As marketers, we’re tasked with communicating value in as little as 140 characters or in documents that can range in the hundreds of pages. Marketing is sometimes art and sometimes science and often both. So, is it easier to market a pet rock or a hard drive?

As marketers, we’re tasked with communicating value in as little as 140 characters or in documents that can range in the hundreds of pages. Marketing is sometimes art and sometimes science and often both. So, is it easier to market a pet rock or a hard drive?

Effectively communicating the value of a product through all the channels that touch the consumer is definitely art while describing return policies and functional uses is science, yet as marketers we must consider all these components in our strategy. Manufacturers have shied away from making it easy on consumers to touch and test a product before purchase, favoring cheaper parts that are meant for disposable and not repair. By the time a consumer is able to extract an item from the plastic packaging, stores consider the item opened and restocking fees apply. In addition, consumers often have fourteen days or less to determine their happiness with the purchase. No matter how effective marketing is at communicating value, customer satisfaction and service seem at odds with the buying process.

Consumers don’t want complication and hassles. They want simplicity and satisfaction. They want to understand the purchase decision in 140 characters at times with access to more detailed information at other times. Our jobs as marketers are harder when a consumer can see the product through clear packing but not easily touch it. Marketing a pet rock is much easier than marketing a hard drive because it evokes an ethereal connection and a pet rock is more easily recycled! Let’s return to those days when consumers could sample products conveniently and marketers could wow them by explaining cool features.