Who’s Danny Iny and what’s the lie he tells?
Danny Iny is the co-founder of Firepole Marketing and the author of “Engagement from Scratch“. I respect his expertise, and he seems to be a very nice guy. But he does lie.
The lie he tells is that you will make more money with your business if you read Firepole Marketing blog, subscribe to their marketing course, and read his book. Is that a lie? Yes, of course it’s a lie. Studying marketing makes no difference to your business, no matter how much you read.
Unless you actually use the ideas you get from reading a blog or a marketing course, you’re stuck. The idea that reading his posts would do anything more than explain an idea, is a lie.
Does Danny Iny actually say it would do more than that? No, he doesn’t. But that’s the implication and the idea he sells. So, is he a liar? Yes, but not more than any other smart marketer.
Who am I and how do I lie?
My name is Peter Sandeen. I’m the founder and writer of Affect Selling and the author of “Premeditated Marketing“. I am also a liar.
Here’s the lie I tell. “Your company culture, which is the core source of business success, will improve by reading this blog. You’ll also get lots of referrals, enough to grow your business, with the ideas I share.”
There’s a true story behind my lie (as is behind Danny Iny’s lie). I share effective ways to improve company culture, motivation, and creativity at work. And you will learn how to craft focused marketing that will create sales and referrals for your business.
But again, if you don’t act on the ideas I share, your business will stay the same.
Is lying okay?
As Seth Godin explains in his book “All Marketers are Liars
It’s totally okay for a marketer to tell a story they believe. I believe your company culture will improve with my ideas. And I’m sure Danny Iny believes you will become a better marketer with his ideas. So, these “lies” are okay.
But you can’t market a product with a story you don’t believe yourself. That excludes factual errors and false promises. A straightforward lie isn’t okay, but a story that leads you to a conclusion, is the essence of marketing. And that conclusion is rarely the same as the facts, making it a lie that you tell yourself.
So, Danny Iny is a liar, but there’s no way he could realistically avoid it. He could say, “I write about my marketing ideas.” That would be factually most accurate, but that’s not a story worth telling.
How do you lie?
Lets say you sell cereals. Your product will compete with all other cereals, unless you tell a different story. You could use an exotic ingredient (soy, seaweed, etc.) to produce the cereals, and then tell a story about health, exotic flavors, individuality, and so on. As the customer you’d transform that story into a lie, “When I eat these cereals I will be healthy.” That’s a lie, the cereals won’t make you healthy. They’re just slightly less bad for your health than normal cereals.
Understanding the story you sell and how it transforms into a lie, is the most important key to effective marketing. The guide to Premeditated Marketing is based on that idea. If you don’t know exactly what your story is, how your prospects will interpret it, or how to frame it to be effective, check out the guide.
What’s your story? And what’s the lie your customers tell themselves? Please, share your story in the comments below.
PS. Danny Iny has a business partner, Peter Vogopoulos. They’ve founded Firepole Marketing together and they both write there. I only wrote about Danny Iny here because I’ve had more contact with him, and it would be awkward to always write “Danny Iny and Peter Vogopoulos”.
PPS. My first guest post at Firepole Marketing was published today.
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