One of advertising’s most respected creative leaders, Jeff Goodby, has said that advertising is only great if it passes his “cab test.”

The cab test is when an ad exec gets into a taxi and the driver asks whether they’ve done any work he’s familiar with. If the answer is “No,” you’ve failed the test.

The exercise is Mr. Goodby’s call-to-arms. He’d like to see us get back to making marketing communications that are truly famous – outside the navel gazing walls of our awards show circuit.

Jeff Goodby’s a guy I look up to. His agency’s one I’ve long admired. So naturally I’m hailing a cab this afternoon to take our temperature.

I’ll share my findings here in a week. Stay tuned!