You are the way you are, because that’s what we told you to be. Discuss.

There are two distinct groups of business people; those who get marketing, and those that don’t. From the perspective of us involved with the running of a marketing company, we wish we could tell them apart early doors. Alas, not that straightforward and this has led to a couple of occasions where a client has ‘given the marketing a rest’ as they couldn’t identify any marketing activity as being responsible for any sales. Anyway, they both had said, it doesn’t matter because the order book was bulging. Clearly, it hadn’t crossed their minds that there may be some correlation between marketing activity and healthy sales. Still, that’s our cross to bear, not yours.

Business people who get marketing have told us what to wear, what to smell like, what to eat, where to buy it, what to drive, how to behave, et cetera ad nauseum. You may not like that idea, but unfortunately, it’s true, and it’s because we are all consumers. But, they cried, we have freedom of choice: I choose what I consume. Really? You can only choose what you’re aware of, and that awareness comes from marketing. But, they cried, I only buy what I need. Again, really? For centuries, the male of our species has managed perfectly well – some of us continue to do so – without any need for male grooming products, yet now, according to my local branch of the best known high street chemists, sales of these easily outstrip those of our female counterparts. And why is that then? Because the bloody marketers told us to buy the stuff, that’s why.

So, for all those business people who don’t get marketing, whether you daub manly skincare products or not, since it’s clear that marketing influences consumers’ buying decisions, try and imagine a marketing team influencing consumers on your behalf. Because that’s exactly what we do.