hypocritical : talking the talk without walking the walk

February 10, 2005

Do I know you?

The letter from the president, CEO, COO, VP of anything has really run its course, don’t you think? It has come to the point where I find it completely insulting. Insulting to my intelligence, and insulting for the nom de plume under whose guise it is distributed.

Does anyone honestly believe that the executive has even reviewed the letter, let alone worked on it? And better yet, why, in the name of all that is good, would an executive be spending their time blasting spamish emails to their users? You know what I would like to see an executive doing? Running the company. Devising strategy. Focusing on the business at hand. If they want to drop me a personal note, fine, but I'd be willing to take a phone call from pretty much any rock star CEO/President, wouldn't you?

Amazon, who I generally love, has managed to committ a doozy of one of these types of blunders.

Amazon decides to eliminate all of their sales opportunities on the front page for a letter from my friend Jeff. Now, why he decided to post his letter to me on the front of his site, I'll never know. While I feel honored that he wants to share his special program with me and me alone, I’m a tad concerned that he has removed all of the items I want to buy in order to tell me this.

And, then, imagine my utter dismay when I discover that Jeff's private letter to me appears on everyone's machine. Ack! I mean, I thought it was Amazon targeting, but then I looked from my friend's machine and it was there, too. My letter from Jeff for the whole world to see. Last time I checked it was still there. And here I sit, red-faced.

I realize I'm picking on Amazon when it happens millions of times a day from untold numbers of CEOs, VPs, and muckety-mucks, but I pick on them for one reason: these guys should know better. And the marketing department should know better. Do I think Jeff has an genuine interest in how his company is making my life better? I'm sure he does. Do I think Jeff has a deep concern for ensuring that I get the most efficient service out of Amazon? Yes, I'm sure he does.

Do I think that because of that concern he sat down to write me that letter? Do any of us? No, we do not. And that's why it has got to stop.

In fact, every time I get a new letter from one of the high up muckety mucks, I'll post it here. Just so you can see how well connected I am. Or how out of hand this has become. (If you've got a favorite, post it.)

Me? Give me a Manager or Director any day. At least I can still suspend my disbelief and convince myself that they actually reviewed the letter before it was sent.

I'd love to hear your feedback. And I hope you choose to return.

Sincerely,

Rick Turoczy
CEO and President, hypocritical

 

Do I know you?
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Rick Turoczy is hypocritical.

Sometimes I write hypocritical, a blog on marketing. Its purpose, beyond feeding my pure unadulterated hubris, is to provide yet another forum for yet another a) frustrated writer, b) misunderstood genius, c) marketing slob to critique concepts, capture thoughts, pose questions, and share ideas, in hopes of gaining a better understanding of the art of communication. While it is doubtful I will uncover anything new, perhaps I will provoke thought or provide the right sugarcoating to make an idea digestible or inspire you, gentle reader, to comment, critique, and return.

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