Marketing ethics (and fart apps)

Above the Fold - Marketing and Laughs

Francis and Jeff react to 2 stories in the news and plunge into the crisp, blue waters of influencer marketing to attempt to make sense of it (for better or for worse). Surprisingly, the conversation covers the idea of ethics in the industry, and leads the boys down some interesting and surprisingly roads. 6:20 - Michael Arnstein is going to jail for trying to get his bad reviews off of Google, which leads to a conversation about reputation management. How much do bad reviews affect a website? Is there a way to claw back from a bad review? Jeff provides an answer thanks to a story about a bad experience he had buying a car and how he turned into "that guy" on yelp raving about poor customer service. 20:00 - A New York Times opinion piece by Kara Swisher lays the groundwork for a conversation about the prospect of a Chief Ethics Officer position for tech companies. Is this role needed? And what does it say about the tech industry that a role like this is even needed? Francis also talks about an app called iFart. Keeping it classy as always. 31:00 - What is influencer marketing and is there a place for it in a content marketing strategy? For Reebok, the prospect of it was enough to create an entire in-house team. There's a light and dark side to this, and Jeff and Francis explore the nuances of both. And the dark side is something the really grinds Jeff's gears.