We can't look away...

... so we might as well learn something.

Who said it best at the Florida Republican debate this week? Was it Ron Paul, who when asked about his opponents' investments, said, "That subject really doesn't interest me a whole lot"? Or Rick Santorum, stating that Newt Gingrich consulted with industry and Mitt Romney made a fortune. "Leave it alone. Focus on the issues"?

Whether you like Paul and Santorum or hold them in low esteem, they are right in this case.

The many instances during which Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich snarl and sneer at one another as the race heats up waste the public's time... but are also a good lesson for any business marketer. B2B marketers can typically assume that their prospects are reasonably intelligent at the least, very busy and probably stressed. B2B prospects tend to resent having their time wasted. (Does that sound like you and me as we follow the Republican hopefuls?)

Business marketers must recognize that shedding light, not heat, will best propel their agendas forward. The B2B equivalent of serious discussions about federal spending, tax reform and foreign policy is communication that responds to the very real concerns of constituents – such as facility managers contrasting retrofit opportunities with those of building anew and companies assessing how best to adhere to safety regulations while increasing manufacturing productivity. That's meaningful, similar to hearing the candidates go into detail about what types of economic reform will stimulate this still sluggish economy... and why.

Less productive in B2B marketing campaigns? Simply stating that you are better than the competition, relying on the ability to outspend the competition – or touting the features and benefits of your offerings without specifying exactly why your prospect will find them useful or superior to competitive offerings. (Okay, in fairness to 2012 presidential campaign politics, the men left standing in this primary do attempt to speak in substance, but their sniping – including Gingrich's increasingly strident insistence that Romney is a "liar" – tends to drown out the important discourse the public needs to hear.)

We'll be listening... not just to the primary but to the full presidential campaign, and (here at vSA) to our business clients, many of us hopeful that whatever the nation decides, in 2013 we'll be having a serious conversation about what needs to be done to keep the U.S. strong and smart... and then seeing serious action to make it happen.

After all the campaign marketing we've heard so far and will continue to hear, citizens (like customers) deserve to see promises kept. This is true in politics, and true in business. Every constituency is best served when we demand and deliver authentic communication about issues that matter... and then follow through on promises made.