Thursday, December 20, 2012

Existentialism in Marketing continued: case in point!

This morning, Morning Edition did a piece on allowing customers to customize their products--everything from M&Ms to sneakers and coats:

http://www.npr.org/2012/12/20/167676601/custom-orders-build-retailers-brand-loyalty

I think it's a good case for Richard Sennet's principle of participation for meaningful craftsmanship (ergo the title of his book "The Craftsman") as a means to making a "consumer experience"--in other words (my own), existentialism in marketing.

In fewer (albeit, less mature) words: called it!

That said, it's odd to hear young people speak about their product choices:

"Students really love showing off, and kids love showing off who they are," Stewart says. "And ... me spreading the word about how I designed these shoes led to all my friends wanting to design their own." -Lindsay Stewart, a senior at Holy Innocents' Episcopal School in Atlanta
There's certainly more to expression and a student's identity than Ms. Stewart's view, but you've got to admit she'd make for a great PR rep.

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