Truth: New Rules for Marketing in a Skeptical World

This refreshing yet flawed call to arms from a veteran business consultant and professor makes the case for integrity. "It is the business in which all marketers must now be engaged," argues Upshaw. Yet while his argument about the need for integrity in an age of information overload, corporate malfeasance and consumer cynicism rings true, his suggestions for assessing and improving corporate integrity fall flat. Upshaw draws decent lessons from the usual "masters of practical integrity," such as Patagonia and Herman Miller: be truthful, let great products speak for themselves, partner with customers and sell value rather than gimmicks. But he does not fulfill his promise to teach companies the practical, daily discipline of operating and marketing on the basis of truth. The middle sags under labored and commonsensical recommendations like "Promote Honestly, Not Just Legally" and "Be the One They Can Count On." Upshaw may also drive readers away with his "integritometer," a scorecard of integrity. Wouldn't the moral compass of any company that turns to such a device be suspect from the start? This would have been a terrific business article, but is greatly diminished by this book-length treatment. (June)