Joi Ito loves Seth Godin’s new book, All Marketers Are Liars and compares it to Cluetrain. Although Seth argues that “you can’t control the story” and sees the “end of the advertising message,” influence is always more important than control anyway.
No matter what the delivery vehicle, client message will always be delivered. I think it boils down to giving much more than you take.
Besides, this isn’t 1963 — marketing and advertising has moved well past the realm of the heavy-handed ad man. He died of lung cancer. Ceci n’est pas un ad.
What I believe Seth is on about is that now that our customers are much more savvy and wise to the methods and techniques of advertising and marketing, it is important to do what I mention in Effective PR Blogging which is you have to give more than you get and you have to respect your client, build a relationship with him, and don’t let him be catching you rolling your eyes with all that contempt that you feel almost incessantly (come on, you know you do).
And since the blogosphere is upon us, you will eat your words if you are not authentic, if you take more than you give, and if you lie outright.
Why has delivering client message become synonymous with baldface lying?
Most products don’t suck and many work exactly as advertised.
