The Marketing Industry Is at a Crossroads—

You can feel it in the way companies operate.

You can hear it in the frustrated people's voices.

Rising prices

Deceptive fees

Layoffs that make no sense

There’s a growing feeling that businesses are squeezing every last dollar out of consumers while giving less in return.

And here’s the truth: they are.

But what’s worse?

They’re about to get away with even more.

The corporations driving these practices aren’t just counting on consumer apathy; they’re actively dismantling the institutions that keep them in check.

Two of the most significant regulators standing between businesses and unchecked corporate greed are the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which are under attack.

If the CFPB is dissolved, corporations won’t just be free to raise prices and exploit consumers; they’ll be able to do it without breaking a single law.

And if the FTC is weakened, no one will be left to stop monopolies from tightening their economic grip.

This isn’t just a political shift. It’s a corporate power grab. And most people won’t see the consequences until it’s too late.

What Happens If the CFPB Disappears?

The CFPB was created after the 2008 financial crisis to prevent banks and lenders from exploiting consumers. It was a direct response to a system that had become too reckless, predatory, and powerful.

The CFPB forces banks and lenders to:

• Disclose hidden fees and unfair loan terms

• Stop misleading marketing for financial products

• Limit abusive overdraft fees and credit card penalties

• Hold major institutions accountable for fraud and deception

It has issued billions in refunds and penalties, forcing companies like Wells Fargo, JPMorgan, and Bank of America to pay for misconduct.

If it’s eliminated, that accountability vanishes overnight.

• Expect higher overdraft charges, credit card penalties, and hidden fees.

• Lenders will have free rein to offer deceptive loans that trap people in endless debt cycles.

• Errors in credit and background checks will skyrocket, making it harder for people to rent homes, get jobs, or access fair loan rates.

• Consumer complaints will go unanswered because no agency will investigate claims or issue refunds.

While the CFPB focuses on financial institutions, the FTC stands between consumers and unchecked corporate dominance.

Under Lina Khan’s leadership, the FTC has cracked down on:

• Amazon for monopolistic practices that crush small businesses

• Big Tech for deceptive data collection and privacy violations

• Retailers for false advertising and pricing manipulation

• Pharmaceutical companies for price gouging essential drugs

If the FTC is weakened:

• Amazon, Walmart, and Big Tech will further cement their monopolies. Small businesses won’t survive.

• False advertising and manipulative pricing will explode because there will be no fear of legal consequences.

• Companies will control pricing without oversight, driving up everyday costs.

Think prices are bad now? Imagine what happens when monopolies control everything, and there’s no one left to challenge them.

Connecting the Dots

Without the CFPB to regulate financial abuses and the FTC to stop monopolies from eliminating competition, we’ll see:

• Higher prices, fewer options, and no meaningful protections against deceptive business practices.

• Workers are being squeezed even more complexly as corporations seek new ways to cut costs.

• Consumers are locked into financial systems they can’t escape, with predatory lending and unchecked banking fees becoming the norm.

This is not an accident.

Corporations have spent years lobbying for deregulation, waiting for the moment when they could operate with no restrictions.

That moment is here.

Why Marketing Matters in All of This

Marketing is what shapes public perception.

It’s what allows companies to:

• Justify price hikes as “inflation adjustments” when they’re profit grabs

• Position higher fees as “improvements” to customer experience

• Make deceptive business practices seem normal, even inevitable

If we don’t fix how marketing operates, consumers won’t realize they’re being exploited.

That’s why we created the Marketing Accountability Council (MAC).

We saw this coming when we launched the MAC one year ago at the B2B Marketing Exchange conference in Scottsdale, Arizona.

We knew that marketing isn’t just about selling products—it’s about shaping people's thinking about business, pricing, and corporate ethics.

We’ve spent the last year building a movement to change how marketing functions—because when marketing is honest, consumers are informed. And when consumers are informed, they make different choices.

Marketing is what lets corporations get away with bad behavior. Fixing marketing is how we start holding them accountable.

The Year in Review: The Marketing Accountability Council’s Impact & The Fight Ahead

What We Built: A Movement That Can’t Be Ignored

• 100+ articles exposing marketing’s biggest myths, failures, and rare victories.

• A growing movement: Our audience tripled this year, with marketers and industry leaders joining the fight for real accountability.

• More than talk: We’re actively dismantling the narratives that have justified corporate deception for decades.

• Weekly Meetings Every Friday at 3 PM Eastern — Our meetings allow marketers to speak their minds, debate, and define solutions together. Many call it the highlight of their week.

The MAC Agenda: Taking on the Lies at the Core of the System

Marketing today is built on delusions that serve corporations—not consumers. That’s why we’re rallying behind The Delusion Series, led by MAC Founding Member

Jacob Sanders

exposing the biggest marketing myths:

The Digital Ad Delusion: Vanity metrics mean nothing. Companies waste billions on ads no one actually sees—then use those numbers to justify price hikes and bloated marketing budgets.

The Product Delusion: Great products don’t sell themselves. Companies manipulate demand by controlling supply chains, limiting access, and creating artificial scarcity.

The Growth Delusion: Infinite growth is a lie. Marketing’s obsession with nonstop expansion burns out businesses, crushes employees, and forces companies to engage in deceptive practices to sustain an illusion.

The Branding Delusion: Brand love is overrated. Consumers don’t buy from brands they “love” if the product is inconvenient, overpriced, or unnecessary.

The MAC isn’t just talking about better marketing—we’re actively dismantling the narratives that have justified corporate deception for decades.

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What Comes Next: Action, Not Just Words

Step 1: Exposing Deceptive Marketing Practices

If corporations are going to lie, they’ll use marketing to do it.
We’re launching a consumer education initiative to expose:
🔎 How companies use false advertising to justify price hikes
🔎 The hidden tactics businesses use to manipulate public opinion
🔎 The ways corporations twist narratives to make unethical behavior seem normal
We are going to name names and hold the biggest players accountable.

Step 2: Training a New Generation of Ethical Marketers

If we want businesses to act differently, we need marketers who know how to sell with integrity—not deception.
We’re launching an Ethical Marketing Certification to train marketers on:
✔ Developing real, honest strategies that serve both businesses and consumers
✔ Fighting against deceptive advertising and manipulative pricing tactics
✔ Shifting the industry toward transparency and sustainability

Step 3: Defending Consumer Protections Before They’re Gone

If the CFPB and FTC are dismantled, corporations won’t just bend the rules—they’ll rewrite them.
We are going to:
📢 Push for consumer protection laws that prevent corporations from manipulating pricing, fees, and advertising
📢 Expose lawmakers and lobbyists working to dismantle regulatory protections
📢 Apply economic pressure on businesses that refuse to support ethical policies

Step 4: Building a Consumer Movement That Can’t Be Ignored

Consumers have far more power than they realize—but only if they know how to use it.
We’re bringing together:
✔ Marketers who want to rebuild the industry with integrity
✔ Consumers who want to stop being manipulated
✔ Businesses that believe transparency and accountability are long-term strategies
for success

This Is the Moment We’ve Been Preparing For

If marketing doesn’t change, corporations will use it to justify every shady practice in the book.

And if we don’t act now, we will lose the last meaningful barriers to unchecked corporate power.

The Marketing Accountability Council was built for this moment.
We are the only organization connecting the dots between marketing, corporate power, and consumer rights.

📢 Join us.
📢 Push for real accountability.
📢 Demand better—if we don’t, no one else will.

Stay accountable. Stay loud. We’re just getting started.