In August I wrote about a new book, "Truth: The New Rules for Marketing in a Skeptical World," that took a brutally honest and vital view of the importance of integrity and honesty in marketing. Lynn Upshaw’s book makes it clear that truth can be a powerful differentiator for brands, but too many companies (and other communicators) play fast and loose with this essential asset.

Nowhere is Lynn’s thesis more evident — and seemingly more ignored – then on the web. The fact is that Internet marketing is some of the most ethically challenged in the business — perhaps in the history of marketing. And it does not seem to be getting any better anytime soon. This growing issue was brought into brilliant focus for me once again this week after reading the big news about Facebook’s much ballyhooed new ad system (most of the ballyhooing was being done by Facebook, but some hangers on and assorted marketers also joined in the love fest).

Facebook announced three new products and/or platforms with which the fast growing social networking site hopes to take on Google as the leading web ad guru/facilitator. On first blush, the few Facebook Ads seemed to be pretty clever, offering advertisers what could be an effective new way to engage online consumers in a less commercial, more relevant way (of course, the devil is in the details, which are still pretty sketchy). Of the three Facebook Ads solutions, the stand-out new offering was Facebook Beacon, which allows users to endorse a brand and then recommend it through online feeds to their circle of Facebook "friends." This ad solution purports to bring viral, word of mouth marketing to social networks. True word of mouth has always been viewed as the Holy Grail of advertising, so Facebook seemed to be on the right track here.

But, one of the "devil’s details" about this new online ad system has already been identified by Erick Schonfeld of www.techcrunch.com and Henry Blodget of the great new site www.alleyinsider.com. Unlike some other cheerleaders, both of these smart web observers kept their powders substantially dry regarding Facebook Ads. For example, they noticed, as did I, that this word of mouth referral aspect of the Facebook Beacon solution could end up killing (or at least wounding) the goose that has been laying the golden Facebook egg. The fact is, friends may not want to be barraged with supposedly sincere brand endorsements from their other Facebook friends. And, they might rebel at the prospect of yet another web entity finding clever new ways to spam them. Yes, I said spam them, because that is how these "endorsements" might well be viewed by many Facebookers.

If you think I am exaggerating the potential negative effects of this new Facebook ad program, check out this piece on the Huffington Post site: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/nick-antosca/facebookcom-increasingl_b_71928.html

Which brings me full circle to my point and the title of this post (the "Spider’s ’Web’ of Opt-Out Marketing"). Too many web marketers have literally polluted our business and profession by using tried and true opt-out web and email marketing techniques that are increasingly causing a backlash with consumers. And, in a way, I can see Facebook’s new ad program inadvertently doing the same thing. It brings an unwanted and unexpected commercial dimension into the middle of what social networkers thought was pure communications (networking) within one’s circle — their social graph. At least on TV or in print, you mostly know where the advertising is. And you can choose to totally ignore it, or, if it’s well done, engaging, informative and entertaining, enjoy it for what it is: advertising.

With Facebook’s new ad system, the commercial pitch is hidden inside a friend’s/contact’s comments. It reminds me of those buzz marketing agencies who claim that they "always" have their "buzz agents" disclose to their circles that they are in fact working for the products/brands that they are buzzing about. My consistent response to that is: Yeah right!!! Sure you are disclosing. If all buzz agents disclosed who they were really shilling for, their buzz recommendation/referral would have zero impact. The whole power of "true" word of mouth marketing is that it is sincere, unpaid for, unprompted. In other words, truthful.

But, I digress. The opt-out tactics that literally "trick" consumers/users into receiving online messages, or worse, purchasing products they may not want or need, are poison to the entire web and its marketing. Some recent examples of this cancer in web marketing, include:

• The discount domain registration site that automatically signs you up to have your domain names renew a year later, and your credit card charged, unless you go through an arduous, and incredibly complicated process to opt-out of the automatic renewal. All the discount domain companies do this. Network Solutions does not, which is probably why they charge so much more for their domains. I would actually willingly pay more for the domain not to have to deal with the nearly impossible opt-out renewal process.
• The ringtone companies that snare consumers looking for a particular ringtone by asking for your cell number and then catching you in a $9.99 month "all the ringtones you can download" deal. And all you wanted was just that one ringtone of a really cool song that you love. Of course, you would have noticed the monthly amount if you had read through the 15-page, single spaced terms and conditions document that you have to click on prior to transacting. But, many of us have been trained not to read those terms because in many cases they are just legal language. But, increasingly, these terms documents hide commercial land-mines that come back to blow up your face — and cost you money, every month.
• The online dating companies that automatically renew subscriptions (they ALL do this). As such, you have to be sure to cancel (opt-out) your subscription before it runs out, or it will be automatically renewed for the number of months that you subscribed for in the first place (and if that was six months…you’re charged for another six!). This is consistently one of the biggest complaints of online dating site users (after people who misrepresent themselves in their profiles…you know, I’m slender, a Stanford MBA, six feet tall, rich and a good listener).
• The "unsubscribe" buttons that actually don’t work (what they really do is validate for the spammer/scammer that your email address is live).

It’s no wonder then that a growing group of consumers is saying "enough!" to these questionable online marketing tactics and the serious privacy and security concerns that are tied up with them. Marketers who take these consumer concerns lightly do so at the peril of their brands and business reputations. 

As Lynn Upshaw points out in his book, truth, transparency and honesty are very powerful attributes and values for a brand. Marketers that choose to flaunt these brand attributes can end up losing the support and admiration that make a brand successful (and profitable) over time. The short term thinking that drives the opt-out strategies of so many web marketers will ultimately have a deadly effect on their brands, sites, products, services, etc. Consumers are not dumb (at least not forever.) They learn surprisingly quickly. And eventually they vote with their feet and go elsewhere. And remember, negative word of mouth is much stronger, and travels much more quickly, than the positive kind.

Facebook is a bright and shining beacon of the new web 2.0. It is very hot right now, and mostly everyone loves it. But, that good will could dissipate surprisingly quickly if Facebook does not tread very carefully as it starts to monetize its growing community and brand power. Indeed, if Facebook is not extremely careful, its Beacon ad program could end up looking like a spent light bulb dangling over a diminished Facebook brand.

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