Give them what they want.

For years, many people have falsely believed that advertising forces people to buy things they don't need or want.

It's never been the truth. The very best that advertising can do (or worst, depending on your perspective) is expose you to something you may not be aware of. But that final moment of truth where you let those greenbacks fall from your hand, well, that's entirely within your control. To suggest otherwise gives advertising too much power. And gives you too little.

When advertising is truly effective, it shines a light on a product that people want. There's an old marketing adage: "Nothing kills a bad product faster than good advertising." The product -- how it performs, the experience it delivers, the value it creates -- must be something that people will embrace, and if it's not, no amount of advertising can force them to embrace it.

So assuming you have a product that people want, how do you advertise it? With advertising people want.

But wait, you say, people don't want advertising. Again, not true.

People don't want bad advertising. They don't want dumb advertising. They don't want advertising that speaks down to them. They don't want advertising that tries to please everybody.

They do want advertising that speaks to them. Just like they want products that speak to them. They want advertising that helps them learn about or understand something that is relevant and meaningful to them -- be that a product, a service or an experience.

You see, advertising is not really any different than the products it promotes. When it is ill-conceived, poorly constructed, not useful or delivers a bad experience, it will fail.