Unthinking
The Surprising Forces Behind What We Buy
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
What do Howard Hughes and 50 Cent have in common, and what do they tell us about Americans and our desires? Why did Sean Connery stop wearing a toupee, and what does this tell us about American customers for any product? What one thing did the Beatles, Malcolm Gladwell and Nike all notice about Americans that helped them win us over? Which uniquely American traits may explain the plights of Krispy Kreme, Ford, and GM, and the risks faced by Starbuck's? Why, after every other plea failed, did "Click It or Ticket" get people to buy the idea of fastening their seat belts?
To paraphrase Don Draper's character on the hit show Mad Men, "What do people want?" What is the new American psyche, and how do America's shrewdest marketers tap it? Drawing from dozens of disciplines, the internationally acclaimed marketing expert Harry Beckwith answers these questions with some surprising, even startling, truths and discoveries about what motivates us.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A rumination on the psychology behind our responses to advertisements from marketing expert Beckwith. With our susceptibility determined by our childhoods and culture, much of our response is unconscious. We consistently respond positively to any product that reminds us of play the iPhone with its bright colors and fun features is a perfect example. We respond to music, to rhyming ads "it takes a licking and keeps on ticking!" and gravitate toward the comfort of the familiar; we like Krispy Kreme and Starbucks precisely because they are popular. Despite our continual penchant for optimism and the quest for beauty and convenience, however, we are a fickle, difficult-to-please bunch. While short on practical application, this is a fascinating meditation on the American consumer and the canny marketers in hot pursuit of customers.
