪才和渴望進化的廣告公司創造了大量機會。弗雷德里克森說：“與以前相比，廣告商與消費者之間有了更多的中間人。”

????另一方面，目前的行業整合，包括陽獅集團（Publicis Group）與宏盟集團（Omnicom）的大規模合并，意味著廣告業眼下這樣的好日子不會永遠持續下去。

????Much like what it peddles, descriptions of the advertising business are full of clichés. Fortunately for writers -- and unfortunately for the current generation of ad people -- those clichés are going the way of the, ahem, three martini lunch.

????Increased computing power and the influx in the amount of personal data available to businesses have thrown a wrench into the advertising business. From the way ad space is bought and sold to the definition of a successful campaign, advertising today looks quite different from a decade ago.

????Of course, this change makes sense when looking at the broad shifts in the economy. Some of the biggest companies in the world, like Google (GOOG) and Facebook (FB), have grown by delivering more effective ads to users. The businesses that support these tech companies do not resemble those that were selling TV dinners to the nuclear family.

????This change may be positive in the near term for those who dream of careers on Madison Avenue (or Silicon Valley), but in the not-too-distant future, ad people may find themselves on the couch staring at late-night infomercials offering the unemployed a chance to change their lives.

????"Today, the sheer number of companies in the space is staggering," says Clark Fredricksen, vice-president at eMarketer, a research firm. "The reason that this landscape has grown from nothing is that we are finally figuring out what to do with the data that we have about consumer behavior and how to use that data to create better, more targeted, bette accepted ads."

????The current process of pitching a product to consumers is complicated and filled with many steps, Fredricksen says. In the past, an ad agency looking to place a spot on television would work with a media buyer or directly with a network.

????Now, that process can involve as many as 10 layers, ranging from the creative team, to the ad buying team, to the data management team. With all the data available before, during, and after an advertisement lands in front of a consumer's eyes, the ability to tweak ads and deliver them at just the right moment makes this process necessary.

????The new aspects of advertising have created lots of opportunities for entrepreneurs, computer geeks, and advertising agencies eager to evolve. "There are more middle men between an advertiser and a consumer than ever before," Fredricksen says.

????On the other hand, recent consolidation in the industry, including the mega-merger of Publicis Group and Omnicom (OMC), signals that this bright era in advertising will not last forever.