The Lies South African Marketers Keep Telling You
They tell you “just be on every social platform”. They insist “SEO takes a full year”. They swear “trust the agency – we’ve got this”. You’re paying for buzzwords (my pet-peeve… if I hear ‘holistic’ or ‘Go To Market’ one more time…).
Anyway, if you’re marketing agency is telling you this. Your business is paying the cost.
Don’t get me wrong, I want to support other marketers, as I strongly believe in community over competition, but we have to make sure you’re getting some kind of value from the services you’re paying for.
The most common lies you’re hearing
“SEO always takes a year to show anything”
Yes long-term gains matter. But you should see traction sooner if the basics are right. Waiting 12 months and doing nothing else means you’re allowing losses. SEO is a slow burn, Any expert will tell you the same thing, but you should start seeing a difference in 3 months at the minimum. If things are being done often and well.
“You must be on every platform”
Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, X … just spread everywhere. Sound familiar? For many service and trade-businesses in South Africa that’s nonsense. Focus where your clients live.
“Full-service agency means you don’t need to worry”
You hired them to handle everything. What you often get: generic content, no clear strategy, you’ve lost control.
“Marketing is a cost centre, not revenue driver”
If your marketing can’t show real returns - enquiries, leads, conversions - you’re treating it like a necessary evil. It’s not.
“You’ll hit growth once you ‘just keep pushing’”
Hustle culture says more work = more success. Not true when your foundation is shaky.
Why these lies stick
They give comfort. They reduce the need for decision-making. They allow you to blame “the economy” or “the algorithm”.
But when you’re facing headwinds these myths cost you money, time, fatigue.
What you should believe instead
“Focus beats presence”
Choose the right channel. Own it. Dominate it. The rest can wait.
“Strategy first. Tactics second”
Stop doing what last year did. Ask: why are we here? What outcome? What are we stopping?
“You own your data, your brand, your voice”
If you’re outsourcing everything and you don’t see what they’re doing, you’re handing over power.
“Marketing must show evidence – early and often”
You must see signals. If you’re two or three months in with zero signal of improvement then it might be time to rethink.
“The long game includes pivoting”
Growth isn’t fixed. What worked earlier may stop working. Adapting does not mean failure. It means survival.
So, what does this mean?
Don’t let marketers tell you what you should do because they have a template. Demand relevance. Demand clarity. Demand results. Your business is too important for smoke and mirrors.
Ask clearly, don’t pretend to understand buzzwords that they may be using intentionally to confuse you (or, they just don’t realise that those out of the marketing industry aren’t in the know), get them to set goals you appreciate and hold them accountable when they aren’t met.
I’ll soon be posting a blog about why I feel so strongly about this, but I’ll pop some more positive blogs on here beforehand. I want you building your business - not drowning your sorrows!
Want tailored advice that doesn’t beat around the bush?
Hit me up:
📧 sez@sezdg.com
📲 WhatsApp: +27 67 601 0605
🌐 www.sezdg.com