How its good/bad

How and what we consume are an expression of who we are, how we feel, and what we think. Big business understands that there are many reasons why we make the purchases we do, and many of them have nothing to do with the product or service itself. We spend most of our lives consuming, and that consumption happens in two ways, mentally and physically. Consumption is about more than the physical things we buy. It includes information we take into our minds [sourceEdward Bernays an T].

Most mental consumption is subliminal, and our minds are so sensitive that this happens automatically, almost without notice. What we consume can shape the way we think, and how we think will affect the choices we make. Think of the traditions we partake, the toys we buy, the food we eat, or the news we view. You may be using it, but how does it influence you in return?

Our market was built around tricks designed to exploit our psychology and abuse our automatic trust of titles and authority to increase profits. Crowd psychology [sourceCrowd Psychology] and herd behavior [sourceHerd Behavior] are used against us. These methods work because they make us feel comfortable, they’re instinctual, and our unchecked consumption automatically rewards businesses that use these tricks.

This automatic consumption creates monopolies who don’t need to compete, improve a product or service to succeed, so they continue to make products even further disconnected from the people and communities they serve. With these hacks, they only have to understand what triggers our animal mind. That's why this is important to us all.

COMMON TRIGGERS

Here are thought patterns I think many of us fall for. Remind yourself of these when shopping or viewing advertisements.

THE POWER OF NEW

We’ve all seen new movies with old plots or new devices that perform the same old tasks. New foods, clothes, movies, technology, and everything else. Businesses know that new is exciting. Beware of old products in disguise labeled new with higher prices. New does not mean better. Before you buy, ask broad questions. What new thing does this enable me to do, and how will that improve what I do? Am I buying this because the old version no longer works? Does the new justify the price?

CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION

Spending money on and the acquiring of luxury goods and services to publicly display economic power of the income or of the accumulated wealth of the buyer [sourceConspicuous Consumption]. This is my favorite. I feel many of us fall into this category at some point in our lives. We all have an ego who wants us to appear better, larger, more than itself. Like a bull fighting a matador, this mentality can easily be exploited.

BRAIN POWER OVER BRAND POWER

Brands create an illusion of trust and high quality, but a brand is all about how we feel about a company. It has nothing to do with the quality of the product or service they deliver. There are several ways businesses can influence how we feel about a brand, product, or service without actually improving anything [sourceNo Actual Difference]. One easy way they do this is by joining, or even creating, social movements [sourceLearn from history - Torches of Freedom feminist movement artificially manufactured!]. These fake for-profit movements do not identify themselves, but their behavior is a give away. What do they do to make you feel that way? Our feelings can mislead us. Compare them to generic brands. Try double blind test. Is there an actual difference that justifies the price difference?

HOW EVERYONE CAN WIN

Many successful companies are not using business ethics [sourceCompanies Commiting Fraud], so we must organize and use consumer ethics. These businesses rather use psycological tricks than actually compete on the market. If we slow down every purchase, and ask questions like those above, we can have an effect. Consumers are the largest and most powerful part of the market, and we must behave as so. Use web tools like Boycott Box to expose bad businesses. Learn about a company before rewarding them. Only purchase from companies who earn and maintain your trust, be an active consumer. This isn't a rant against capitalism. When you do this, you're actually being a capitalist. You're forcing the market to compete instead of mindlessly rewarding it. Treat your purchase as a reward that companies must earn. If they don't, you win your money back!