I’ve always love the “Dude, you’re getting a Dell” campaign - I’m a Dell owner myself. It was sad to read the news that the creator of that campaign committed suicide a couple of days ago.

It appears that Creative Director Paul Tilley of DDB jumped from the Fairmont Hotel near a DDB office.

The “Dude, You’re Gettin’ a Dell,” campaign saw Dell rise from number four to the leader in home PC sales - it was marketing genius.

Paul was also the creator of the McDonald’s “I’m Lovin’ it” campaign.

I know very little about the guy, but whenever I read this sort of thing I’m always left pondering the price of success in this frenetic world, and more importantly; what success actually is and how we judge who is successful in this life.

Sometimes we look to the really high flyers in online business and think to ourselves; “I wish I had his/her success”. Well, Paul can keep his if that’s what it brought him. The world of marketing is all about facades - don’t be fooled by the jovial or seemingly rock solid exteriors of those whom you aspire to be like.

Probably one of the best bits of advice I’ve ever been given is - learn from everyone, rely on no-one and be your own role model - and that applies the online world as much as anywhere else.

Paul’s death is needless and tragic; but there’s a lesson in it for all of us seeking “success”