Know-How Exchange : Advertising/PR

Are you considering this as a little "white lie"?
If so, forget it.
So who really cares if you spent money on a full page in the NYT?
Does it mean the NYT endorses you?
Of course not, and the public is not foolish either...

Personally, I'd go with more of a "satisfied customer testimonial" angle than 'as seen in'.

It humanizes you and your product and buys you more credibility. Just make sure they are actual customer quotes and not written quotes. Consumers can tell the difference.

often times, you will see these "as seen in" ads in trade show booths to show retailers that you are promoting sell-through. in that case, that it works. Other than that, if it is a editorial coverage, I wouldn't put anything other than just the article itself, compile those articles and present them to your customers, give them to your sales team to show out in the field.

It can help in giving credibility to your ad especially if your company is not very well known or you are marketing a new product that people have never seen. Some people will take comfort from the fact that there is also an ad for it in something that they do know - i.e. the well known publication. It also helps in linking your different avenues in marketing.

Good luck!

It might bring credibility, and it might work. But if these places aren't endorsing you, you are running on a very fine line.

I recently had someone working on a project with me tell me "it should be done now" and then later when I saw that the task wasn't completed and questioned it, I was told that "should be done" was very different than "was done" ...

Are you kidding me? Don't let the REAL semantics get crushed by the words you use.

I know this may seem dramatic, but are your customers going to remember this ad or are they going to remember what you did for them? Marketing yourself without the ethically challenged tricks can lead to a strong foundation that will not topple when the wind blows.

It just depends on your company's code of ethics. Ultimately, you're the one that has to deal with the consequences of your choices and actions. I encourange you to read my posts about ethics in my blog at jpoyer.wordpress.com -- I guess you can tell I feel pretty strongly about this. (who put that SOAP BOX in here anyway?!!!)

In the big picture? It's just an ad, but every choice shapes your company and who you are. Even the little ones.

It may be something that works for other people, but ethically, you're splitting hairs and your intention is to put your name in close proximity to these publications to gain credibility the wrong way.

Just my two cents, anyway.

Jennifer
XPRT Creative