Is this the worst marketing tactic ever?

Technologies can track how long a customer will wait for a human to answer the phone and how many ads they will tolerate. Companies know what steps they must take to keep shoppers loyal—and which they can skip.

This knowledge has contributed to a decline in how customers are treated, say analysts, consultants and former executives. Artificial intelligence allows companies to analyze customer behavior, personalities and even the tone of their voices to determine what they will, and will not, tolerate when they call for support, The Wall Street Journal reports. The trend comes in the wake of last decade’s recession, when many firms took an ax to their customer service operations.

In my view, making a decision to intentionally anger customers to the breaking point is the most grotesque example of the mis-guided use of technology. This is exactly what I rail against in my book Marketing Rebellion: The Most Human Company Wins. It’s the worst marketing tactic ever and something every consumer and conscientious marketing professional should stand against.

This controversial topic is also the centerpiece of an all-new episode of The Marketing Companion podcast. It’s part of a very special discussion where Brooke Sellas and I talk about:

• The coming of age of TikTok, represented by a major new brand strategy aimed at their youth-oriented market.
• Artificial intelligence is now becoming mainstream in ad copy writing. A bank is getting a huge boost from bot-written ads over human-generated versions.
• I’m introducing special new bonus content from my new book LESSONS: Essays to Help You Embrace the Chaos. In between regular episodes of The Marketing Companion, I’ll be providing you with five free chapters from the audio book as well as a little background on why this material was special to me. I think you’ll love it!