MAN do I have a problem with people who THINK they are marketers just because the WORK at a marketing company. This really hit home the other day. I was sitting in a meeting with some high-level research guys who do focus groups, and they were discussing some of the techniques and terms and I realized that I had no idea what value I could bring to the discussion. Here's the kicker - for the most part I kept my mouth shut. I didn't regale them with lame marketing truisms and "my thoughts" on the subject. You see, just because I work with these guys doesn't mean I have the faintest hope of telling them anything they don't already know. The BEST I can hope to do is keep from exposing my stupidity on the subject - and here silence is my friend.
I sit in meetings a lot with mixed groups from different marketing perspectives. Generally there is one really experienced marketing person in the meeting, a couple of new marketers (AE's) and a couple of technical people. Without exception I get to hear the thoughts of the technical folks on switch testing or on demographics or some others area of expertise in which they have no knowledge. This drives me nuts. When I want to know how to most efficiently perform a great circle calculation or truly randomize a result, I'll ring your friggin bell. Note - I'M a technical guy - I started in the business as a coder. The difference with me is that I've spent years putting together marketing plans, many that have failed, some that have succeeded. Often I used my own money, or had to personally address the failures with the client. I'm always reading a new book on marketing or attending a conference. I eat, drink, breathe, etc marketing. I truly LOVE marketing. This is what makes me a marketer.
We're not just talking about technical people here though. This applies to anybody who joins a marketing company with no experience in marketing - and I mean real marketing. Please, for all of our benefits, just listen for a couple of years. Then put your ass on the line a couple of times and feel the burn, THEN let's have your thoughts on our project.
Don't get me wrong, it's great to hear the thoughts of everyone on some things. Often folks who are not long-time marketers will have ideas that are great. I just take issue with statements such as "Never use Red in a design" and "if it takes more than 2 clicks to get there..", etc. I mean, do you have some DATA to back this up?
I guess what I'm saying is...there was a wize old owl who lived in an oak..
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3 comments:
Yeah. I remember a year or two ago when I threw out the old saw about keeping your home page within the resolution of the screen. I thought you were going to go to my house and kill my children after you'd finished killing me.
If I were in your shoes, I would view these as teachable moments. I mean, the people who say things that are wrong are saying them because they actually think they are right and because they want to appear intelligent in front of their clients (I call them "chip shots"). So your telling them what actually is right serves as intelligent-sounding cannon fodder for their next meeting. You end up being the hero.
lol - I agree - and I do try to do this, but I haven't seen many cases where these folks (the technical ones especially) are 'open' to hearing it, so I soldier on and grumble in secret..
When I worked in marketing in financial services we were reviewing some designs. One of the sales people started in with that "I learned in my marketing class that you can never use red" bull. I held up the can of COKE that I was drinking as said "really?"
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