Book Review: All Marketers Are Liars By Seth Godin

If you are a marketer and you are about to implode on reading the title of Seth Godin’s book, don’t worry, his book is not about maligning marketers at all. Infact, quite the opposite, Godin believes that “Marketers have the leverage to generate huge impact in less time and with less money than ever before”. This book, instead should have been titled, “All Marketers Are Story Tellers” but then would such a bland title make it stand apart from the hordes of other books on marketing?

That is exactly the premise of this book. Consumers are bombarded with information and data like never before. In order to deal with this influx of information we tend to ignore the ordinary and pay attention to the remarkable. According to Godin, because we are so overwhelmed with all data around us, we tend to tell ourselves “Stories” (in other words, form perceptions). These stories or lies enable us to deal to with all the complexity of the world. Stories make it easier to understand the world around us. Godin argues that only those marketers who tell stories that resonate with consumers will be successful rather than those harping on purely facts or benefits.

When considering how consumers actually make purchasing decisions, this argument is quite compelling. For example, when buying sneakers rarely do people make the purchase based on whether it can absorb shocks, or if its sole is made from X grade rubber. The decision is more often made based on the mental image formed in the mind of the person buying it. Do I look cool or hip when wearing it? What will my friends think? etc. It is precisely this kind of story that needs to be told inorder to “sell” the product to the consumer. A story that consumer wants to believe.

Godin says that a story works when it’s accurate and consistent and more importantly, matches the worldview of the audience being told the story. These early adopters are convinced by the story and they in turn tell their friends. Thus, a small niche market, turns into a trend and then finally into a mass market. In this era of rapid globalization, it is no longer enough that a product is cheaper, faster and better. Anybody can manufacture such a commodity. There is very little differenciation and even if there is, it will soon be replicated. This is where the power of the story comes in. Marketers succeed when they tell a story that fits the worldview of the consumer, a story that is intuitively embraced and then shared with friends.

Another reason why authentic stories need to be told, according to the author, is because we live in an age of choices and unbelievable customization. The mantra of one-size-fits-all type television advertising no longer works. The media like the internet has made it possible for marketers to tailor messages for a niche audience. In order to tell the story more effectively and in order for it to be believable, Marketers need to live the story through various experiential outlets

Godin also adds a caveat on the thin line between fibs and fraud. Fibs are stories that are exaggerating the truth but a fraud is when a story is intended to deceive the customer. The power and responsibility of marketers is amply demonstrated in an example in the book of how a prominent multinational company marketed a powdered formula to mothers in developing countries. The company weaved a story of how a powdered formula was better than breastfeeding. According to a UNICEF report this kind of deceitful marketing led to the death of millions of babies in developing countries.

The book is a quick and fun read with the language being rather breezy. It almost feels like you’re having an informal chat with the author. Many of the insights offered are backed up numerous examples. But the constant repetition and belaboring of points could have been avoided and the content could have been organized in a better fashion instead of seeming like random jottings. Another drawback of the book is that all the examples listed in the book is US centric and as a result, it is hard to ascertain if it such strategies will work in emerging markets where internet penetration is not high and television is still the sole medium of advertising.

Overall I felt that this book provided valuable insights on marketing psychology and on a new trend emerging in marketing. This book would be very useful for startups or small businesses who want to get a toe-hold in the market and grow fast. I’m not entirely convinced that this strategy would work for big and established brands.

Update: All Marketers Are Liars is even a blog. Check it out