Marketing may seem like lying because that's how it might feel to be marketed to, but logically and technically, genuine marketing is not lying. Marketing is the practice of skillfully promoting a product or service to the consumer.
Marketing seeks to persuade potential and existing clients to acknowledge and act on addressing a need, or set of needs via the goods marketers offer. These consumers may have come to believe the goods are valuable from what marketing informs them of. However, value is a choice based on valid product information and not lies about what something will or will not do.
This is pointed out by the American Marketing Association (AMA) official definition of marketing. The AMA defines marketing as providing offerings that have value for consumers. Moreover, these offerings are created and communicated for and to clients by marketing entities. Philip Kotler, a well known marketing academic, reinforces this definition. Kotler defines marketing communications as being focused on the point of view of the customer.
Both the AMA and Philip Kotler place emphasis on consumers and what they value in their characterization of the practice of marketing. In light of this it would naturally follow that what the consumer believes is of importance to the practice of marketing. Therefore, marketing must, by definition, attempt to influence the beliefs of customers in regard to perception of products and services. Everybody knows marketers inform people of their wares so there is no lie regarding their intentions.
The difference between lying to the consumer and marketing to the consumer are that lies intend to deceive whereas marketing presents a case for consumers to consider using facts, ethics and utility as a premise. Marketing informs people of how a product or service is useful, what it is and how it works without violating principles of professional conduct which generally involves not lying about a product or service.
The notion that marketing is the art of lying to the consumer is unsubstantiated because consumers can feel they are being lied to rather than actually being lied to. The feeling of being lied to arises out of suspicion of motive and not actuality of falsity. For example, a customer may think this: "Marketers seek to sell, therefore their intention is for me to buy. Hence, what they say is an effort to deceive me into thinking something I normally wouldn't." The error in this thought is that the marketer merely promotes and does not intend to deceive.
Another reason marketing is not the art of lying to the consumer is that deception is bad form. Marketers who deceive do not ultimately gain strategic advantage with their clients if they are following standard marketing ethics. This does not mean all marketers don't lie, but it does mean marketing is not the art of lying to the consumer just because someone feels or was lied to by someone claiming to be marketing. Long term clients, repeat clients and viral marketing are simply not supported by deceptive marketing.
In conclusion, the alleged 'lies of marketing' is a misinformed stereotype regarding the industry of informing consumers of their options. If marketing was the art of lying to the consumer it wouldn't be called marketing it would be called lying, and corporations would have the lying departments instead of marketing departments. Moreover, the American Marketing Association (AMA) would be the American Lying Association (ALA) and academics across the world would be called professors of lying. The general consensus is that this is not the case and these organizations and individuals are formally recognized as marketers, and not liars.
Marketing seeks to persuade potential and existing clients to acknowledge and act on addressing a need, or set of needs via the goods marketers offer. These consumers may have come to believe the goods are valuable from what marketing informs them of. However, value is a choice based on valid product information and not lies about what something will or will not do.
This is pointed out by the American Marketing Association (AMA) official definition of marketing. The AMA defines marketing as providing offerings that have value for consumers. Moreover, these offerings are created and communicated for and to clients by marketing entities. Philip Kotler, a well known marketing academic, reinforces this definition. Kotler defines marketing communications as being focused on the point of view of the customer.
Both the AMA and Philip Kotler place emphasis on consumers and what they value in their characterization of the practice of marketing. In light of this it would naturally follow that what the consumer believes is of importance to the practice of marketing. Therefore, marketing must, by definition, attempt to influence the beliefs of customers in regard to perception of products and services. Everybody knows marketers inform people of their wares so there is no lie regarding their intentions.
The difference between lying to the consumer and marketing to the consumer are that lies intend to deceive whereas marketing presents a case for consumers to consider using facts, ethics and utility as a premise. Marketing informs people of how a product or service is useful, what it is and how it works without violating principles of professional conduct which generally involves not lying about a product or service.
The notion that marketing is the art of lying to the consumer is unsubstantiated because consumers can feel they are being lied to rather than actually being lied to. The feeling of being lied to arises out of suspicion of motive and not actuality of falsity. For example, a customer may think this: "Marketers seek to sell, therefore their intention is for me to buy. Hence, what they say is an effort to deceive me into thinking something I normally wouldn't." The error in this thought is that the marketer merely promotes and does not intend to deceive.
Another reason marketing is not the art of lying to the consumer is that deception is bad form. Marketers who deceive do not ultimately gain strategic advantage with their clients if they are following standard marketing ethics. This does not mean all marketers don't lie, but it does mean marketing is not the art of lying to the consumer just because someone feels or was lied to by someone claiming to be marketing. Long term clients, repeat clients and viral marketing are simply not supported by deceptive marketing.
In conclusion, the alleged 'lies of marketing' is a misinformed stereotype regarding the industry of informing consumers of their options. If marketing was the art of lying to the consumer it wouldn't be called marketing it would be called lying, and corporations would have the lying departments instead of marketing departments. Moreover, the American Marketing Association (AMA) would be the American Lying Association (ALA) and academics across the world would be called professors of lying. The general consensus is that this is not the case and these organizations and individuals are formally recognized as marketers, and not liars.
Sources:
1. http://bit.ly/axrgmx (AMA)
2. http://slidesha.re/dgHl4f (Slideshare)
3. http://scr.bi/bvzNTF (SCRIBD-ABN Ambro)
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