For as long as I can remember, I've been concerned by privacy and its protection. Travelling around the world taught me that privacy means different things to different societies and groups of people. This article isn't about the technicalities of encryption; it is about the "why" of my relationship with Marketing.

Protecting privacy starts by understanding it, what it is and the risks associated with violations.

The Privacy reading

Privacy is understood differently across societies. It varies between individualistic cultures (mostly Western-styled), where it's a personal right tied to autonomy, and collectivist cultures (mostly Asian-styled), where it balances individual needs with group harmony. In Japan, the concept of Aida — the space between individuals—differs profoundly from the Western idea of a protected self. These views shape expectations around personal data, social interactions, and even physical space.

Privacy is culturally, historically, and contextually defined.

So, in some ways, privacy is a shared understanding of what is private and what is not. But what is private? Well, I have come to what I consider a fair definition. The boundary between "private" and "not private" is defined by a combination of legal frameworks, digital footprints, and cultural context.

In other words, it is not only oneself but a collection of factors that define the perimeter of our lives. That scares me. And it will continue to do so because, on a personal level, I consider private everything I don't want you to know. Private, to me, means "what you don't know, you can't harm or use to harm."

And here comes Marketing. Marketing is about flirting with your privacy at best and discovering your darkest secrets at worst. The bigger the data, the better the profile, the better the marketing outcome. It is easy in that context to draw the opposition of privacy vs. marketing as a mental construct: Privacy vs. Violation Business. Therefore, marketing is bad, evil, and should be avoided. Better, I should leverage my engineering knowledge to build tools that help me protect my data or any signal "they" could capture.

The shortcut between marketing and security threat was real, deep.

The Transparency reading

The underlying concept of Marketing is a customer-centric philosophy. A business should identify and satisfy the needs and wants of its target audience more effectively than its competitors. This approach prioritizes value creation and long-term relationships to achieve organizational goals. One could see Marketing as a candid approach to serve a target audience.

I have a problem with that "target audience".

People are considered targets to catch and convert before being handed to sales. Marketing says what the target wants to hear to attract it. I am of a minimalist nature, so I don't consume much aside from what I consider a need. It is easy for me to feel bombarded by false intentions and ulterior motives.

As an Experience Designer (XD), I understand the intrinsic requirement for a business to identify and satisfy a persona's or a user's needs, worries, and desires. What's the difference? I'm not trying to convince you when I work. I'm trying to help you achieve your own goals with the best experience possible. Yes, it requires data, but it is not about persuasion. It is about satisfaction. Therefore, I need much less data about you or your digital life aside from the product you're already on.

And I can be transparent with it.

This is where I draw the line. I ask for users' feedback as stakeholders. I work for the business but also for them. UX is about the user. Designing for a user is a collaborative dance, not a persuasion game. At least in the ethics of the job.

One shouldn't ignore deceptive patterns (aka dark patterns). That's is another subject.

I've always known that marketing is more about how people find the business than how to manipulate people into buying. Yet, I couldn't reconcile my values with the industry. If being seen meant hiding one's real intent or obfuscating the truth to accommodate a selling narrative, that wasn't for me. I value transparency because it allows me to act properly and ethically.

I would rather not take action than engage based on beliefs.

Influence on my life and my business

The paradox is I started my career in marketing. Not as a marketing expert, but as a web developer or UX designer for marketing campaigns. I have seen from within how personal data are often considered a commodity to be used to the maximum. I have seen how metrics could justify more intrusive practices. I have witnessed how some professional profiles would ignore basic knowledge, yet assert authority to climb their ladder and be seen first.

Of course, I am biased. I'm from the technical side, so I have a different perspective. I know exactly what data was harvested, how it was used, and the potential impact in case of misuse. Risk assessment is part of the job. One can't ask a marketer to be a security expert. However, I'm pretty sure marketers themselves would agree that, in a campaign project, marketing leads and tech follows.

They achieve great results I am profoundly humble about. But at what cost when security is undervalued?

Additionally, while winning awards was rewarding, most projects had to remain confidential due to NDAs. Furthermore, working on short-term projects lacked alignment with Weinto's core values of respect, iteration, and freedom. Marketing campaigns, by nature, have a set end-of-life date before they even begin. While it was gratifying to see our names alongside major corporations, I questioned the ultimate value delivered to the user, as user data was often collected with little to no control.

I wanted to better serve the user by providing a better chain. What is better than IT for that? IT is everywhere as a support function for every business. How better to serve the business and the user than by being strategically placed at their intersection in every single corner?

Here, on point, was Weinto's pivot.

Brewing of a failure

By the end of 2017, I moved Weinto from France to Hong Kong. I was already living abroad with my life partner. Weinto slowly moved from marketing campaigns to IT.

Up to that moment, finding work was never a problem for me. Constantly on the move, I'd be meeting people here and there, fitting into the local job markets for web developers and UX designers. My portfolio was good, and talking about it was enough to land a mission. People "knew me" and would "contact me" because I was "here". Never ever needed a CV.

What a very convenient situation for someone having deep issues with marketing – maintaining the illusion that I'd never need to engage in marketing while being blind to the fact that I was constantly swimming in it. Thus, reinforcing the belief that marketing isn't necessary and I could stand by my principles.

The crash

Then came COVID and travel restrictions. I won't develop much about how personal or medical data were (and still are) collected and used. That would fit in a privacy-focused article. The point here is that travel restrictions grounded me for long – too long.

Long enough for my professional network to switch to a more "local" approach. At least for the companies who survived their economic crisis.

That phenomenon didn't happen overnight. It was a slow process, but it was there, and Weinto wasn't ready for it. Little by little, Weinto lost clients and its CEO — me — wasn't keen on corrupting his values for "money." To be honest, I felt marketing was scamming people and I didn't want Weinto to be part of it.

Our clients partner with us for a reason: their sovereignty. Playing with privacy and transparency would be a betrayal.

Instead of working on marketing strategy, I doubled down on expertise, tooling, and guidance. I obtained some strategic certifications, developed discipline and a better understanding of the business side of things. I thought that being hands-on better at everything was the way to go.

The idea was to nurture the remaining clients until better days. While it is always good to invest in one's self-development, it is better when aligned with the business needs for cash.

Unfortunately came the day I stopped paying myself... The crash.

The wake up call

The wake-up call wasn't about "I need to change". I knew that already as much as I needed marketing. No, the shift happened when I realized the "how". How to be visible without betraying values, clients, users, and the business itself?

Working with personas, metrics, KPIs, user flows, conversion rates, etc., is also part of the job of the UX designer. Finding ways to deliver value for the business is key for any designer. My point of view is that this point alone differentiates us from artists.

Artists have a more personal approach to their craft.

So what? What was I missing?

I was missing the fact that I had changed paths in my career without realizing it. As a freelancer, I was used to addressing the needs of my clients, whatever the need. Multi-disciplinary, curious about everything, expert in adaptation whether in tech, business, or design. I was used to being the one who finds solutions. Not just as "the cloud architect," "the experience designer," "the developer," or "the lead."

Weinto's business identity is linked to my personal moral compass but my problem wasn't about privacy or transparency. My problem was a gigantic imposter syndrome in anything I'd have to promote myself about. I'd feel like lying to clients about my capabilities because "some are better" or "some dedicate 100% of their time to this topic."

Instead, I've built my expertise hidden from the crowd, for myself, for my clients.

Who needs to brag or be seen when you can just be yourself and be hired for it? What a cognitive dissonance. It was time to accept the shift. I'm no longer just a developer or UX designer. I've spent years refining a philosophy, my philosophy, without realizing it: Business x IT x XD.

Business, IT, and UX is the best combo to support enterprises with real impact on delivered value.

It took a little bit of time to put it on paper and publish a new website for Weinto. It feels again like accepting myself as this ever-changing profile I've always been across with my career and travels. Adapting to the environment to be the best version of myself.

This is time to assume the role of architect and strategist. I am because I do. Over should be the time to think I'm never ready for it.

Today, Weinto focuses on the market of SMEs and startups for this reason. I understand consulting companies are everywhere, and I'm not talking about The Big Four. Weinto's take is to prepare young or small companies for the future. Whether it should be handed over to a Big Four or whether Weinto should grow with them to address the evolution will be a challenge soon enough!