Shift Happens

We used to see people as merely being consumers, but now advertisers are starting to realize that consumers are also just people. Individuals. And each one is different. We are not just advertisers, we are also consumers.

Consumer society goes way beyond creating essential commodities to survive. Consumerism creates wealth which in turn raises our expectations of life. Luxury products, an abundance of choice in products. We're being marketed to every minute of our lives, stimulating us to buy, buy, buy. However unsustainable this may seem, there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Advertising can be used for good and for bad.

Bad products need to be marketed more aggressively for people to buy them, companies which make good products will experience less trouble trying to sell their products. The same amount of advertising promoting a good product from a good company will naturally sell better.

We as advertisers also have a duty to listen to consumers and in dialogue with both consumers and companies, create better products. The internet as a medium where consumers create both content and voice their opinions about brands has created a lot of opportunities to improve this dialogue.

Advertisers can work together with consumers to create a better world. We need to amplify good products so that bad products don't stand a chance.