ThirstyFish

Photographed at a shopping mall in Ankara.

How do you keep people shopping? The answer seems pretty obvious: Make people "want" things whether they need it or not. But how do you make people want things. The art of advertising, what they deceptively call "marketing communication", is a vast topic. In a snap, it mainly works by making the subject - that is you and me - feel bad about ourselves. You have an old car, feel bad. Your teeth aren't white enough, feel bad. You wear last year's shoe model, feel bad. Your girlfriend gained a little weight, feel bad. And the moment you feel bad, or fear, they got you. You'll be out purchasing a new car, paying for expensive cosmetic procedures and clothes, and out looking for a new girlfriend. Is it communication, persuasion, or manipulation?

Yes I know, the hyperlink on "art" above links to propaganda.