Online Transparency: Pull Back the Curtain
The Wizard of Oz
One of my favourite beneficial impacts of the Internet has been how the curtain can be pulled back to reveal the reality behind the facade.
Marketing has gotten a bad rap over the years — and rightly so at times — with the misrepresentation that occurs when companies do not behave honestly.
It seems crazy, but our parents and grandparents took what they heard on radio and saw on television as complete truth. “Smoking isn’t bad for your health.” How could they know any different? The message was tightly controlled and there was no platform for anyone who felt or thought differently.
It used to be that you only knew what companies wanted you to know. We may take it for granted now, but that changed in a huge way with something we may already take for granted — the ability to publish video and text to a worldwide audience. Now, news of any and all kinds spreads like rapid-fire around the globe.
Keep that in mind as a business owner. It’s not that everything you do is under scrutiny or that you can never screw up. Just set out to be the kind of business you want to do business with. And when you screw up (not if), be transparent and resolve it quickly.
Leave a Comment
