Honesty is the only policy for online marketing which runs on email and product subscriptions. If you betray the trust of a customer, you’ll lose their trust. They’ll unsubscribe. Your dreaded churn rate will go up.
Companies making a quick buck through dishonesty litter history. But they also never got repeat customers.
This topic took me back to a childhood memory. I was flipping through a comic book in 1978. The oversized comic was “Superman vs. Muhammad Ali.” The cover was mesmerizing. It wrapped around to the back. It showed Ali and Superman boxing.
An endless sea of attendees filled a massive stadium. If you look closely, you can spot many famous faces. Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball, Pelé, Johnny Carson, Liberace, “The Jackson 5,” and many more were there.
There was one special page that blew my mind.
“Enter the WONDERFUL WORLD OF AMAZING LIVE
SEA-MONKEYS
The REAL LIVE FUN-PETS YOU GROW YOURSELF”
A fantastical family of pink, underwater creatures smiled back at me. These human-like sea-monkeys sat in front of a majestic purple castle. Was this part of the comic?
Another smaller picture demonstrated their “true” size as being 3-8 inches tall. The sea-monkey family sat in a giant fishbowl. A smiling nuclear family looked into the fishbowl.
Of course, they almost look like people.
The order form even included this: “I must be 100% satisfied, or you will return my money.”
Wow! What was there to risk if I got a money-back guarantee?
I scrounged up the vast sum of $1.25 plus $0.50 postage and handling. I mailed my order in.
They finally arrived many, many weeks later.
I poured the sea-monkeys into a big glass jar with water, “Sea-Monkey Growth Food”, and “Sea Plasma.” Some tiny white shrimp hatched. They all grew to about 5 millimeters before quickly dying.
Where were the human-like features of legs, arms, and a smiling human face?
Where were the happy families? They all looked the same.
I was not a happy camper.
The money-back guarantee? It was a “growth guarantee.”
They might’ve gotten my $1.75, but they’d never get another cent from me!
The man behind Sea-Monkeys was Harold von Braunhut.He ran another comic book ad for the “Invisible Goldfish.” It came with a 100% guarantee that you’ll never see the goldfish. It only came with a bowl, a book, and fish food!
Von Braunhut somehow made millions from various gimmicks over the years. You can still get Sea-monkeys today!
Here are some simple ways to be more honest:
#1 Fact-check your marketing statements.
#2 Learn the deep, true story of your client, product, and customers.
#3 Be authentic.
“Honesty is the best policy.” – Sir Edwin Sandys, an English politician from the 15th to 16th century.
About Charles Polanski: I help people prosper through online marketing. Click this link to unlock a world of possibilities with online marketing.
This is a guest blog post written by Charles Polanski, If you wish to be considered for guest post then please contact me
