Why does it have to be a trick?
Search engine optimization. Links in Tweets to a blog post about your product. A newsletter which is just an ad. Advertisements cleverly disguised as helpful information. Why?
Why can’t we just do great work or build great products and people will recommend you to others? How come when you create a marketing plan the first item on the list isn’t do a great job or build the right product? Let’s face it. Most of the stuff that is out there doesn’t deserve any attention. But through a clever form of trickery we are some how allowed to sell things to people they may not even want. The argument is, maybe they do or just don’t know it yet.
I am compelled to buy stuff through marketing and advertising. But is not the ads that compels me, I am just curious to learn something new or want to buy something to solve a problem. When I want to buy something I have already made up my mind about it — I have a problem, this might solve that, let’s shop. That’s why Google, Amazon and Ebay are so successful. They are that little text box you enter what you desire in to and you get exactly what you want, ads for that solution.
So then, without a problem the rest of the ads are just noise. It is noise because if I had a problem it is doubtful I haven’t gotten around to buying something to solve it. I mean that is the fun part of solving problem, the shopping part.
Is it reasonable to believe that trying to sell a solution when people are not in the mindset of solving that problem isn’t necessary at all. The trick doesn’t work. It only appears to work when then person already decided that they wanted something to solve a problem and the advertisement just happened to be there. It is completely premeditated or coincidental. I guess we could say that ads are targeted mostly to inform people of solutions or encourage impulse buying but I would have to argue that its very ineffective
Like cops never being around when you need them. I think ads work the same way.
Posted on Mar 07, 2010 by Kevin Milden
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