He Knows if You’ve Been Naughty or Nice

Welcome back, I hope everyone had a restful and relaxing holiday with friends and family!  When I saw this Marketoonist cartoon I thought it was very topical for the start of a new semester.  Marketing should be all about informing and enabling consumers but there’s always the risk (and temptation) to push ethical boundaries.  As we welcome a new batch of students, talk with them about where those boundaries lie.  Is it intrusive if consumers give permission to track information?  What if they didn’t opt-in but instead you utilize an opt-out strategy?  Are we doing a disservice to customers if we don’t utilize available tools and technology to optimize our messages?