I'm being manipulated, yes, but this has nothing to do with privacy. Privacy, to me, means they have information about my personal characteristics. They don't. This is a shoemaker making shoes in pairs, not measuring how long I cut my toenails.

 

This is a new method of doing something old. Any time a new scanning device is developed, the admen will put it to use trying to make subliminal messages. It's been going on for years, with limited effect. In fact, it reminds me of that one Mythbusters episode with the "psycho-amplifier"- instead of doing Adam's bidding, they all just stared at him and at the crystal sticking out of his bike helmet.

'There is nothing wrong with you television, we are controlling the horzintal, we are controlling the vertical..........'  

social and cultural anthropology has been used by sales and marketing corps for a very long time.  This is another step in the direction of using tools to manipulate us.  As long as massive, ubiquitous, and invasive advertising is permitted, that will continue. 

 

(I consider calling my 'home' phone to 'sell' me something as intrusive marketing - unless I may return the call to the CEO's private line, unscreened, and speak with him or her as easially as 'they' phone my home number. )

Maybe if I suddenly start buying more of those products I'll be worried, but for the time being clearly much of their advertisement is still being wasted on me. Further I'm also skeptical that these techniques can produce anything more than a craving, which is ultimately your conscious choice to satisfy or not.

With the vast numbers of brain dead goof balls wandering the face of our planet, I seriously have to think this line of data mining would fall short of it's expectations.

Ahhh, what you talking about HG. 

I don't think they'd pay big bucks for no results....

So then what you are saying is the folks that get caught up with this Neuromarketing are the 'non brain dead goof balls'.

Now wait just one minute here, if you are intelligent wouldn't that mean...........oh never mind. 

Of course they will. How do you think motivational speakers and self-help gurus stay in business?

It works to a degree.  It will help push you to a Pepsi if you want a cola, but not if you want a hot dog.  While I do not necessarily like the technology, it is not earth shattering (think evolutionary instead of revolutionary).

Indeed. If my crappy brain index was working, I'd be able to cite a couple of cases of advertisers being hauled in front of Congressional committees complaining about something like kids eating too much sugar or Joe Camel driving up teen smoking rates. In that setting, the ad execs are happy to assert that there's no hard evidence that advertising 'works.' But they are obviously very able to persuade big firm to spend big bucks on the stuff.

That's why the missus AND I go shopping together.... I am the impenetrable rock that does NOT fall at the advertisers/retailers feet and buy shit just because of pretty packaging, etc.  Nope, I'm a tight arse and plain packaging generic brands get the nod over expensive labeled brands that charge for the name as well as the content.  Besides, I worked in retail and know all the tricks... hence we go in with a pre-defined list and get just what is on it.  If, there are any extras, and I say IF, it is because we needed it anyhow but forgot to put it on the list.

So no, none of this marketing crap will wash with me.  Need is the basis to buy first and foremost... and if there's a want that'd enhance our lives, we'll get it if the price is right.

If I were to be sucked in by marketing ploys, I'd have recently purchased an Intel CPU.  Their advertising is all over the TV lately, and in magazines everywhere, but I opted for an AMD unit at a quarter of the price... and that AMD unit is more than comparable to the more expensive Intel equivalents.  If I had been sucked in by all the hype and biased benchmarks intended purely to sway me, I'd have paid considerably more for something that served me no better.  So yes, I'm certainly glad AMD doesn't advertise here like that.... that I didn't pay for the privilege of having them in my face with annonying ads.

As for this neuromarketing, they can hook me up to one of their test machines... the only result they'll get is that I'm an angry bastard with a mind to buy the shit I need... no matter how effing clever they think they are.

Those effing parasites!!  We get those bastards coming here from the US trying to peddle their 'wares'.  Personally, I'd outlaw the mongrels, lock the bastards up and throw away the key.  Frauds, the lot of 'em... along with that John Edward psychic wanker.  Now he's somebody who really pisses me off... preying on the bereaved while he employs researchers to find the 'answers' for? his victims.

 

You're exaggerating doc. I haven't seen this but I would participate in a testgroup if I got payed for it. Sounds exciting actually

Sounds contradictory to me... either you know, and conclude from knowledge OR you don't know, and hope I'm exaggerating.

I researched and wrote.

I believe what they're doing is a breach of privacy through use of results on 'voluntary' (paid) test subjects who probably didn't know the true extent of the use of the results (unethical) and their use on us, and the breach of privacy comes from where that intrusion occurs in your mind.

I don't believe that to be an exaggeration, especially when it's invaded the elections, and when so many big players use the results, who's exaggerating and who's minimizing becomes a moot point. They wouldn't invest money they could pocket in something which showed no evidence of working.