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01.25.2006

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For more Hartman Group articles on STORYTELLING, click here...

02.17.2005 "Telling Stories: the Brand Connection"

11.10.2003 "Languaculture: Consumer Storytelling"

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Truth In Advertising

Surely by now we are all very aware of the near constant clamor regarding truth in the media. Jayson Blair's scandal at the New York Times may have started it all but the streak has continued seemingly unabated. Many were even more shocked when heavyweight best-selling author Mitch Albom got nailed for including imaginary conversations and events in a column for the Detroit Free Press. And now there's the uproar about James Frey's A Million Little Pieces.

At one end we hear the traditional cry for truth and accuracy in the media. "After all, if we can't trust those who catalog our events and translate them into narratives," goes the argument, "then why even bother in the first place." Facts, this line of thinking holds, are essential, unarguable truths. These folks feel it is important to punish said violators of the truth.

And at the other end of the spectrum we find the critics who bemoan our society's declining concern for absolute truth. Lead by our perverse fascination with "reality television," we increasingly seek out hyper-real narratives even if, in the end, we find out it was all staged. Our fetishization of hyper-reality - a version of reality that is much too real to be real - the critics implore, drives us into accept obvious untruths. In this vein, we crave MTV's Real World - a scenario that obviously has no basis in everyday reality - even though we know that nothing that happens on the show is, in fact, "real." Yes, the events happened, but only under the most absurd pretenses.

Perhaps not surprisingly, I'd like to suggest a third perspective, something of a middle ground here. Namely, that we are increasingly comfortable accepting a variety of truths because our postmodern worldview holds that truth is, in fact, a relative concept. There are the "objective" truths that fill our newspapers, magazine and science journals, the "interpretive" truths put forth by the likes of Jon Stewart, Bill O'Reilly or The Onion, the "spun" and "crafted" truths offered by our politicians, the "real" truths delivered by reality television and on and on. In fact, this perspective is really nothing all that new - Hunter S. Thompson, among others, forged an entire career espousing this perspective: "I have a theory that the truth is never told during the nine-to-five hours."

The point is that today's consumer is neither a concerned traditionalist nor a media-addled fool. We recognize, quite pragmatically, that there are many versions of truths and choose to involve ourselves in discriminating between them only when it becomes necessary.

Take Frey's A Million Little Pieces. In the opening scene of the first chapter, Frey describes waking up on an airplane, covered in blood and vomit, missing several teeth and sporting a hole in his cheek. Anybody who has ever flown knows that no airline crew would ever let an unconscious, blood-soaked person with a gaping flesh wound on a plane. Of course this is embellished. But are we really going to devote the time necessary to compare this version of the truth to another? And even if we did, how would our efforts be rewarded? Instead, most move forward, thinking to themselves, "Wow, kind of graphic, but I get the point, he was in bad shape."

So what's the point?

Knowledge constitutes a significant portion of the potential value added by retailers and manufacturers, as consumers crave information about the products and services they use and integrate into their lifestyles. But, today, more and more consumers are turning away from traditional "authorities" and expert opinions, and are looking inward as they seek out their own information sources.

Important implications:

While consumers respect those who speak with them, they have little respect for those speaking at them.
Those hoping to speak with consumers must be prepared to speak the customer's language.
The opinions or recommendations of federal regulatory agencies or consumer watchdog groups will continue to become increasingly irrelevant, at least from the perspective of the consumer.

Contemporary marketers and brand managers should remember that when it comes to the truth, today's consumer walks a precipitous middle line. Marketing messages need not be obsessively concerned with objective facts. But at the same time, while there is surely wiggle room for product and brand narratives, you don't want to make the critical mistake of over-extending your embellishments. Knowing these limits (in both directions) is critical to effective brand management.

How can your brand remain a trusted resource? We suggest starting with a little storytelling.

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