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I used to hype up threat stats without thinking, but a convo changed my mind | Cybersecurity Marketing - Babble Community

derek_bailey84•8mo ago

I used to hype up threat stats without thinking, but a convo changed my mind

Our team always pushed marketing content with crazy high numbers on data breaches and attacks, thinking it made our security tools look essential. I believed bigger stats meant more clicks and leads, no big deal. Then, at a meetup, I chatted with a school IT guy who said our ads made his admin team freak out over risks that didn't even apply to them. They wasted budget on stuff they didn't need, just because we made everything sound urgent and scary. That talk showed me how our hype was causing real stress and bad buys for folks who couldn't sort through the noise. Now, I focus on clear, honest info about actual threats for different audiences. It's slower for leads, but feels way better and builds real trust. Marketing shouldn't trick people into buying fear.

4 comments

4 Comments

kellyjones8mo ago

Marketing teams really out here convincing small businesses they need cyber command centers for basic stuff. Your friend's bakery story is peak that, buying a fancy network monitor instead of just updating their POS. It's like they're selling fear as a product, and people end up with expensive paperweights. Glad you're calling it out, lol.

phoenix_grant348mo ago

Yeah, the "wasted budget on stuff they didn't need" part hits home. My friend who runs a small bakery got spooked by all those alarmist ads and bought a super expensive network monitor. Turns out she just needed to update her point-of-sale software and use better passwords. She was pretty annoyed when she realized she'd been sold a solution for a problem she didn't really have.

west.uma8mo ago

Ugh, classic overbuy instead of fixing the simple stuff.

xenaf514mo ago

My buddy @phoenix_grant34 just reminded me of this exact thing. I used to work at a place that pushed threat stats hard, and we had a client who bought a whole security suite after seeing one of our scary infographics. Later, I found out they just needed to patch their outdated server and turn on two-factor authentication. The owner was pissed when he realized we scared him into spending thousands on stuff that didn't fix his real problem. After that, I started cutting the hype and just saying "here's what actually matters for your setup." It slowed down our lead count at first, but clients stopped calling back with buyer's remorse, and that was worth it.