Tools
I have a lot of hand tools in my garage: hammers, saws, screwdrivers, pliers, etc. And I have a lot of power tools: table saw, saber saw, drills, sanders, router, and even a power paint sprayer. My computer is a tool in my vocation. In our home we have a dish washer, and washing machine and dryer, vacuum cleaner, brooms and mops… But here’s the thing: none of those tools does anything—until I pick one up and use it. There is no inherent value in any of my tools. They are no better or worse than my skill level. Marketing is a tool. It has no inherent value except in theory. In practice, it is no better or worse than the one who applies it. Sadly, an increasing number apply it in ways that are “worse.” In his 1957 classic, Hidden Persuaders , [1] Vance Packard exposed the manipulative and exploitive ways marketing was being used. Today, marketing has become intrusive and even invasive. But that’s not the tool’s fault! Stat...