Will There Ever Be Truth (and Trust) in Advertising?
Last week a U.S. court ruled that cigarette makers can no longer use the words "Light," "Ultralight," "Mild" or "Natural" to describe their cigarettes. Everyone know by now that cigarettes, no matter how they're labeled, are unhealthy, but it took a court ruling to get the ads changed. It brings up to me the question of trust.
Even in advertising, there should be a level of trust established between companies and customers. Companies that spend millions in legal fees for the chance to manipulate and deceive their customers are wasting their money. Instead they should use that money to understand the customers they do have, and figure out how to best build a loyal relationship. Selling a highly addictive product helps in the cigarette makers' case, but for other companies, efforts to control the message should instead be an effort to open the customer dialog and eventually build trust.
