1917 was a very busy “news” year. It was also the year Forbes magazine began publishing. And what a year it must have been to fire up the press.
World War I was raging. The Romanov Dynasty in Russia came to a bloody end, suffrage took hold with women winning the right to vote in NY…
John D. Rockefeller became the world’s first billionaire, the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled over 30% by year’s end…
And the Spanish Flu was on the verge of rearing its ugly head, eventually killing off some 50 million people.
That was just some of what happened in 1917. It was one heck of a year to begin publishing news and business articles, right?
Now, Forbes is a very well-respected magazine. It was back then, and it is today. It’s been offering some fantastic business advice, covering world events, and making some great calls on the markets.
Like this one in May of 1929: “Stocks Too High”…
Five months later the market begins an 85% slide. It was a great call, and those who heeded the advice may have been among the lucky few.
But it’s also had its fair share of misadvised flops.
Like this one, in December of 1929: The magazine said “the worst is over for stocks” …
Then the market continued to tumble, and the Great Depression began.
Of course, nobody can get it right all the time, and the publication has admitted to its miscalls. It even wrote an article about them called “100 Years of Hits and Flops”.
It’s a fun read.
But enough about the past. We’re here to talk about today… to talk about marketing.
So, let’s get to it.
The magazine recently published an article titled, “Six Mistakes Most Marketers Don’t Know That They are Making.”
Did Forbes nail this one? Or was it a complete miscall?
Well, Forbes yet again hit on some great points…
But missed out on at least one very important mistake most marketers are making (and have been making for a while now).
Here’s a quick rundown of the article’s main points, and what Forbes got right:
A: Marketing isn’t easy.
B: Marketers are spending too much time and too much money on efforts that aren’t working.
C: Too many copywriters create content and ads that are written in the wrong language. I.e., they’re writing in a formal tone, rather than a friendly, familiar, and conversational tone. This may likely be because copywriters aren’t writing the copy… the marketers are.
D: Marketers are posting boring social content and are overbranding. Consumers don’t want to be constantly pitched, especially if they’re surfing the socials for a giggle or a wow.
E: Marketers aren’t physically networking anymore. The best media buys, the best connections and the best collaborations come face-to-face, in real life.
F: Marketers aren’t truly multi-channeling. Today’s marketers are sticking to one or two channels, and that’s about it. Perhaps they’re afraid of something new?
Now, these are all great and accurate points that Forbes makes. However, the article is missing out on one major mistake today’s “modern” marketers are making.
They’re not communicating with their copywriters; that is if they even have copywriters (which could explain some of the six mistakes above).
You see, copywriters and marketers, while seemingly twins on the surface, are completely different animals. Your marketers are social butterflies, and your copywriters are often “back room” hermits… typing away quietly all day.
Yes, both must do a ton of research, analyze a ton of data and be atop their game every day… but in the past ten years or so, the two “partners” have been through somewhat of a divorce.
They don’t communicate. And it’s a shame.
Good copywriters provide their marketers with an exact target audience and messaging… and good marketers provide their copywriters with precise data feedback on the target, the messaging and various channel performance.
But in recent years, the collaboration has broken down.
It’s why your company’s marketing department must, absolutely must, foster relationships with the copy team. Unless they’re working hand in hand, going over data, channel targeting and messaging together, your results will suffer. It’s practically guaranteed.
Now, the Forbes article on marketing is quite helpful, but should, in our expert opinion, include this glaring mistake today’s marketers are making…
And no, this mistake is probably not the fault of your copywriters.
It’s up to the social butterflies to assure proper communication. You see, just like networking, your marketers must “market” themselves to your writers to build a stronger relationship. A relationship that better guarantees success.
You should give the entire Forbes article a read, HERE. It’s worth your time.
Oh, and by the way…
If you go through the history of 1917, you’ll find it’s eerily similar to today. Let’s just hope it doesn’t end quite the same way.