Like dark magicians, the ways of the marketing department are often intentionally shrouded in mystery and secrecy. 

We should know. We’re marketers. No, you can’t have the formula for more revenue. 

JK, we’ll tell you everything we know about it. Send us an email. Now, where were we? 

The aloof nature of marketing departments can prove particularly perplexing for CEOs and other business leaders, who want (and rightfully need) more visibility into how their departments are performing and succeeding (or failing). 

Our experience when talking to CEOs is that most of them have a general concept of what the marketing department is supposed to be doing (though this is often distorted from bad information from—yes—other marketers). But they’re hazy on what their actual marketing departments are doing, how they’re doing it, and the killer…whether it’s actually working and worth spending money on. 

Often CEOs are not only unsure of their marketing’s success, but harboring suspicions that the marketing department may not be being fully truthful with them. 

They all seem to think there are secrets the marketing department are not spilling. 

To which we slowly nod our heads and say, “Yes, CEO. You’re not wrong. There are things they’re not telling you.” 

And that’s how we got here – to this series of pieces called What Marketing’s Not Telling You. 

It’s time, once and for all, to get booted from the guild, and pull the curtain back so CEOs everywhere can actually hear the secrets being kept from them, and help their marketing departments work better. 

Without further ado, secret #1: 

No One Is Paying Attention

Look, before we throw the marketing department under the bus and run them over at top speed – here’s the thing: marketing departments often keep their secrets out of fear. Fear that they won’t produce enough leads, fear they won’t produce enough engagement, fear they won’t produce enough revenue, fear they won’t produce enough reasons to stay employed. Fear their employer won’t understand.

And many times, that fear starts because business owners aren’t sure what to expect or ask of their marketing departments. 

No matter what department you belong to, it’s hard to work in a haze. 

So that fear plays an integral part in why marketing departments won’t tell their CEOs the #1 kept secret of marketing departments: 

No one is paying attention. 

And we mean no one. CEOs (and even some marketing managers) are convinced that their potential customer is laser-focused on their brand, scrutinizing every post, graphic, website, blog, newsletter, etc. with the most magnified of magnifying glasses. Double bifocals. The James Webb Space Telescope.

They believe more customers, rather than less, are paying attention. And it behooves marketing departments with lackluster management or performance to fuel this myth. It allows marketing to focus on “look at me” activities rather than outcomes. “Look at me” activities tend to feed the fantasy of marketing, rather than the reality. But fantasies often make budgets.

But unless your brand is truly a pattern disruptor in its field – in terms of brand, product, design, content, and more…then no. No one is paying attention, friend. 

You can chop that up to any number of reasons: 

• Oversaturated market

• Oversaturated ad exposure

• Lackluster content

• Undifferentiated brand and branding

• Mass media creation and consumption

• Ever-expanding (and rotting) digital landscape.

• The amount of content on the internet doubles every year. There just simply aren’t enough eyes with enough hours to pay attention to what your brand is saying about itself.

Regardless of the reason, the results are impactful.

• Attention spans dropped from 12 seconds to 8.5 seconds from 2000 to 2015 and down to 8 seconds by 2022

• The average person picks up their phone 1500 times a week

• The average page visit lasts no more than 20 seconds

• The average user reads between 20-30% of the words on your site or post

One of the results of these factors on late-stage digital marketing (and the departments that make it) is desperate secret-keeping. Another is shouting. Lots and lots of marketing departments shouting in ads, on social media, in email inboxes, louder and louder, trying to keep their open rates and likes up. 

But is it possible that this truth – that no one is paying attention – might be MORE than just bad news? Might there be something here that actually liberates CEOs and their Marketing Teams to do better work? 

We think the answer is yes. But how? 

Playing For Keeps

“No One Is Paying Attention” is the best news for a marketing department whose CEO is finally understanding the power of marketing is not in attention, but engagement. 

Marketing serves the customer, not the brand. 

When a brand clamors for the attention of a customer, they become just one more voice in a cacophony of other voices and distractions, demanding the customer’s eyeballs and earholes. Many marketers and CEOs believe this is the only way for marketing to be successful, but such is not the case.

When the brand leverages their marketing to put attention on the customer, the customer feels immediately seen and catered to, endearing them to a brand that would rather dote on them, than on themselves. 

The brand gains a community, instead of a mere follower or fan. 

This shift is monumental when it comes to marketing departments. Gone are the perverse incentives that usually accompany marketing: 

• Short-term sales boosts

• Trying to scream over the top of competitors

• Attention seeking

• Justifying one’s own existence

• Caring only about a customer’s wallets

To be clear, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to earn more revenue or wanting to stand out in a crowd. What’s harmful to your brand, is using the tiniest bit of attention you get to serve the brand, rather than the customer. Plus, the modern-day consumer is incredibly savvy. They rarely fall for a trick twice. And few things hurt less than being used.

At its core, marketing doesn’t address business issues – it addresses human desires. And one of the strongest human desires is to be seen and wanted. 

Marketing steps into that gap and says, 

“We see you. We like you. We thought of you. We made this for you. When you want it, and more like it, here’s where to find it. We’ll be here for you.” 

Kind of like this piece you’re reading. 

We wrote it because we believe deeply in your ability to create better marketing, that centers a customer you love, and sets aside the attention for intention, the self-promotion for devotion. 

It’s why we MADE this. For you. 

It’s why we think you’re worth investing in. 

It’s why your customer will love you.

It’s why your marketing department doesn’t need to keep secrets from you anymore.

No one is paying attention. 

YOU pay attention to them. 

And make sure your marketing does the same. 

You know where to find us.