Marketing Magazine, like pretty much every other ad trade magazine, has compiled some expert opinions concerning the coming year. Some are okay. Others just make you shake your head and wonder what colour's the sky in their world? Like this, for example:

"People will continue to buy and pay more for reliable brand reputations that enrich the depth and breadth of their own identity. The future belongs to any product that can give users a unique identity and place, be it real or virtual. 2010 will be about combining an engaging story with an immersive experience so that the brand becomes an avatar and the communications investment becomes an extension of the brand experience. Communications technology is now the enabler, source and subject matter of human entertainment as a result the concept of the "Avatar" has crossed the chasm into mainstream culture and branding."

WTF?

This is the kind of gobbledygook that says nothing about anything other than the writer's apparent penchant for self-aggrandizement. And whatever hoodwinked clients might buy it.

In the communication business, being able to communicate matters. Marketing fundamentals always apply. Technology changes, but people don't.

But there will always be weasels plying their trade, especially in times of change and uncertainty.