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integrity – Maine Creative Services

Why online marketing gets harder and harder

Because marketers’ credibility keeps going lower and lower. Now a PR firm has agreed to settle charges it had its employees pretend to be unbiased videogame buyers and post gushing, rave reviews at Apple’s online iTunes store. When I read that, I felt like the French police inspector who was “shocked, shocked!” to discover gambling […]

How to Overcome Customer Cynicism

Sick of hype and hard sell? Good news. The Marketing Gurus seem to be catching on. Famed copywriter Clayton Makepeace just wrote an article that confirms what I (and others) have been saying for years: “Everything you think you know about attracting new customers and writing to existing customers is quickly becoming obsolete.” For example: […]

Deciphering auto dealers' promises

Ever wonder how your local car dealers can afford to make promises like these? “Zero-percent financing! Drive it away for just $189 a month! We’ll give you $4000 for your old car, even if you have to tow it in! And (my personal favorite) below-invoice prices!” Can dealers really afford to make such extravagant promises? […]

Hubris trips BLEEPING Blagojevich

It had to happen. Illinois’ vacant Senate seat is now up for bid on eBay — just as it was in Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s office. Of course, the bleeping bigmouth may be too bleeping busy to handle the transaction himself. As one of the funnier auction listings warns, “Please be advised I will be away […]

NY Times catches up to my blog;-)

A while back I blogged about the deceptive advertising practices by FreeCreditReport.com (sorry no link for bad boys). Today’s NY Times echoes my dismay. FCR, which is actually owned by the big credit reporting service Experian, claim to offer “free” credit reports, but they actually require enrollment in a $15/month paid service. “Consumer groups have […]