I can see inside your brain...

There are several companies that will pay you for your time to come in and rate their product either with surveys such as Internet Paid Surveys or you have to taste something or you are actually part of some kind of test. Well now there is this new type of marketing called neuromarketing. Basically they measure your response either by the way you breather or pupil dialation, skin temperature, muscle contraction or even more complex tests. Pretty soon they will probably start paying people to come In and watch these ads and measure their response. This recent Fast Company article gets into more detail on neuromarketing. It’s crazy to see that a senator or governor would use this type of marketing for their campaign. It’s basically trying to manipulate the voter to vote your way. I don’t think this advanced type of marketing is fair. If people were concerned with privacy issues before, they should be concerned for what’s to come.

Car Sales vs Technology

A recent article is blaming the Internet as the cause for a decline in auto sales in the teens and twenties market. I don’t believe technology and the latest gadgets are to blame for the decline in auto sales. You can’t compare something like an iPad that costs around $600 to a car that can costs at minimum $10,000. You check out this site and compare car prices at Kelley Blue Book . 

The latest recession and loss of jobs should be to blame for the decline in auto sales. If the economy would be in a better state and people would feel like they have more job stability then maybe they would be more willing to invest in something as expensive as a car. But in the meantime, I think people would much rather worry about being able to feed their family than about having the latest car. And as for the teens and twenties, this generation is now more focused on worrying about getting a job and getting through school that cars are no longer a need. In cities like New York a car is not a necessity. Being a car owner is becoming more of a luxury than a necessity in my opinion.

The Real Cookie Monster

So you get home, lock your door and you think you’re safe, right?  Whether you’re doing homework, checking your bank account or updating your status on Facebook, many of us spend countless hours at home logged online.  

Most of us don’t think twice about what we do on the internet. What may seem like an innocent visit to that website, ultimately may lead to a long trail of information for the outside to follow.

Behavioral advertising follows consumer’s tracks to bring them advertising they think will catch their attention based off what they’ve researched online. From a business perspective, following consumer’s online footsteps could be seen as a great way to promote a particular product or service to a unique group of people. On the contrary, however, many can also see this as an invasion of privacy because it allows a third party to track where you’ve been online and, more often than not, unbeknownst to the consumer.

A program rolling out this year (Understanding Online Advertising) can help protect consumers from being tracked online. This initiative will allow companies to place an icon near their advertisements and is designed to educate you on privacy controls, cookies, and will give the consumer the ability to opt out of having their browsing history tracked.

But will this work? While most of us barely click on advertisements to begin with, how can we be expected to learn more about something if this is the only solution? I wouldn’t relate this icon to privacy controls, would you? 

While most of us think of a cookie as something we pick up at the local bakery, we should better educate ourselves on cookies and online privacy controls and think twice before you click.

You're not alone!!

CCTV’s have been around since the 1940’s. According to Wikipedia, in the UK there are reportedly more cameras per person than in any other country. A company in the UK Internet Eyes is an online surveillance company where viewers can report any suspicious activity. The way it works is you pay either a monthly, quarterly or annual subscription and then you, the viewer, can alert the store if you see a theft. There is also a points system where each month the viewer with the most awarded points will receive £1000.

There are people that seem to think there are privacy issues with these CCTV’s. I think it’s a great idea. The CCTV’s are located in public places so in reality there is no privacy there. Also, Internet Eyes makes you agree to their terms and conditions and you have to be in accordance with the Data Protection Acts therefore the actual footage won’t end up in the wrong hands or else they will probably face charges. Plus, really… who wants to watch people shopping or stealing something unless you're getting paid for it?