Marketing Culture must change. USP is dead

We live in a fast pace world where technology superiority is lost in days. Whatever you create, someone else copies it. Similarly, we have marketing touch points…many of them…from atl to digital; from posters to games; from toilet sink ads to tattooed foreheads. It’s becoming more difficult to stand out.

Marketers are stupid. I mean, they all well educated, they know the theories well…they are just stupid when it comes to marketing. What makes them stupid is they forget their references. Most theories were written in 1970s. Since then the world has changed…so why wouldn’t marketing?

Now you likely start recalling all the latest books about web age, long tail, consumer is king etc. Yeah, they exist but still large majority of marketers use same tools and mechanics than they did a decade ago. So what is the dilemma marketers want to solve?

It all starts with the idea of problem and solution…oh, I love that. Let’s imagine a problem people may have so we could solve it for them. Wake up poop heads, majority of people could not care about the problems you are offering them
The second approach involves target segments…yeah, we are not humans but we are 35-year-old males, who like high heel shoes and want to express their individuality and superiority by wearing a pink tie in their forehead.

The third and well loved approach is differentiation…if we only are different from competition, people will select us. I hear this often when marketing people are searching ingredients to their brief to agency. Forget the fact all products look, feel, taste and smell the same…we will articulate why we are different and people will love us!

People have changed and marketing must too. Web has unleashed consumer awareness of products, their features and what people think about them. There is no need to invent artificial problems, put people to imaginary boxes or differentiate indifferent products.

Consumers need a solid base of facts, spiced with benefits and brand engagement on their own terms. They need exposure in the right context (place, time, event, and people) and easy access to the products. They want recognition from brands of their personal contribution and engagement, not marketing slogans. They expect response to their posts, not PR statements how the company is on track with their strategy. They love to be educated…without feeling they sit on the school bench…without being treated as a child.

I’m sure there is a place to old school marketing tactics…it works well with old school marketing channels…and broadcasting propaganda. Unigue Selling Points may well live there…continue to make money hungry media agencies happy.

For all the other places…there is social media collaboration and conversations…truth…honesty…and world peace