Do you know too much about marketing?

Hi,

Can you know too much about marketing? Ted Levitt invented the term ‘marketing myopia’ in the 1970s to describe the business world's ignorance of marketing at the time. Fast forward 40 years and the same term could be used to describe a new short-sightedness, brought on by too much ‘knowledge’ of marketing. Telstra was forced to pull TV ads featuring the Dustin Hoffman about its 3G network because they were telling lies. Woolworths has pulled its own brand tissue products because the product was labelled as “sustainable”, but the Indonesian company supplying it is clearing rainforest. Woolworths had not waited for WWF to report on its audit of the supplier before publishing the lie. How can these things happen? Marketing has become too complex – too many processes and technologies. Fundamentals. Did no one at Telstra and Woolworths think to check? Strip your marketing processes down to basics. Then weed the garden regularly. Or does your success in professional marketing driven by your ability to complicate matters?

Cheers!

Michael