Marketing Nitwit: John Kerry

I try to stay on-topic with this blog. And politics isn't something I discuss with much of anyone, as I am mostly ambivalent. But I need to pick on John Kerry. Bush can sound arrogant, but Kerry sounded like he was circling another planet yesterday in an interview on NPR.

An interview is supposed to be a conversation. The interviewee needs to sound like he is being thoughtful. The message should fit the audience. The questions should get answered, not diverted. Specifics should given. John did none of these things and instead talked like he was giving a stump-speech. He got his message out, but what message was he really sending?

It completely ruined any interest I had in him. If he can't listen to Bob Siegel, or realize that he isn't being heard by millions who would never go hear him in person, how can I trust him as a leader?

Is the lesson clear enough, marketers? You need to match your message for the situation and the audience. Copy from your print catalog isn't going to work on your website. The words your advertisement says are not the ones your salesperson should say. And most importantly: most decisions are not driven by logic.