What adds value to the items we own? Beyond quantifiable and tangible factors like price, performance and comfort, we find slightly more vague notions that rely more on an emotional than intellectual response. Attaching meaning in this way, is a phenomenon Rob Walker calls an object’s narrative, the memories we associate with inanimate things, from their provenance to their mere existence at significant points in our lives. It helps explain why we hang on to wedding dresses when they no longer fit and refer to beat-up caps as our “lucky hats.” But what happens to value when we learn the [...]

With ad business drying up as clients cut costs across the board, agencies suddenly find themselves in an industry with a whole lot less of everything to pitch, market and sell. While this is no doubt a bleak prospect for many agencies, author Rob Walker views the current situation as the perfect opportunity for them to work on their own ideas for a change and gasp! – maybe even do some good in the process. His suggestion – pro bono advertising on behalf of socially conscious causes. Think of it as culture jamming from the inside. But it’s not as radical [...]

Rob Walker, author behind “Buying In” and the popular “Consumed” column for the NY Times Magazine, is best known for his work that examines the fluid relationships we have with the objects in our lives – much of it dealing with the ways our purchasing habits affect us emotionally and psychologically.  And though we may have all experienced the rush of buying a pair of designer shoes, what happens when they’ve lost their luster and the “thrill” is finally gone?
Whether because they no longer work or simply because we no longer want them anymore, we are constantly faced with the [...]

In his weekly Consumed column in the NY Times magazine, Rob Walker has provided a great back-to-basics guide to Second Life – for all you folk who just need a recap – with some insights into how brands (real world and Second Life) can benefit the residents.