A Consumer Does Not a Marketer Make
Because I just went through this with my own kid, that's why. My colleague was exasperated with me. We were having a discussion about which approach to a marketing campaign would be most effective. We had narrowed down our choices to two options. In her mind, the first of these alternatives was clearly better than the second. I was not passionately in favor of the second option, but I continued to support it for the sake of argument--much to my colleague’s chagrin.
I have been reminded of this very insightful comment made by a friend of mine many times in my career: A consumer does not a marketer make. It is an easy trap for us to fall into. We consider that because we think a certain way about making a purchase or taking an action, others must think the same.
Oooops.
I have guided dozens of my new hires through this concept and usually, it bears some reminding before it clicks. Admittedly, I have to remind myself at times. I have spent more time than I would like to think helping smart non-marketing people around me to set aside their own experiential bias. In fact, I believe that a core principle that sets us marketing folks apart from others in leadership is our ability to suspend this natural tendency toward our own intuition and truly follow the data.
Have you ever sat in a presentation where the data on the screen offered a conclusion that audience members argued with simply because the findings ran counter to what they expected or hoped for? I have, many times. Of course, a healthy dose of skepticism is good. Things like sample bias, confirmation bias, statistical manipulation, and scale manipulation are all real ways to throw us off, whether intentional or not. But we should ask ourselves if we are looking for bias out there ... when it is actually in here.
I have also found personal bias to be one of the more offensive things to point out to others. It is personal and real to us. It comes from our own deep decision-making process, including life experiences, principles, and even belief systems. When we challenge this way of thinking, we might be perceived as indirectly challenging things that we hold dear. So tread lightly.
The concept of inner bias is not complex. We already know it to be true. The problem is our own forgetfulness. We simply get caught up in the moment and forget to step back and consider the options. I don't have a clever tip that will help exercise your follow-the-data muscle, but I will share this. On my desk, I have a list posted of 10 important lessons I have learned over the years. A consumer does not a marketer make is number 3.
