What would a marketing department have created?
Could a marketing department have created the Internet?
Could a marketing department have created the wind up radio?
Could a marketing department have created space war and with it the entire video game industry?
There was a little bit of fuss last night when Alex Bogusky highlighted a poor review of his book ‘Baked In’. The review was far from glowing and called the book “half baked”.
Witty stuff.
Beneath the easy point, however, the writer (Dan Neil) went on to suggest that whilst marketing has a place in product design, it is ludicrous to believe that marketing departments could originate product.
Twitter user @adsoftheworld disagreed saying:
New products should indeed originate from marketing dept.
Consider this post an analysis not of the book (more of which at the end) but of this one claim.
For me, the idea that marketing departments should be responsible for creating product seems to stem from a couple of places:
Firstly the place we’ve all been as creative people, namely around the table after the client has left. Here, before we begin to hammer out a reasoned campaign we might, perhaps, point out the if-onlys. If only the product did this, if only the product did that. If only the client had come to us first.
I have lost count of the number of times I’ve solved deep political issues after a two minute news broadcast.
The other place in which marketing’s place in product design is assured is
Yet the reason so much marketing is ineffective isn’t all down to poor product design or a lack of integrated narrative between marketing and design, it’s also down to poor marketing. Bad strategy, lazy creative, poor communication – marketing doesn’t always get it right. Even when the best and the brightest are involved.
Much of the so-called creativity we see from marketing is box ticking, consumer tested strategy. It rarely sidesteps perceived wisdom to deliver something astounding. It works with known understanding of consumer behaviour. It plays to our shopping weaknesses.
Does product design do the same?
Sometimes.
Sometimes it comes out of the blue. Sometimes an inventor is just trying to find a way to make her life better.
Then it occurs to them that it could improve the lives of others.
That’s when they approach marketing.
Because, well, that’s what marketing is there for.
To bring a product to market.
The idea that marketable ideas come, or ought to come from the marketing department omits one thing: history.
A marketing department couldn’t have created the Internet because it wasn’t a product to sell. Commercial potential came afterwards.
A marketing department couldn’t have created the wind up radio. Who is going to invest money in thinking how to help poor people?
And a basic game that ran on a machine which would never be available in shops?
I wouldn’t have thought of that.
But I am interested in buying the book. That’s the role Bogusky exploited when he shared the poor review of his book.
