As a marketing consultant with over 35 years of experience, I often work with extremely opinionated clients who have seemingly lost their true calling in life, that of a marketer. While their credentials may be impressive (doctors, lawyers, executives), they usually have nothing to do with marketing. However, they approach the task of marketing as something for which they have all the answers. Even I, after 35 years, don’t claim to be so lucky. After all, marketing is a lot like investing. One can never really know what will happen. There are many variables and the markets can be fickle, if not totally unpredictable. Strategies that worked for one product or service may not work for others. In my experience, diversification is one of the safest strategies of all. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

Perhaps that may seem cowardly, coming from a seasoned marketer. Where is my conviction? Where is my determination? Well, when the economy tanked, I put them both on the back burner where they simmer until the bulls come back. Until then, I advise all clients, both humble and stubborn, that prudence is a virtue, no matter how “true” the strategy.

So, is it also cowardly to allow a client to “bully” me into implementing their marketing strategy, often using their own unproven marketing concept, or worse, that of their offspring? To that I have a few possible answers:

• 1. He is the client and it is his money that we are spending.
• 2. I have told you my opinion and you have chosen to reject it.
• 3. If the effort fails, you can’t blame me.
• 4. The customer is always right.

Let’s take these points a little further. What kind of marketer allows a client to waste their hard-earned money on something that may not work? Is such business practice ethical, or even moral? First of all, none of us know for sure if their strategy and/or concept is useless as a marketing effort. In fact, I am aware of many homegrown marketing efforts that have been quite successful, regardless of how amateurish they may seem to professionals like me. Furthermore, marketing is often based on creativity, drawing on fresh, new and unprecedented ideas. And, in an industry running rampant with obnoxious and haughty marketing “gurus,” I consider myself unique in that I rarely insist that my way is the only way. In all modesty, I don’t think so and I never insist on anything.

Rather, I believe that he, as a successful business client, and I, as a successful marketing consultant, approached his marketing objective as equally competent and intelligent human beings, actually business owners, with common results as our goal. . We both want to come out of this experience with a positive result, a profit, hopefully, with winning teamwork to thank for the effort.

But, I am not naive. While that may be my take on the situation, with some clients the truth is quite different. Why such clients seek my services in the first place often escapes me. What I usually decide is that they need an achievement to do the visual “dirty work” while doing the directing. In my experience, the “dirty work” usually consists of the graphic design or marketing “package” which for many clients is completely useless, possibly because they are inexperienced in performing this function. Ironically, for me, this is the most important piece of the puzzle. Without a professional and attractive presentation, all the effort should have been left on the shelf.

It’s funny (quirky) that clients like this don’t seem to have the ability to tell a great presentation from a flawed one, so they rarely object to the part of the job I’m most proud of. This is lucky for me, because even if your concept or strategy may be less than ideal in my opinion, coupled with my strong, winning submission, you have a very good chance of success.

However, as I hinted at earlier, this type of client is often one that enjoys dominance over others they are working with, thus keeping them blind to the benefits of collaboration. Since I am not possessive of the work I do, I care very little if this client values ​​my input. The bottom line is that I run a business where clients of all kinds are given respect for their opinions, goals, and implementation ideas. I work very hard to guide you to a successful experience no matter what the obstacles. While I prefer a client who respects my experience and advice, and I enjoy those who give me free rein to handle the job without their input, I am still willing to work with any client despite the possibility of personal humiliation or insult. What matters is that clients feel successful working with my company and compensate me accordingly. In business, that is the true indicator of value.

Reiterating the question of the day: Who is better qualified to decide the marketing strategy, the marketer or the customer? From the point of view of experience, it would seem that the expert is more qualified. But, in light of changes in the economy that have thrown precedent out the window, perhaps the client has just as much validity as a marketing strategist, if he can accept that the expert has talents and insights that bring more value to the table than the client. he does it as a singular player. The best answer is both. The client intimately knows his own business and the behavior of his client while the marketer knows marketing (which is his business) and the behavior of the markets. Together, the client and the marketer create a formidable team. It is how well they play together that will determine their success.