Greed, Folks, it’s a five letter word and worse than many of the four letter words we all say. Why? Because it will put you out of business quicker than anything else. This is especially true in the advertising industry. I have been in this business for over 30 years (yes, I started at age 12), and the biggest reason advertising agencies go out of business…they get greedy!

Listen I don’t do this for free, (hey, with my lifestyle I’m called “high maintenance” behind my back), but I have seen many agencies go out of business because they overcharged a client to such an extent it was shameful. Or they took the easy money client only to wonder when the gravy train will stop. Remember what Daddy said, “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” This has caused numerous bankruptcies in our little corner of New Hampshire over the years.

An okay client is one who does not mind if you make a few bucks. A great client is one that understands it’s okay for you to make a fair profit for your time and talent. Where the disconnect falls is when we as agency folks get that one opportunity to make a killing and don’t think it through.

Many years ago and at another advertising agency, we had a client that was just easy money every day and while I cautioned the owner of the agency that I thought we were being greedy by taking the money, he poo-pooed me. Well long story short, the client bounced a couple of quarter million dollar checks and now that agency principal is selling timeshares somewhere and I’m not. That situation scared me and I promised myself that I would never put my family or my staff in jeopardy because of greed. Hey, I’ll drop a client who does not believe it’s okay for me to make what I consider a fair profit. But the key word is fair. If we treat our clients fairly we build more relationships and they stick with us longer.

This has been one of my pet peeves (some folks say I have a bunch of them) for many years: legal products that the government and/or the do-gooders do not want you and me to know about.

First off, before you get all cranky with me, let me say I smoked cigarettes for over 30 years until my 6-year old daughter Alex, (I call her Alex but her real name is Alexandra the Perfect Child!) asked me to quit almost 11 years ago. So I did! The government and the do-gooders decided this is a product not to be advertised on radio and TV. Why you ask? Because of some misguided notion that the end of the world would happen if young people saw and heard the ads. Well guess what? They do see the ads in a number of different ways: magazines, billboards, newspapers, websites and many other places. But hey, don’t get me wrong, cigarettes are not good for you – BUT they are legal!

Now along comes Congressman Ed Markey of Massachusetts (where I think they have a monopoly on stupid ideas) and he thinks there is a link between obesity and the advertising practices of America’s junk food manufactures. Okay so junk food is not good for you…we get that part, but how come we forget that businesses should be allowed to advertise perfectly legal products? Hey, don’t tell me I can’t see ads for Twinkies!

I echo the sentiments of the Television Business Report™, an e-newsletter published by TVBR. The issue is not advertising. I have yet to see a 6-year old in the grocery store paying for this junk food…it’s the parents that are the problem. Much like TV, if parents took a bigger role in watching what kids eat, listen to and watch we would all be better off.

And my final example, Senator Edward Kennedy (see comment about Massachusetts above) has introduced legislation that would impose a two-year moratorium or longer on advertising for new medicines and would also require all prescription drug ads be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). That’s just great. Let’s find a great new drug that might cure some dreadful disease (pick one) but we can’t tell anybody about it for two years or more, and when we do we’ll have the government write the ads.

Again, it’s just my opinion. But legal products should have the right to be advertised.

Okay, by now – unless you have been under a rock – you know that Don Imus has been fired. Let me start by saying while I am no Don Imus, I have and continue to do a radio talk show (www.wsmnradio.com) every Wednesday. Since I am admittedly politically incorrect I have some idea about how all this happened.

Want to know my take? Well like it or not the Political Correct Police have jumped in Don’s life with a passion. Don did a very stupid and hurtful thing without a doubt. Should it have cost him his job because some folks with no courage and other folks with their own agenda wanted to make him an example? I don’t think so. Anybody besides me remember what Al Sharpton said about whites or what Jesse Jackson has said about Jews?

Hey it’s not just me. Several well-known African American columnist and talk show hosts like Larry Elder and Jason Whitlock have also noted that this is wrong headed. Jason Whitlock, a columnist for the Kansas City Star (www.KansasCity.com) put it this way. “Thank you Don Imus. You’ve given us (black people) an excuse to avoid our real problem…Instead of wasting time on irrelevant shock jock, black leaders need to be fighting a growing gangster culture.” Anybody else wonder what those young ladies from Rutgers might have on their iPods for music from the gansta genre? Hmm!

Well the joke is on all of you who wanted Don off the air. He’s gone! Soon to reappear like another famous shock jock, Howard Stern, on satellite radio where we will all have to pay to listen to his stupid stuff. Hey, Mel Karmazin was always a big supporter of him and Howard. Wonder how much Don will get to go where he can say any damn thing he wants?

For another take on this and citizen marketing, check out Drew’s Blog.

This was and is a classic case of political correctness run amuck and a true lack of courage by a lot of folks. As Jerry Della Femina (a much revered famous ad guy in NYC) said in his column, in The Independent newspaper of which he’s a part owner, “If you’re a phony this is your time to come out from under your rock.”

Well said, Jerry!