When 'Authentic' Becomes Cliché: Rethinking Genuine Marketing in the AI Era

In the world of marketing, everyone's buzzing about "authenticity." It's like this golden ideal we've elevated as the main ingredient to the marketing secret sauce , hoping it'll fix everything perceived as insincere about past marketing tactics. But have we really thought this through? Has it become something that makes marketers / communicators second guess our voices and best practices when it comes to effective marketing?

Being genuine shouldn't trap us into overthinking or second-guessing. It's our chance to share our offers and values with clarity, and truly connect with our audience. I think it's about being truly visible, bold, and, paradoxically, authentic. It's about valuing our audience’s savvy, giving them the full picture, and trusting them to decide.

The word "authentic" is derived from the Greek word "authentikos," which means "original" or "genuine." In general, the term refers to something that is real or genuine and not counterfeit or copied.

Authentic: Adjective

1. Not false or copied; genuine; real.
2. Having an origin supported by unquestionable evidence; verified.
3. Representing one's true nature or beliefs; true to oneself or to the person identified.

In the context of marketing, "authentic" implies that the messaging, branding, and communication of an organization or individual are genuine, transparent, and representative of their true values and beliefs, rather than being fabricated or tailored merely to fit current trends or market demands.

So, in the context of 'authenticity', we could define marketing as: The proactive process of understanding, connecting with, and engaging audiences by transparently communicating an organization's genuine values, offers, and aspirations. Marketing is an evolving strategy that prioritizes authentic narratives, leverages advanced technologies for insights, and seeks to establish genuine, trust-based relationships with audiences.

Authenticity shouldn’t just be a new, trendy tactic thrown in to take a stab at earning deeper trust . It should be at the core of who we are as organizations. Truth: everyone in an organization or business is a marketer / communicator from different perspectives in the organization, both internally, and externally-facing. So, authenticity is part and parcel of an organization's DNA, and that means setting up each individual of the organization with the tools to practice authenticity as humans and as marketers.

Just when we leaned into authenticity as a new standard, generative AI came on the scene this year to seemingly threaten to wipe out human authenticity, causing a burst of paranoia, similar to ones that came on as a result of other emerging technologies, like the internet back in the 1990s.

What we are learning now is that AI can sometimes see the nuances in our stories better than we can. Not to tell us who we are, but to reflect back the truths we might be overlooking. By embracing these tools, we're not trading realness for robots. We're using them as our allies to communicate in ways that truly resonate. It's not about sounding like everyone else; it’s about being unapologetically us.

It's high time we elevate 'authentic marketing' from a catchphrase to an organizational ethos — a brave testament to our stories, our value, and our role in the marketplace. And sometimes, it takes an intricate algorithm to reconnect us with the foundational truths we stand for.

I'm diving deep into this conversation. Let’s chat, challenge the status quo, and discover what genuine marketing feels like.

#AuthenticityReimagined #MarketingEvolution #GenuineConversations