What’s the worst marketing feedback you’ve ever received (or given)?

I was catching up with a marketing consultant friend, discussing our favorite client experiences over the years. We started sharing funny anecdotes about how business owners/principals provided feedback on our marketing plans and execution.

There are some lessons to be learned, as business owners may unknowingly provide destructive feedback that can negatively impact marketing team members as well as marketing results.

Here are 10 examples of that type of negative feedback and how you can avoid it:

1. I don’t like that color. Prioritize general appeal over personal preferences, and let your marketing team have some creative freedom.
2. It’s not in the budget. Marketing is an investment. Your team should be able to present the potential ROI and risk before you make a decision. It may be worth a test.
3. Let’s do a webinar on why you should buy from us. That’s a sales pitch. Keep your educational content educational, or buyers will stop paying attention.
4. Say that we offer innovative solutions. So does everyone else. Challenge your marketing team to identify what truly sets your business apart in the minds of buyers.
5. We need Facebook. Don’t dictate tactics. Define your goals first (we need 25 leads per week). Then, your marketing team can decide how best to achieve them.
6. Here’s what I want to say. While that’s an important starting point, marketing’s job is to convert that into what your audience wants to hear and will react to.
7. It just doesn’t work for me. That’s too vague. Give your marketing team more to work with, and remember that it’s for your target audience, not you.
8. Let’s do what our competitor XYZ is doing. Competitive research and knowledge are critical, but analyze strengths and weaknesses before you react.
9. We’ve been doing this for 2 weeks – where are the sales? I like the emphasis on results, but you must also be realistic. Your marketing team should set the expectations.
10. We missed our revenue targets. Fire the marketing team. It’s probably worth conducting more thorough research, starting with the product itself, and then marketing and sales efforts.

When giving feedback on a marketing deliverable like a plan, website, ad campaign, or blog article, start with the positives before constructive criticism. Your marketing team will appreciate the balance.