Marketing is about storytelling, and stories are powerful. They can inspire, educate, and connect. But there’s a darker side to this power—when stories are designed not to reveal the truth, but to obscure it.
Dishonesty in marketing isn’t just unethical, though. It’s a missed opportunity to build trust and foster meaningful connections with your audience. It’s a failure on multiple fronts.
I’ve seen this firsthand. Two clients come to mind. While I won’t name them, their stories should serve as warnings that businesses do choose to distort, dismiss, or deny the truth.
When Marketing Crosses Legal Lines
The first client was a marketer for SARMs—selective androgen receptor modulators. If you’re not familiar, SARMs are experimental pharmaceuticals often marketed as a safer alternative to steroids. The problem? Selling SARMs is illegal, and they’re far from being harmless “supplements.”
Don’t take my word for it, though. Check out what the FDA has to say about it.
This client’s strategy was to gloss over the experimental nature of SARMs, framing them as just another health supplement. Something safe and innocuous that delivered positive results.
It wasn’t just a stretch of the truth, either. It was a blatant misrepresentation, designed to lure in customers without disclosing the risks.
This kind of dishonest marketing isn’t just unethical. It’s downright dangerous. It’s also a good sign that the business owner doesn’t actually care about their customers (or their impact on society, so long as they get their money). I think we’ve all known at least one person who said something along the lines of, “So what? I got mine.”
Customers deserve to know the full story, especially when their health is on the line. Not disclosing the truth isn’t just bad business. It erodes trust, and once gone, it’s nearly impossible to get it back.
Brushing E-Waste Under the Rug
The second client was a circuit board manufacturer, proud of their product’s quality and innovation. But when it came to the environmental impact of their work, particularly the problem of e-waste, they clammed up. They refused to discuss it in any way, shape, or form.
E-waste is a growing crisis. Check out what the National Institutes of Health has to say about it, or Earth.org’s explanation.
Electronics often end up in landfills, leaching harmful chemicals into the environment. Circuit boards are a major contributor to that. But when I suggested we address this issue head-on—discussing how the company mitigated its impact or what steps they were taking toward sustainability—they balked. They didn’t want to risk highlighting a “negative” aspect of their industry.
What they didn’t see was the opportunity they were missing. Customers value transparency. Acknowledging the challenges of e-waste, and showing a commitment to solutions, could have been a powerful story, one that built trust and strengthened their brand.
The Real Cost of Dishonesty
Dishonesty in marketing comes in many forms. Sometimes it’s outright false claims, like framing experimental drugs as safe supplements. Other times, it’s an omission, like ignoring the environmental consequences of your product. Both approaches might offer short-term gains, but the long-term costs—lost trust, a damaged reputation, and a lack of ethical accountability—are far higher.
Customers aren’t just buying products or services. They’re buying into your story, your values, and your commitment to doing the right thing. When you’re dishonest, you break that unspoken contract. And because customers have endless options today, they’ll choose to spend their money with brands they can believe in.
Accountability: A Better Way Forward
The alternative to dishonest marketing isn’t just “not lying.” It’s about actively taking responsibility. It’s about addressing the hard truths and uncomfortable realities of your industry, and then doing something about them.
If you’re in a field that raises ethical questions, you have two choices. You can sweep those issues under the rug, hoping no one notices. Or you can face them head-on, show what actions you’re taking to improve the situation, and invite your customers to join you on that journey.
For the circuit board manufacturer, this could have meant discussing their efforts to recycle materials or partnering with e-waste initiatives. For the SARMs marketer, it might have meant acknowledging the legal and safety concerns and evolving to sell legal, research-backed health products instead. Drastic? Yes. Warranted? Also yes.
This kind of accountability doesn’t weaken your brand; it strengthens it. It shows your customers that you’re not just in it for the profit, you care about the bigger picture.
Turning Accountability into Storytelling
Once you’ve taken action, the next step is to tell that story. Ethical storytelling isn’t about glossing over the challenges. It’s about showing your audience who you are, what you stand for, and what you’re doing to make a difference.
Customers don’t expect perfection. They expect effort. They want to see that you’re trying, even if you haven’t figured it all out yet. When you’re transparent about your struggles and honest about your progress, you create a connection that no amount of double-speak can replicate.
A Call to Business Owners
If you’re a business owner, here’s the challenge: Look at your marketing. Ask yourself some tough questions:
- Are you telling the whole story or just the parts that make you look good? Are you willing to admit where you fall short?
- Are you addressing the hard questions, or are you hoping no one will ask? Are you hiding behind positive PR campaigns and hoping no one looks too deeply?
Being honest and accountable isn’t always easy. It means admitting mistakes, facing criticism, and doing the work to improve. But it’s also the foundation of trust, and trust is the most valuable asset any brand can have.
Let’s stop hiding behind half-truths and omissions. Let’s start telling stories that matter—stories that inspire, connect, and build relationships that last. That’s a win-win for everyone, your customers, your business, and the world we all share.