• by Staff Report , October 9, 2011

Steve Jobs had a profound influence on advertising and media, not just with the Apple brand, but with the things it stood for. People used them to think different -- and reinvented the way we communicate. Following his death last week, some industry executives commented on the influence Jobs’ had on them personally.

Lee Clow, Chairman and Global Creative Director of longtime Apple agency (“Think Different”) TBWA/Worldwide, from a company memo

Steve Jobs was the most amazing person I have ever known. He was a genius. He was an innovator. He was the best client we ever had. He was my friend. To work with him, to share his vision, to share his passion, to be trusted by him with his ideas, is one of the great honors that we all have been able to share. We who worked with him every day will miss him. We who worked for him, but never met him will miss him. We who work for TBWA but never worked on Apple will miss him. What Steve Jobs did was simply make everything and everyone better.

Dale Herigstad, Chief Interaction Officer of WPP’s Possible Worldwide

The influence of Steve Jobs is all around me. From the laptops and handsets I use for work, communication and entertainment, to a number of software packages. It is obvious that Jobs created a company that cares about good design. I appreciate the way transitions happen on MacOS, with simple fades or subtle movement. I appreciate the use of good typography, clear displays, and attention to details. I appreciate the smoothness of animation. All of these things make my life better and more efficient. And they fit the three goals I aspire to in my work as a designer: making things simple, powerful and engaging. I am not alone in my adoration of Apple products. And judging by the success of the company, Steve Jobs created one of the strongest cases I know for a solid ROI from good design.

Trevor Kaufman, CEO of Possible Worldwide

Steve Jobs defined our era and made an art of knowing which rules to break and when to break them. There were so many great aspects to him and the influence he's had on society, the industries he's changed and of course the work we do as marketers. What made him a brilliant marketer was that his focus was always on innovation, and evolving how we live our lives. From simplifying computing with the Apple II, to reinventing the phone to changing how we engage and interact with media forever – it was never about what you must buy, but rather on what you must experience.

Daiga Atvara, Executive Creative Director and Chief Experience Officer of JWT’s Digitaria

Steve Jobs humanized technology before anyone else. Before Steve Jobs, computers were still considered weird, off-putting geeky things. Steve Jobs made people believe they should be part of our daily lives. Again and again, he created extraordinary things that became ordinary objects in our lives -- and I mean that in the best possible way. If you read his quotes, what he said over the course of his career, you realize it’s as if he was technology’s philosopher. He wasn’t just making things, he was considering the meaning behind what was being made.

Jon Haber, U.S. director of OMD’s Ignition Factory

The passing of Steve Jobs affected me more than I expected. We’ve all seen celebrities and even presidents come and go, but this was different. These days, there is an undercurrent of pessimism about the direction of the world and the country. However, human beings like Steve Jobs are the ones that make me feel hopeful. Look how far we have come in 20 years, thanks to Mr. Jobs and a handful of others. Because of his legacy, I am optimistic about innovation and our future. So many beautiful and amazing changes are still on the horizon.

Angela Steele, CEO of Interpublic’s Ansible

Steve Jobs was a visionary leader, a master inventor, and a consummate source of inspiration for us all. I have been fortunate enough in my career to encounter and work for some exemplary leaders who embody these same qualities. I don’t think the next Steve Jobs is that far away, and I cannot wait to see the next generation of our industry leaders take his work to the next level, using mobile capabilities to make the world a better place for us all.

Aaron Shapiro, CEO of Interpublic’s Huge

A lot of people who are now at the forefront of the tech industry grew up watching Steve’s early successes (and failures) and have had him as a role model their whole lives. For me, he’s not just inspiring as a technologist and a businessperson, but as a leader and human being. The world would be a better place if there were more CEOs who are as relentless in pushing for perfection and pushing their industries forward as Steve was in ours.

Mark Kroese, General Manager of Microsoft’s Advertising Business Group, Entertainment & Devices Division

Steve Jobs had the ability to identify consumer needs and turn them into stunning devices that are the perfect blend of it-just-works technology and gorgeous design. I will forever remember him as a visionary, charismatic leader who unleashed the power of technology for the masses -- and made it cool.

Phuc Truong, Managing Director, US of Mobext

In remembering Steve Jobs, many people have used the word “inspirational,” visionary” and “influential.” While he is all those and more; he is the primary reason for the growth of the mobile marketing industry, where it is today, and why I have and love my job. Prior to the introduction of the iPhone, mobile marketing was virtually nonexistent. It was the introduction of the iPhone that moved the industry. That device made it easier to create and consume content; Jobs also enabled the creation of the app economy [in the U.S.]. He is one of kind and his work will continue to inspire people for many generations to come.

Troy Young, President of Say Media

If it wasn't for Steve Jobs, I would be a farmer today, somewhere up in rural Canada, Young recalled. He told an Advertising Week panel how he worked his way through graduate school, with a boring job at a newspaper. He inquired about a different job--designing pages layouts -- he thought would be more interesting. A supervisor did his best to discourage him, but gave him a shot. He handed Young three pages from the paper and told him to go home and redesign them any way he saw fit.

[Young thought his chances of getting the job were nonexistent. But Apple saved him. His roommate had a new Mac SE computer with a program for desktop publishing. Young spent much of the night playing with the pages on the computer. The upshot: the supervisor liked the work, and he got the design position. "It completely changed my life," Young said.]

Image By: Joe Petruccio, Chief Creative Officer, Avrett Free Ginsberg. Petruccio has been published numerous times in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times for being the illustrator for the New York Mets.