What If There Was No Marketing?

Imagine if you would for a moment a world where there was no focus on marketing and promotion. No television or radio commercials. No websites cluttered with more ads than content. No magazines with countless pages of slick photographs of impossibly beautiful people or food that never looks as delicious in person, with an occasional article actually inserted now and then. No free e-books, trial periods or other promises once you turn over your invaluable email address. No landing pages utilizing tried and proven language and tactics to rope in the naïve and trusting. No experts or gurus or entire industries built on finding ways to drive more traffic, strengthen brands, increase numbers, and sell products.

I’m not sure how anyone would know that anything existed without its promotion of some sort, but what if that promotion was driven not by a need for self, but instead by a desire to give?

In other words, what if I promoted my business by striving only to make it known or available somehow to those who actually need my services, instead of attempting to make my business known in as many circles as possible in hopes that some percentage of those numbers will find it relevant and necessary?

I guess this is some form of targeted marketing and is already pursued to some extent, but isn’t it primarily driven by the goal of better results, rather than the goal of relevant, meaningful provision?

I’m not a marketing expert by any stretch, and this is in no way a bashing of those who are somehow related to the field. I’m not writing this with aspirations of somehow influencing the world to change and run wildly in the opposite direction from the society we have become. I’m just thinking out loud for a minute because this thought is very intriguing to me, and perhaps might be something you’ve considered as well.

The reason I have been contemplating this question is because of recent events where I was asking for assistance from my social media connections in a contest that my wife and I had entered. The process was an interesting experience and brought many new revelations, not the least of which is this thought trail I’m wandering down right now.

See, I started realizing that for many people a legitimate request for help from a friend can be sadly stained by the overabundance of marketing that has played a part in our society’s lack of trust in one another. Marketing is not the only culprit, mind you, but for this discussion it is the focus. Because most of us have unconsciously cultivated a mistrust of people’s motivations that operates in the ‘guilty until proven innocent’ mode, thanks to those who have given us just cause.

I would like to think that it is the exceptions that have perpetuated this attitude – just a few bad apples who have played and fixed the game and scammed or stolen or manipulated or connived. I know some very good people who are very good marketing professionals, and I know they are trustworthy and kind and compassionate and good, so I would like to believe that they are the majority.

But it only takes a momentary glance around us to see that we live in a society that feeds and thrives and survives on figuring out ways to increase our personal piece of the pie. So when a legitimate, selfless and/or worthwhile cause comes along, does it get thrown in the same pile as the rest of the junk mail?

I’m not saying my requests for votes in a contest where I could win several thousand dollars worth of furniture is a selfless or worthwhile cause. It’s actually pretty selfish, and I understand wholeheartedly the various reasons people may have not wanted to help my family out in the contest. But it got me to thinking about the countless Facebook causes I get asked to support (and usually ignore) and the requests for help from various places and people that I say I “just don’t have time”. Many of these are legitimate and worthwhile, and while I can’t clear my plate to start supporting every cause that comes down the pike, shouldn’t I at least look and listen a little bit more?

My thought is that the inundation of marketing in my daily life has numbed me, made me suspicious first and trusting second, and has grown in me an impatience for any type of request that does not somehow benefit me in some way.

Just saying that out loud really disturbs me.

This is not who I am at my core, so why have I become this person? Sure, it’s easy to blame it on the marketing and promotion industry, or to find some other fall guy for my moral decline. Yet ultimately I have to take responsibility for who I am and who I am becoming, and I guess through this post I am trying to start. They say the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem…

This leads me to something I want to share with you in an effort to support a cause that I think is very worthwhile and legitimate. It’s unusual and not something you are going to hear a whole lot about, which is why I want to help. Please don’t stop reading now. Take a second and join me in turning over a new leaf.

Pamela Hazelton is a friend I met through Twitter. Her husband Joe has an amazing story that you can read all about HERE, so I won’t rehash it. The short version is that 8 years ago he lost his sight and is 100% blind. Rather than choose to become completely debilitated and defeated, as many of us might do, 5 years ago Joe announced that he wanted to direct a feature film. Five years in the making, The Bunker, the first feature film written and directed by a blind filmmaker, is only months from being complete. And for this, Pamela and Joe have set out to let others be a part of it. They’ve launched a Kickstarter project to raise a minimum of $5,000 to put all the finishing touches on Joe’s first feature film, so it can finally be released to the masses.

Pamela and Joe are real people who need our help. If you can’t give anything financially, you can at the very least help spread the word with your Facebook, Twitter or other social networks. There are only 8 days left to help them meet their goal, and the project will only be funded if the $5,000 goal is reached by Thursday, September 30, 11:59pm EDT.

This is the second step for me. After admitting my problem, I am now going to try to do something different. Yes, I realize this may mean I suddenly get flooded with requests to support other causes, and I may not be able to keep up or even do anything for many of them.

But I am going to try to respond in a better way. I guess that’s a good place to start.

How about you?