Marketing Does Not Need to Be Manipulative

Written By Preston Kanak

When I first started making videos, I never imagined I would be confronted with the ethical impacts of my work. I started my journey purely for the art of it but learned quickly that if I wanted to make a living in the industry that commercial work would need to be a reality, at least in some capacity.

In the early stage of finding my voice, I would break down some of the most successful ads and attempt to understand what worked and what did not work. The common trend I started to see with the larger companies was how much they leaned into emotional marketing tactics and it did not always feel authentic.

Differentiating between marketing and manipulation.

The ethical implications of marketing is something all companies should consider. Whether the intent is authentic is one aspect where marketing can cross over into manipulation. Although the intent of any successful company is to sell a product or service, there is a clear seperation between authentic marketing and pure manipulation.

Here is a prime example of manipulative marketing.

Now, one could ask, how does manipulation show up in marketing? The answer is actually pretty transparent. There are few distinct strategies. These include but are not limited to preying on customers emotions, playing into insecurities, creating a fear of missing out and peer pressure.

The hidden manipulation trend no one is talking about.

The influencer market currently plays a large roll in marketing strategies these days and in many cases, these recommendations are pure manipulation. Companies instantly have direct access to a large customer base and influencers these days are more willing than ever, in many cases, to stake their reputation on it because frankly, they don’t have a lot to lose. Post and ghosting - at it’s finest.

Influencer marketing is not all bad. There is huge value in this strategy. We believe it is imperative to find those 1000 super fans vs those accounts with all the followers in the world. It’s a short term gain for to leverage the larger accounts but you are giving up so much. Those super fans will go to the moon and back for you.

Emotional marketing campaigns do not need to be manipulative.

The question now becomes, how do you create a captivating and engaging ad without crossing the line into manipulation? For us, we believe that this comes down to intent.

Authenticity and vulnerability can be your superpower.

Emotional marketing is a great way to connect with your audience when you come at it with authenticity and vulnerability. I know it feels weird to come from this angle and likely against trend but if you are honestly honouring your mission and vision than it is a great tool.

Authenticity and vulnerability builds trust. When you are willing to show that you are human, audiences connect with this. Give a little - get a lot.

Think about the impact.

At the end of the day, its when intent and impact come into symmetry when it all comes together perfectly. As a way to illustrate this, I’ve attached an example of an ad that may indeed find the balance - but until a proper discovery is done into the company, we wouldn’t know. This ad is for a pharmacy company and although it does play on emotions, it does so from the angle of getting heathy and fit and focuses on the importance of finding your purpose. The question is, does this company actually work to improve health outcomes of patients or are financial outcomes holding precident?

Sometimes it takes stepping outside your comfort zone to offer something new and unique and in a way that builds up versus tear down. About the individual effort and contribution to something bigger. To moments with the ones that matter most.