Obstructive marketing. (preventing product marketing)

Introduction

The world of business publishing is dominated by books on "how to." Very little shelf space is given to "how to stop." This is reflected in the real world too: large departments are devoted to marketing products and services in a global trading system controlled by corporations. Because business is essentially optimistic (you have to be optimistic to survive) little effort and concentration goes into the other side of the coin: how companies are prevented from marketing their products. The prevention of companies marketing their goods and services is what "obstructive marketing" is all about.

There is a difference in style and effect in the approaches to "obstructive marketing." This can be summarized as a difference between idealism and pragmatism.

Under the idealism scenario come such factors as politics and religion. In many instances the drivers behind politics and corporations are diametrically opposed. This leads to a clash of ideology. Although this may be interpreted as "obstructive marketing" in a strict sense there is not necessarily a desire to cripple or destroy the corporation. The same can be said for religion (and cultural/social mores) where for purely spiritual reasons products or services may be unwelcome without some modification.

The same cannot be said for either product deprecation or product contamination: these approaches lack subtlety and are blatantly hostile to both product and manufacturer. In between these extremes are a variety of other approaches. Product copying and pirating is a process that has gone on for thousands of years; and will not be stopped by modem law or by the mediocre resources societies make available to stop such activities.

Employee dissatisfaction can take many forms; and if not handled correctly will almost always result in actual harm to the product or damage to an image. In an increasingly sophisticated marketing environment there are other discreet ways in which barriers can be put in the way of product marketing. Fraud is a good example; and this would include computer hackers and probably computer viruses. (Discreet it is, some former UK train robbers were put behind bars again for changing tracks toward this safer quieter and more rewarding profession.) Technical relations such as Hester-Prynne and Modified Vendetta Sanctions are better planned and more complicated techniques: therefore more …