Tell me your secrets…or maybe don’t

I recently clicked through from an email I’d received, in order to read a “revelation” from an author I’m interested in.

C’mon, who doesn’t want to know about deep secrets?

You probably guessed it—there weren’t any. It was a minimally confessional story designed to elicit me-too empathy and rah-rah let-me-buy-from-someone-who-understands-me sales. Ho-hum.

I was pulled in by an email intended to get me to click through, with a not-very-fresh story behind it, that probably got exactly the reaction he was going for in folks who haven’t seen it dozens of times as I have.

Now the cold truth is, good business writing can be designed to do exactly what the email did—get me to click in a hurry!—so I exactly can’t fault him for it. (But I’m about to…)

And it’s worth remembering that nobody twisted my arm. I was voluntarily suckered in, interested in reading his supposedly shocking news (which wasn’t shocking, and wasn’t news). He lost my respect with the ploy, but I was following this person as a fellow businessperson to learn from, not a potential customer of his, so my Experience isn’t the one he’s worried about.

What did I learn from him?

We love dirt. Even those of us who pretend we’re above such things…. Well, I’ll just speak for myself. The only shocking news to me was how easily the prospect of seeing someone else’s freak flag flying got me to click on a link.

If we write to that too-human instinct, we should do so only sparingly, and doggone it, we’d better follow through. All the way. So save it ‘til you’ve really got to confess.

And maybe, as responsible businesspeople, maybe we shouldn’t do it at all. It’s one thing to admit flaws, difficulties, or problems we’ve had to show solidarity, to shine light on larger issues, or to suggest solutions people can try in their own lives or businesses. I have seen it done beautifully in the past.

It’s another thing entirely to play on (potentially vulnerable, potentially gullible) people’s sympathies in order to pry their dollars away from them.

Last—

I must apologize, dear reader, as I know this would be much juicier with a bit of detail regarding who sent this email and what on Earth he revealed.

To confess about someone else’s confessions? That’s just not my style.

Grow and be well,

Kelly Erickson

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3 Responses to “Confession Time”

Graham Strong says:
15 February 2011, 8:14 am

“He lost my respect with the ploy, but… my Experience isn’t the one he’s worried about.”

That encapsulates exactly how I feel about this subject. For years (literally) I’ve wrestled with marketing ploys, and why I shouldn’t use them. Everyone who has a ploy of their own will say: “You can’t argue with the numbers.” In other words, ploys generate money.

That may be true. But I don’t like catchy phrases meant to simply get people to click without regard to the promises they’re breaking. I don’t like the long letter on a website. I don’t like a lot of things to do with marketing — and now I understand exactly why.

It is a respect thing. Respect as in the belief that this person is worthy of attention. You can say that so-and-so isn’t your target market today, but what about tomorrow?

If you’re going to sell to the lowest common denominator, you better sell the lowest common denominator products and services. And be prepared to become the lowest common denominator yourself.

~Graham

Kelly Erickson says:
15 February 2011, 8:37 am

Graham,

Oh, the irony—this post was originally titled “Lowest Common Denominator Marketing.” (Not too snappy a title, though.) You read my mind through three revisions!

It’s the ol’ black-hat-white-hat thing. These things can be done well, with integrity, with respect for the reader and without ploys… but do we want to—or as people who also want to put food in front of our families, should we—leave the “easier” money on the table?

Well, I guess over several years of writing here I probably have made it clear I come down on the side of yes, use marketing techniques, because it’s not the skills themselves that cause problems, but when you can feel them veering into “tactics,” or worse yet, ploys, you’ve probably stepped over the line.

And I know that’s the side you come down on as well. Lowest common denominator is not good marketing math.

Regards,

Kelly

Graham Strong says:
15 February 2011, 8:48 am

lol – there you go. Yes, certainly not the way I would be able to operate AND be able to sleep at night…

~Graham