Is misleading OK?
Lying and misinformation are such prominent tactics in self-promotion, advertising, politics, and social media that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to know who to trust and what to believe. We are all becoming more skeptical and more selective of who and what we listen to. Checking the facts on every claim is not easy and too time consuming with the incoming onslaught of persuasive messages.
For the marketer also it is getting more difficult to be heard and to win the attention and support of a loyal audience. Careful attention to the truth is absolutely necessary. Lying and misinformation can end the conversation quickly and lose the audience or kill the relationship permanently.
I must confess that in my own marketing adventures I have sometimes pushed the envelope of truth-in-advertising into the shadows with claims that were true but knowingly misleading. Never lying, but less than the whole truth to lead the listener to the desired conclusion. In today’s marketing and communications climate there is no room for such nuance. Scrupulously accurate is the only way to communicate to leave no doubt of your trustworthiness. The whole truth and nothing but the truth.
It’s a tough audience out there. They’ve decided to trust nobody. And no second chances if you make the mistake of losing the trust you’ve earned.
Be better. Do Better. Be an Enlightened Entrepreneur.
Del Chatterson, your Uncle Ralph
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