Does that mean you should lie? Never. Lying, besides being morally wrong, is quite literally indefensible. That means, at some point, you're going to be found out. And even if you weren't, you would have to start living lie-remembering what you told people interested in your business, and hearing people call you what you said you are. It's too hard, and it's not worth it. Besides, it's plain bad business.

When I say that perception of truth-rather than truth itself-is stuff of great publicity campaigns, I mean that truth will take care of itself. But you have to make sure that image you project, perception you offer to potential customers, is what you want it to be.

For example, a man named Dave Schwartz decided he'd start a car rental company that would lower rates to consumer by featuring cars that weren't 100 percent new off showroom floor. He had a choice to make in terms of perception of his new company, and he chose to beat critics to punch with a strong sense of humor and a catchy company name: Rent-A-Wreck. Now, Dave didn't lie (his cars weren't wrecks, they drove just fine, so maybe he exaggerated a little), and he didn't fall into trap of emphasizing price. After all, his competitors already had names like Thrifty and Budget. He hit you in funny-bone, made his impression of a fun car rental company-with implied promise that cars would cost less because they weren't brand new-and launched a very successful business.

It's all in perception. But is this a contradiction of Tiffany Theory? Did Dave actually wrap his cars in Kmart paper to make his point?

Not really. Dave still wrapped his message in Tiffany paper. He made sure local news outlets, publications, and media companies knew about his company, and he emphasized exactly how reliable and economical rental cars at Rent-A-Wreck would be. By downplaying appearance of cars-calling them "wrecks" he allowed media to expect dented, scratched, beat-up cars. When they toured his facility and saw cars that were only slightly used, Dave didn't have to say a word. The message got out that "wrecks" in question were very reliable, attractive cars that would be available for a lower rental rate because they were used. A brilliant, subtle piece of Tiffany wrapping.

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The Tiffany Theory applies to Internet in ways it never could with traditional media. Keep in mind that more information is available on World Wide Web than you can possibly track, let alone control. So it's always important to keep your information true. But unlike information in newspapers or magazines, data you provide on a website is yours, and you provide Tiffany paper. Use photographs, charts, quizzes, and prizes, if you can, to keep surfers' interest alive on your site. And remember to wrap every fact in a nice neat piece of Tiffany wrap.