Would You Buy Used Jargon From This Man?
November 3rd, 2006With the unveiling of his new company crayon, Joseph Jaffe has crossed the line from harmless enthusiasm to plain old “wacko”.
Forget his self-description as “industry thought leader”. Forget his unwarranted utterly false claim that crayon is the first business in Second Life. Forget that crayon is just the kind of fucktard company Second Life doesn’t want to keep.
More astonishing is the marketing drivel in his press release, in which decidedly little is new or original.
Consider these gems of meaningless conventionality:
- “crayon focuses on helping its clients identify, evaluate, implement, integrate and measure a bold mix of alternatives to traditional marketing, advertising and public relations into their existing plans and programs….”
- “crayon is structured as both a global and a remote company”
- “Amplify, extend and enhance relevance, experience and value through bold, alternative and non-traditional approaches”
- “the best of the consulting, agency, advisory, thought leadership and education worlds - a mash-up, in new marketing terms”
- “crayon also maintains a traditional website at www.crayonville.com (the same name as the Second Life island) for those not ready to make the transition to crayonville Island.”
This is the team that’s going to help you win hearts and minds on the Net?
Anyone ever play bullshit bingo?
Tags: second life, jargon, nut job
Awesome Antony. You brought a smile to my face…and I love the comparison to Denny Crain himself.
Nice jargon yourself btw…
“Reaching Your Customers, Yesterday and Today
Yesterday, customers recognized you from your signs and your ads. Today, they find you using search engines and domain names. They type in names and words that may not be the ones you think they use.
Yesterday, customers responded to your direct mail and TV ads. Today, you respondto their search inquiries. They use their search terms, not yours.
Yesterday, customers were taught by your sales and marketing. Today, customers learn from the blogs they read. They find you through their networks, not yours.”
I think as long as we genuinely believe in what we say, are passionate and support each other, we will be able to grow this incredible new marketing pie together.
Don’t you agree?
Joseph Jaffe | November 3rd, 2006 at 7:28 am
Joseph, dude, I was like totally channeling you when I wrote that…
Actually, the problem with what you quoted is not that it’s jargon-laden (I actually avoid “leverage” and “activate”) but that it ignores the customer. When I wrote that I was on a high about how the web was transforming because I had just “got it’.
The passage is actually all about how clever I thought I was at the time, and nothing about how I care about my clients (I didn’t have many then) or how I could help them. It needs to come down.
To your point, believing in what you say is not enough (that way lies delusion). You have to care about your customers and you have to care about their customers too. It’s not a “marketing pie.” It’s someone with a real product hiring you to help them let other people know how great it is. If you want to do that effectively on the web, you need to stay very real.
It’s all about trust and authenticity. Not confidence.
Antony | November 3rd, 2006 at 9:46 am
Couldn’t agree with you more. We are really on the same page…and yes, the consumer is important…but partnering with them is as - if not more - important.
Joseph Jaffe | November 3rd, 2006 at 9:49 am
That’s true. I’m sorry I called you a wacko fucktard. Send me a photo of your avatar.
Antony | November 3rd, 2006 at 9:58 am
Wouldn’t be the first time, although I’m wondering if it was you who called me a fucktard when I posted my Nike ad.
It’s a unique and magical word.
Here’s the link to our flickr site and one pic of me with a bit of Reuters product placement:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/crayonville/279446479/
Joseph Jaffe | November 3rd, 2006 at 3:51 pm