I don't understand how (or why) this is even a marketing ploy. Users would have adopted it just as well if they admitted that they were two developers and left

I don't understand how (or why) this is even a marketing ploy. Users would have adopted it just as well if they admitted that they were two developers and left it at that. Even if they're working on it full time, it actually IS a side project! The end user doesn't suspect a profit motive because there really is none at this point. So why lie at all? Seems completely redundant.