The Marketing of Guilt

I recently watched The Sex and The City Movie and in it a pregnant Charlotte confides to Carrie that she is afraid her life is too perfect.....that something is going to happen to ruin it. She is afraid she will lose her child because she finally has it all. She can't believe that she can be happy.....that everything is finally positive in her life. Those thoughts resonate with me because I also believe the same thing. When things are going really well in my life, I sometimes feel guilty about enjoying it to the fullest because I am too busy waiting for disaster to strike. Some might say I am jaded, but when it happens time and time again to you it becomes harder to enjoy the perfect times.....knowing that just around the corner you are going to get hit by a Mack Truck.

Here are my reasons:
Got married and then I lost my MomMom who lived with me growing up and was like a second Mom to me.
Had my first child and my husband's Father past away. He also almost lost his Mom three months later. He still says to this day he doesn't remember the first year of our son's life.
Had my daughter and a week later my Mom had a Grand Mal Seizure and almost died.
My list goes on and on.....but I am sure I made my point.

From the business side, marketers also love to pile on the guilt when it comes to selling products or lifestyles. They use guilt to sell you sunblock (skin cancer), diet products (you don't want to be fat) and even vacations(you are not spending enough time with your family). I can't remember the last time I got through a day where I wasn't made to feel guilty about something in my life. Perhaps it started with the religion I was raised with. I remember being guilty of committing a sin, guilty of not going to confession enough, or guilty because I didn't finish the rosary as penance. The guilt continued to grow as I entered adulthood. Now I think my guilt is so internalized that it becomes more difficult to figure out if I am living my life to make everyone else happy or if I should be following a different path.


There are companies that are using guilt to market in a different way. One example of a company using "Guilt Marketing for the Good of the Consumer" that I found on Dan's Bullets Blog (Dan Henderson) is Esser Vineyards.

"Manfred Esser launched his own wine label. Esser Vineyards is now one of California's newest hot contenders, despite competition with, as Esser puts it, "about 80,000 different competitors." How does he do it? Esser calls it "guilt marketing."
"You treat your customers soooo well, that you create a sense of obligation for them to come back for more. And, even more than that, to become ambassadors for your company. They actually feel guilty if they forget about you."
He's not recommending tricks or or cleverness or high-pressure selling and hard closing. He's recommending a quality product and treating your customers like Kings and Queens. Make them feel special. Let them know you really care about them for even the smallest purchase.
It's rapport building and relationship building. And it works".

I agree with essence of Esser's marketing philosophy because I can't even escape guilt when purchasing products or services. I have my favorite brands that I have developed an emotional attachment with whether Disney, Adidas, and Victoria Secret. If I just happen to purchase a competitor I feel a small tinge of guilt. I guess those companies have wooed me enough that I feel like I am "cheating" on them by purchasing elsewhere.

Esser's style of guilt marketing works well in personal relationships too. I feel that if you treat your friends and family the same way......with dedication, sincerity, and love they will never forget you too!! As for dealing with guilt.....I hope that with age comes less of it.