Marketing Immunity?
First, Choire Sicha from TheAwl.com on the whole FTC endorsement thing:
Stealth marketing, direct advertisement and product placement work only on the clueless, and our immersive, hippo-like wallowing in the marketplace serves only to make us resistant to these viral contagions. Because the more we are sold to — and, believe it, we are being pitched every minute — the more immune we are to it all.
To which Rob Walker “responds” in his linkpile: “That’s exactly what the marketing industry experts always say. Probably because it’s what they want you to believe it. And why not? It’s certainly easier than thinking.” I am with Rob on this one. If it were true that we become immune to these sort of messages than us in the marketing industry would never buy anything, right? I mean our job is to sit around all day and expose ourselves to advertising by choice. We purposely notice advertising and we still give into it’s pull. I know we all say “people are getting more savvy,” but I’m becoming increasingly unsure as to what, if anything, that actually means.