We just had an ugly situation at We Know Words with a client refusing to pay. The VP of Marketing brought us in to help clarify a very jumbled marketing message, then went on permanent medical leave. The executive team at the company decided the marketing message didn’t need any clarifying and refused to pay for work done.

Beyond the obvious David and Goliath tale going on here (big, well-funded startup refusing to pay the small business) is the sad story of how misunderstood marketing communications can be. Here’s a fast-growing startup revolutionizing an industry with a completely new way to do a taken-for-granted task. (I’d be more detailed, but part of the negotiations I had to go through for partial payment included signing a release stating I wouldn’t say anything disparaging about the company. Yep. Sucks.) Problem is, when you’re that new and different, you really have to figure out a simple way to get people to stop and notice you.

This company’s messaging is all over the place on their Web site. They lack one over-arching marketing message, they overwhelm with dozens of benefits, they aren’t addressing pain points directly, they are replicating information in different places making for a cluttered and confusing Web site, other compelling information is missing…in short, the VP of Marketing was right on when she brought us in to help straighten it all out. They didn’t need new messaging written, they just need the messaging they do have straightened out and structured.

Problem is, those execs not in marketing can’t see that. All they see is they are saying everything they want to say, ignoring that the way they are saying it is ineffective.

What do I preach? Talk to your customer, not at them. The way this company is going about their marketing is like asking the customer to stand in a downpour sans umbrella as all the different and varied marketing messages rain down on them. (Yes, it’s pouring in Seattle today, hence the analogy.)

This company will probably succeed simply because they are well-funded and well-connected. But they could make their job and their success easier if they just understood marketing as well as they understand numbers. (And maybe their ethics could use some improvement too…)