The right not to be talked to

I think it was perhaps last week's edition of CBS's 60 minutes that covered a story about Denmark being the happiest country on the planet. In what I am certain was a dramatic over-simplification of the matter, the report juxtaposed a collection of rather sombre looking Danes against research suggesting they're the happiest people on earth, and surmised that it was as a result of low-expectations that Danes find themselves so happy - on the inside, at least.

As the report continued, it struck upon an interesing chord. It explained how Danish culture has developed to include a collection of non-verbal cues that allow Danes to navigate public situations without having to speak. The example used spoke of a person rattling his or her shoulder bag on the bus as a way of saying "This is my stop. I need to get off the bus now. Please get out of my way." Expounding further, the reporter suggested that this was part of Danish tradition... that we all have a right not to be talked to.

As a marketer, that last bit really hit home. The right not to be talked to. How would our business change if we actually believed this and lived this way?

It seems that our industry has evolved in many ways to say that it's alright to interrupt people, provided you're creative / entertaining in how you do it. I think that Web 2.0 is beginning to open up the opportunity for marketers to begin to practice their craft in a new and different way. It is giving us the opportunity to guide companies into active participation in communities such that it diminishes our 'need' to interrupt and enhances our 'requirement' to simply be of service.

It may be a long way from accepting a universal right not to be talked to, but it's a start.

Comments

[Mark Dykeman]

It would be interesting to understand how Danish marketing and advertising work, if there are such things. Do Danes research everything themselves, do they have trusted sources of information, or do they get information by mass media?

[cpirie]

Good question. Without actually knowing the answer, my guess is that this 'tradition' likely tends to govern interpersonal relations rather than consumer-to-brand interactions. That said, the attitude probably comes through in other ways... for instance, they're likely less tolerant of out-of-home ad placements, etc. within their cities than we are in North America.

[Frank Ricketts]

Interesting discussion, which naturally leads to a larger one. For international marketers the problem of cultural differences presents unique barriers. In this article -
http://www.limbistraine.com/ro/cercetare/Gabriela-Sauciuc/1.Introduction-to-cross-cultural-advertising-research.html

the question is posed: "One of the main issues in international marketing and advertising is whether consumers from different countries will become more and more alike or whether the differences will remain stable or even will grow more."

Will Web 2.0 make lead us to sameness or will it foster an understanding of our uniqueness? For marketers it is an important issue.

As for whether Danes would stand for interruptive advertising, a Danish firm introduced 'buggies' in 2002. They will supply parents of newborns with high quality carriges in exchange for allowing them to put ad messages on the carriages. Not sure how the babies feel about this - they may need a New York agent.