Stop Focusing on the Bad, Highlight the Good

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By: Dwayne W. Waite Jr.

You've all seen the headlines; "5 biggest blogging mistakes" or "top 3 biggest blunders young professionals make" and even today "biggest mistakes that even [insert professional blogs here] are making."

Spare us.

We understand that harping on the negative rather than the positive gets more attention. Yes, our society in general — and our industry in specific — is more worried about failure than looking for success. But is focusing on the bad way of doing things really beneficial?

We doubt it.

For several reasons. First, the one dishing out the advice and pointing out the failures of brands and people who are considerably more notable than they are could cause the reader to doubt the writer's credentials. So instead of the reader focusing on the "wisdom" of the writer, they may wonder why the writer jumped on a popular brand or shop the moment it did something wrong. Second, the advice or caveats the writer suggests could be inaccurate, therefore casting unnecessary attention on themselves. And finally, it is much easier to point out what went wrong rather than what went right. Pointing out the wrong pieces of a campaign shows a limited amount of knowledge. Talking about how a strategy or topic went right demonstrates the capability to analyze the situation, understand what the brand was going for, and how it used the internal and external elements to their advantage.

Plus, reading about positive stories is always more fun.

Who would read a blogger talk about "What the Old Spice Guy campaign missed"? Not many.

If we truly want to read and share best practices, let's talk about best practices; let's drop talk about mistakes.

Let's be honest; in this industry, we are bound to make more mistakes and missteps than successes. Let's keep the conversation positive.

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About the Author

Dwayne W. Waite Jr. is partner and principal at JDW: The Charlotte Agency, a marketing and advertising shop in Charlotte, NC. He enjoys consumer behavior, economics, and football.

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