A little something happened this afternoon that made me stop and think. It’s probably only a commonplace idea.
Why is it that marketers seem to spend all their time being concerned with how to peddle something, instead of considering the quality, value or use of the product they are marketing? I think it’s because marketers are convinced they can sell any damn thing, no matter how shoddy and useless, dangerous, or subversive. Basically, they have faith that they can always come up with some scheme to make customers act as desired even if the desired action is contrary to the best interests of the customers.
How does one do that? By manipulating the information the customers have to deal with, to lead them to make a decision that they think is in their best interests, consistent with the information they have. In otherwords, marketers create a fiction, and within the confines of the fiction, the customer can act rationally. It is only when the fiction is eventually punctured that the customer finds they have been swindled yet again.
It works with politics, insurance, automobile sales, diets, religion, charity, home improvement, self-improvement, stock brokerage — and arguments to a jury.
So, what’s the difference between a marketer and a con man? Only this. A con man folds up and leaves town as soon as the con is done. A marketer stays behind and joins a country club.
