Marc Babej and Tim Pollak, partners at Reason Inc. and writers of Being Reasonable, have a new gig. Forbes has brought them on as columnists. Here’s some of what they offer in their first riposte for the business magazine.
The demonization of selling (as practiced by advertising creatives) is counterproductive to the end game of commerce–and it’s expensive. Marketing represents a substantial chunk of annual operating costs. Accordingly, every dollar not spent with the intent to motivate behavior is a drag on productivity and margin.
Understandably, most marketers seek to disassociate themselves from the kind of selling practiced by PT Barnum, Ron Popiel and the salesman who is all too willing to blur the line between polite persuasion and in-your-face hectoring. But when marketers eschew selling, when they consciously refrain from intending to motivate behavior, they reinforce the growing perception that the advertising industry–and clients who follow its conventions–are indeed on a slippery slope.
