Marketing Lies - Remember B2B is really B2B2C

Everyone wants to be healthy, local, and eco-friendly. Many companies have been using words like “Natural”, “Real”, and “Fat Free” for years. They have had little blow back until now. What do these words mean?

Natural – Virtually every product that has the word “Natural” printed on its label has ingredients that are unpronounceable. Are most of those ingredients somehow “Natural”?

Real – Really? Everything is "really" something.

–Does "Fat Free" mean that the Fat part of the food is at no cost –it is Free?

Brick and Mortar brands challenge manufacturing sales teams to present Healthy, Local, and Eco-Friendly products because that is what consumers increasingly want. Manufacturing sales teams look for ways to get there without changing the entire manufacturing model. But like the title says, B2B is really B2B2C. And the C is getting smarter all the time.

Can you really ever reengage a lost C once you have been caught in a Marketing lie of words? I highly doubt it. Sure, the “words” might be legal based on Federal laws that have not changed much over the years. But the C is relying less on our government and more on individual research.

If you are in Manufacturing and your Marketing and Packaging is not erring on the side of honesty, your days are numbered. It does not matter if you are Fortune 500 or a start-up. The future of Marketing is in honesty. It should have always been so but now C is smarter and they have Social Media.