Marketing needs an Enema. Be the Pump

I believe Marketing is undergoing a major enema in large part brought about by the macroeconomics of our time, but also by decades of exponentially growing complexity piled on top of what is really a very simple, human-centric discipline.

Any industry needing a periodic table of elements like this mess or this dumpster fire has to implode at some time - or outright be replaced with a better way.?

This is partly due to the fact that analytics, metrics, spreadsheets, and a myriad of technologies have been used to obfuscate incompetence (or mediocrity) in too many organizations. And partly because the more complex an industry, the better it is for “consultants” and “analysts” to milk the FUD effect and sell more crap. Complexity is a powerful and long-lasting business model. Just ask all your top IT analyst firms.

Here are two of my favorite quotes from A Marketer’s Guide to Category Design - I love these because I’ve seen both up close and personal for decades across all company sizes:

Success in most marketing roles means changing jobs every 18-36 months. That’s how you know you’re climbing the ladder. Especially in Fortune 500 companies, the pattern is as follows:?

First 6 months: Dump on the person before you (“They did it all wrong”). Next 6 months: “Make The Logo BIGGER!” Final 6 months: Move onto your next gig.?

And then:

If a company hires a new CMO and rebrands within the first 12 months, quit or sell the stock. You’re screwed.

But I think the chicken are coming home to roost. And alternatives to traditional marketing like Category Design and Creation are getting some serious worldwide traction. Amen for that.?

If you agree that traditional marketing has reached the end of its shelf life and is ready for a serious purge, as I do, come and join us in the Category Thinkers Community and hit me up on our Slack channel for a personal welcome - It’s time to prime the pump ??