5 years ago, I joined the media industry as an apprentice.

In this time, my love for advertising has only grown, this is an incredible industry, where some amazing work takes place.

But as well as the good within, I, like many others have come to the realisation that we’re at a tipping point, our industry can’t continue along its current path.

Seven in ten advertising campaigns generate a return on investment of less than £2 in revenue for every £1 spent, putting their profitability into question.

Billions of pounds in media spend is wasted every year, there are hundreds of separate reports which validate this.

The vast majority of advertising is disliked by consumers.

Quality publishers are struggling to survive.

The business model is struggling with clients on agency merry-go-rounds and staff underpaid and overworked.

I attended the Who Cares Event put on by Brian Jacobs & Nick Manning last week.

It was inspiring to hear from some of the industry greats on how we can change this industry for the better.

This wasn’t a session to bash the current state of play, it was on how we can look forward.

The reality is, that the principles of advertising are the same today as they were 100 years ago, a great advert will always be great.

Let’s face it, advertising is far too often over-complicated and as a result, it regularly gets a bad rep.

But guess what?

It matters.

We all know how important advertising can be not just in driving sales, but also in culture.

It’s about the emotions it stirs. The way it moves people. The messages it sends.

But we need to be better at telling this story with harder numbers and stronger words.

One that goes beyond reach, clicks, and other vanity metrics.

The business model is changing, and with this, we need to start recognising the true value of great advertising.

It's not about pumping out ads and campaigns.

It's about identifying growth opportunities, designing solutions, and using tech and creativity to make them happen faster.

I’m sure there will be a lot more to follow from last week’s session.

But one thing is certain, it’s crucial that as a collective we have more conversations on how we can improve the advertising and media industry for the better.

And ultimately, caring is the first step to change.