You'll all know about Seth Godin's theories, even if you've never picked up his books. Permission Marketing was his key theory in Bubble 1.0, but he's hung onto the bucking bronko of marketing sooth saying with a series of very american other titles.
Today's FT sees a review of the latest, Meatball Sundae, reviewed by Alan Mitchell... an equally venerable Brit in the world of marketing commentary.
The thesis, as encapsulated by the title, is that you can't mix the old school comfort main course with the juicy tasty new excitements of 'new marketing'... you've gotta choose between either/or.
The meatballs course is the 'during advertising' phase, but there's exploration of 'before advertising' and 'after advertising'... but Mitchell complains that there's alot of excitable internet 'sky is falling in' stuff, without much practical action plan.
Mitchell: 'Does marketing demand an organisation that matches it? or do organisations demand marketing that matches their business model? Why aren't halfway houses between the new and the old possible? How are boring old meatball businesses supposed to make the leap to sundae selling?'
And, damingly: '[Godin] features on the frnot of the US edition in a chef's hat. Ultimately, though, the dish he serves up is more like a dog's dinner, with anything and everything thrown in, than a carefully considered recipe for successful change'.
Mitchell's FT review
Seth Godin's blog
What's on your plate for 2008?
Charlie Hoult
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