The sad proof that marketing works

In my never-ending quest to understand this world we live in, I stumbled upon Stever Robbins’ post about the mortgage crisis. Stever makes the case that financial professionals should be held accountable for writing all those high-risk loans that are now leaving families homeless across the country. He doesn’t pull any punches in his decidedly opinionated post, and one point in particular found its mark directly in my solar plexus:

"…the marketing of these mortgages was designed to
persuade people to take them out. Well, it worked. And for banks and
lenders to be shocked that their marketing worked, and then further
shocked that their own lax standards put them in a position where their borrowers couldn’t repay is just hubris beyond belief.

So yeah, many consumers should have made better decisions. But
they’re not professionals, they’re not financially literate, and
they’re being subjected to $100,000,000 of marketing and sales tactics."

I don’t know whether or not the people who designed and implemented these marketing campaigns knew they were selling snake oil, but one thing’s for sure: they knew they were wielding the weapon of persuasion. Effective marketing often plays on emotion and when it finds its target it can be potent stuff.

These marketing masters painted a rosy picture of cozy family gatherings and backyard barbecues to lure people in so their dazzling salespeople could close the deals. What better way to talk someone into buying a house he so clearly can’t afford than to make him feel like a bad father if he doesn’t sign on the dotted line? I can almost feel the pressure from a doe-eyed wife looking on expectantly as the kids cheer about having their own bedrooms. Go Dad!

What you can learn from this as a small business person is that marketing done right can be a powerful motivator. Use it wisely.