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20 years ago, when you made an advertisement, you had a certain extent of information liberty. Now, you need to be more careful than ever in your campaigns. We no longer live in the Mad Men era where instinctive ideas sell products and truthful information can be subjective. In 2023, Dishonest marketing has died and you need to do these things instead.
Why is Dishonest Marketing Dying?
Advertising has always been an industry that plays fast and loose with the rules of honest communication. But as the internet has transformed the way we look at marketing, the way we message to our clients has shifted also.
Before the internet, we weren’t constantly exposed to information. Furthermore, we weren’t so easily able to verify information. Before the internet, there were people who would constantly exaggerate themslves, their company, their brand, their opinions, their statistics etc. These people do somewhat exist today but their ability to pull the wool over your eyes has signifigantly diminished.
You can’t claim you were the top dancer in the Milwaukee dance off 5 years running if your buddy can look it up and immediately prove you wrong.
But that’s the world we lived in for the entire history of humanity up until the last 20 years.
Why your Marketing needs to be Truthful and Honest
Now, if you make a claim, you at least need an additional source to back you up. Granted, there will be the random 20-30% of people that will see your statistic and inately believe it because it fits their in-built meta narrative of the way the world works. Generally these opinions are informed from external influences like political leanings, family, friend groups, and location.
However, when you are marketing a product, your clients are more inclined to verify your information. Let’s say you advertise the fastest car in the continental United States. Immediately you will have car reviewers, car enthusiasts and web bloggers looking for proof. If your proof isn’t obvious, distinguished and easily accessible… the bullsh** meter in your clients heads is going to go off quickly.
If you are going to advertise any information as proof of uniqueness, you need to be able to back it up. Additionally, know what you can compete with versus what you can’t. In the food industry, the nutrition label is necessary, but you can call anything “keto” by advertising the low carb nature of your product. But just because you advertise a low carb product as Keto doesn’t make it keto friendly.
Why We Love Honest Marketing
More and more consumers are finding this trend and educating themselves on your products before buying. If you aren’t being honest with them about your products, they have no reason to buy them. Every consumer knows they are a google search from half a dozen like products with equally more attractive branding. If you aren’t honest to your customers, they will notice and they will leave you.
But the flip side to that equation is also true. If you are honest with your audience, and spend time cultivatin information they love and appreciate, you are more likely to make a sale!
In fact, according to Tailor Brands, 86% of modern consumers prefer their brands have an honest and authentic personality online. Its a big trend and it stems from a deep seated historical trend of brands using marketing to manipulate us. So the more honest a brand is, the more likely we are to invest in the brand through their products or services.
How to Make your Marketing Better
There are a few ways to make your marketing more honest, and as a result, more effective. But it starts by reviewing your existing content.
- Reduce and cut any marketing materials that could be seen as dishonest
- Fact check your own material for factual discrepancies
- Write and create content that is authentic and genuine.
Use a blog to make your marketing messaging better.
I know it can be hard to write and create content that feels genuine so I always encourage my readers to write every day! A blog post is a greaty way to get in the habit of flushing out your marketing message and can also serve as a great SEO tool.
If you are not familiar with writing a blog, you can get started with WordPress, Wix, or for the more code free website, you can build with canva. They recently launched a website building feature that you can launch in minutes using one of their free templates. Check it out with my partner link below:
https://partner.canva.com/c/3526989/647168/10068
At the time of writing, I do not make any affiliate revenue from this partner link. I use canva every day for web design so this is a genuine recomendation.
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Disclaimer: None of the information presented on this site constitutes legal, business, tax, or medical advice. In each scenario, it’s recommended to first chat with a medical, legal, business, or tax professional before making any decisions.
