Why marketers are now in the Era of Unintended Consequences

The people of the world have been whacked out by the fear, grief, and upheaval of a pandemic. Some of the consequences are obvious. We’ve learned new ways to work, shop, learn, connect, date, work out, and entertain ourselves, to name a few. But perhaps our marketing future will be determined by unintended consequences we can’t fathom at the moment.

It is going to take a long time to sort out what goes back to normal and what new norms transcend the pandemic. I’d like to want to share a weird little story that illustrates a much more subtle, and perhaps profoundly more important, business consideration as we emerge from our suffering. It starts with a playful child.

A story of unintended consequences

As pandemic restrictions thawed, my wife and I decided to attend a socially-distanced church event. We were happy to see old friends — behind their masks, of course!

We stood in the sunshine talking to a young couple with a two-year-old toddler. We were close to this family and delighted in seeing how much this little girl had grown since we last saw her.

While the adults chatted, the little girl toodled over to a grassy patch, pulled up some leaves, walked over to me, and deposited them on my shoes. She repeated this…