This little piggy goes to…

Darling Alistair’s budget, swine flu and news that a stage musical based on the life of Jade Goody is possibly in the offing. What do these disparate events have in common? Nothing, actually – except that all are in no way welcome, if you ask me.

I won’t add to the acres of column centimetres which accompanied last week’s budget, except to say that we should probably warn our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren (should we have them), to get used to hearing the word ‘DEBT’ quite often for the next fifty years or so. And of course the less said about the late Primark Princess the better.

Unlike ‘debt’, a word we’re not hearing too often enough currently is ‘responsible’ – a concept which has particular resonance for DM. Great to see President Obama calling for US banks to clean up their mailing practices, for example. As reported in past days on Brand Republic, that 200 million Americans each receive 10 to 15 credit card offers per week verges on the obscene, in terms of damage to both brand image and the environment.

Times are obviously tough at present. Yet surely the brands which will not only survive but even prosper during this recession will be those who show a more respectful relationship with customers by not playing fast and loose with their information, mailing deceased persons and/or boring punters senseless with mismatched offers.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Welcome to DM’s Mission Imperative, as opposed to Mission Impossible.