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Conversations with Calliope- Authentic Lies

By Joseph Langen

(Wall sculpture- Santilanna Spain) (Wall sculpture- Santillana, Spain)
JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are things in the frozen north?
JOE: I'm making the best of it. I went cross country skiing yesterday. Fortunately, my brain isn't frozen.
CALLIOPE: Glad to hear it. What's rattling around there?
JOE: I keep thinking about what Seth Godin had to say about liars as marketing.
CALLIOPE: What are your current thoughts?
JOE: I think they are evolving. As I understood what him, he describes consumers as lying to themselves. Marketers do well when they resonate with consumers' lies.
CALLIOPE: How does that sit with you?
JOE: The word "lies" got my attention. But he also talks about being authentic in marketing. I am a little stuck with what looks to me like an oxymoron, authentic lying.
CALLIOPE: I see what you mean. Where are you going with it?
JOE: Toward the end of his book he admits he didn't quite mean lying. As I see it, people do have world views which they don't always put into words. I believe that people's world views are quite instrumental in shaping their response to marketing efforts and anything else which comes their way.
CALLIOPE: So where does that leave you?
JOE: I have come to realize that in order to be an effective in marketing my writing I need to understand the world views of my readers and how they relate to my writing.
CALLIOPE: Any specific thoughts on how to do this?
JOE: I'm still working on it. I'll tell you more tomorrow.

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