Marketing for a Better Society

I’ll be honest, my thoughts on the marketing industry has always erred on the negative side. Though I have always appreciated and often been pleasantly surprised by the cleverness and creativity found in marketing (such as the ads found here: http://creativenerds.co.uk/inspiration/100-most-funny-and-creative-advertisement-designs/), I still felt a sense of deception. Often, an almost unrealistically positive image is projected of the product. It appeared, marketing was all about giving a one-sided view of things in an attempt to brainwash its audience into becoming one of its advocates. Once sucked in, the value of each consumer would be maximized and extracted, all in the interest of already wealthy shareholders.

As I began to look more into marketing though, I realized that marketing is not all bad.  For one, many organizations are using marketing to send us reminders of social or environmental responsibility. No, not everyone may agree with the message being sent, but at least it allows one to think critically. I found these sorts of ads particularly memorable as it really caused me to stop and reflect on my role as a global citizen. The world is far from perfect. What should or could I be doing to contribute?

With more of these reminders, perhaps we would be able to create a better society!