Korey Kendall Dr. Kay English Composition 1001 23 September 2014 Shopping? Or Dreaming? When shopping, are we simply following a list of items essential to daily life or are we envisioning our future? Are we searching for what we need or what we desire? Are we just “buying goods” or are we attempting to perfect ourselves in relation to the ever changing norms of society? It is these questions that Sharon Zukin attempts to answer. The author of, “Attention Shoppers: Your Dreams in Aisle 3”, an article published in The Chronicle Review, takes a step back from being a shopper herself to assess the consumer-goods industry as a whole and the mindset it instills in buyers. Zukin believes that despite a consumer simply grocery shopping, finding …show more content…
Zukin shares her information in short, simple sentences of independent and subordinate clauses. She uses a word style that is very concrete and formal, utilizing ordinary and general terms. Words are meant to be taken literally with few scientific terminology being used when presenting research. Each bit of information is spread out in paragraphs regardless if it contains a lone sentence or a standard amount. For an educational article, most would expect well thought paragraphs filled with factual information and supporting arguments. Also, by knowing Zukin’s background information as well as reading the article, readers can tell that she is knowledgeable in the field of shopping. It is ironic because the consumer society and culture is her area of expertise as well as the fact that she is an active participant in shopping herself (Sharon). Lastly, Zukin asserts a tone in this article that is calm and informative but also personal in that she expresses zeal in her work. Zukin never argues with the audience but rather chooses to present the information and supporting arguments. This lets the audience decide for themselves if she is right or wrong (provided that there is no bias). Overall, the style and document design are not what is expected of a persuasive, academic article but Zukin does show her knowledge and enthusiasm in the …show more content…
Through the use of rhetorical elements, Zukin attempted to address the public with an issue relatable to many within the consumer society and culture. She supports the issue with research conducted in the form of industry statistics, face-to-face interviews, and personal experiences. She establishes her credibility through her scholastic and professional background as well as providing in-depth information proving her knowledge in her area of expertise; consumerism. The text was presented in a format unlike most educational articles where the tone was calm and informative and the content was very general and straight forward. Zukin was very persuasive in the fact that she showed enthusiasm in her writing by providing personal experiences as well as plenty of information and supporting arguments to solidify her knowledge in that area of work. The message was supported well by her writing style, appeal to credibility, and persuasive approach in order to effectively gain the attention of the intended
Over the years, the American department store has developed and evolved as not only a commercial business but also a cultural institution. While it has weathered many storms and changes since its inception and throughout history, its most predominant enemy has been a change in the lifestyle of the American people (Whitaker, 2013). As the customer’s needs and wants have shifted, department stores have struggled to keep up with demands. It has been argued that the decline of the department store has been ongoing for the last 50 years (Whitaker, 2013). This dissertation aims to understand how the department store has historically played a role in consumer culture and spending, and additionally, how this has evolved and changed in today’s retail market. Although department stores may not be able to take all the credit for inventing modern shopping, they certainly made its conventions and conveniences commonplace. They set a new standard for the way the consumer should expect to be treated, the type of services that should be provided, and the convenience that should attend the process of acquiring the necessities and niceties of life all in one place. They made shopping into a leisure pastime. This environment meant shopping was a means of freedom to look around, pick up objects with no obligations to buy. As one historian remarked, department stores: “encouraged a perception of the building as a public place, where consumption itself was almost incidental to the delights of a sheltered promenade in a densely crowded, middle-class urban space” (Whitaker, 2006). Although this perception and view of the department store has changed over the years, this paper aims to follow the trail of how and why that happened.
Kilbourne focuses on academic writing and refers the readers as if she is talking directly to the people who are unaware of the negative effects of advertisements. Kilbourne offers a lot of visual examples to provide tangible evidence based on her arguments on advertisements. This strategy attracts the readers because of visual pictures and ensure fast understanding of the point she is trying to justify. It also encourages the attentiveness of the reader in the story. Therefore, using this amazing technique she proves her point by portraying various postures and poses of advertising irrelevant to the
Everyone is in a consumer’s hypnosis, even if you think you are not. When you go to a store and pick one brand over the other, you are now under their spell. The spell/ hypnosis is how companies get you to buy there things over other companies and keep you hooked. Either through commercials or offering something that you think will make your life better by what they tell you. For example, you go to the store and you need to buy water, once you get to the lane and look, there is 10 different types of water you can buy. You go pick one either because the picture is better or you seen the commercial the other day and you want it. During the length of this paper we will talk about two important writers, Kalle Lasn the writer of “The Cult You’re in” and Benoit Denizet-Lewis writer of “ The Man Behind Abercrombie & Fitch”. They both talk about similar topics that go hand and hand with each other, they talk about the consumers “Dream”, how companies recruit the consumers, who cult members really are, how people are forced to wear something they don’t want, and about slackers.
... middle of paper ... ... People are unable to judge their own flaws, causing them to be gullible and believe whatever they perceive to be correct, shown through pseudoscience and consumer testimonials. Overall, this article highlights the use of Marketing Techniques used in everyday life in order to show importance towards business products.
Solomon, M. R. (2012). Consumer behavior: Buying, having, and being (10th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J: Prentice Hall.
Consumerism occurs everywhere, whether it is an abandoned factory, between a group of friends or in a warm, loving middle class home. Through the eyes of the protagonist Kunzru presents how popular consumerism is by noting,“Sasha was telling me that the sushi at Bar Fugu was “to die for” because he meant it or because it was a snappy slogan. Vikram started talking to me at nauseating length about tires. ”(Cite) The statement proves that anyone and everyone is a consumer or a person attempting to advertise some sort of product for a reward whether it is money or free stuff.
The logic in the article is simple, just as the motive to present a topic that can in a more detailed passage seem complex, as a very simple graspable and an unadorned science. It is also for that reason that I find the message persuasive, since the main elements of marketing come through very strong throughout the whole article. As a reader, I
When comparing two different ways of shopping most people do not even think about the difference, they do both and not even realize it. In today's society people shop while at work, after work and on the weekends, whenever time permits. Stop and think how can I get more time in the day for family or just myself? The best way to figure that out with all the recourses we have is to go into a store and spend time looking through racks and waiting in endless lines to just purchase something. I compared going into a store verses online shopping; to see which one will save you time and money.
Right out of the gate, in his article titled “‘Have It Your Way’: Consumerism Invades Education, Simon Benlow articulates on a memo received at his facility, a reminder to ‘serve his customers’. A more than powerful persuasion to prompt his article on consumerism invading education. Benlow goes on to explain his flamboyant theory, attacking the public’s common slogans and lazy consumerist attitudes, saying that today's common business and corporate methods lull and trick the public into being passive, consumerist zombies. Although the entire article reveals a very controversial topic, one may argue the most staggering idea involved is that the consumerist way of life we have come to know has
The data have shown customers’ interest; the retailers can serve their customers more effective when they know what their customer want. The product will catch customers’ attention because they know where exactly to put it. That lead to more product being sales and more money being generated. According to the video “How store track your shopping behavior”, from the study of men’s habit of shopping, they know how to get men pay attention to their products. They change it up a little bit and get a really interesting result:”85% increase in product touch, 44% increase in sales, and 38% increase in dollar sales”; that is huge increase numbers. That number show how impactful the study effects their business performances. It is the result of understanding their customers’ need and desire. The ultimate goal is to increase product sales. They have to depend on the customer to reach that goal. Making the customer feel comfortable and encourage them to buy more goods is a process toward that
... of consumer behaviour, lays emphasis on the objectivity of science and the consumer as a reasonable and sensible decision maker. While, the interpretive point of view is in contrast to that of the positivist, in that it emphasises on the importance of the subjective meaning of the consumers individual experience, hence, it suggest that whichever behaviour a consumer performs is subject to diverse interpretations to a certain extent than just a single explanation to it.
An adept and self-governing group called Consumer Reports (CR) takes the initiative to put together a risk-free, satisfactory, and well-grounded marketplace for individuals such as purchasers. The non-profit organization was built in the year 1936, at the peak of advertising’s fame. The intention of advertising is to persuade its audience to do certain activities, like buying, through the use of social media. Back then, people did not have any bases or clue of what is considered to be a good and bad product. Ever since the staff of Consumer Reports felt the need to take action, they have laid the foundations of a wide scope of information for consumers; good items are already separated from the bad ones. The pro-shopper organization turns down offers of paid ads and free samples to ensure that they remain detached and autonomous for buyers who depend on them for honest reviews, and from the influence of advertisers. This is how they function: A number of mystery clients and specialists are recruited and asked to purchase and put the products into assessment. Through those steps, the commentator is given the opportunity to test the item firsthand, and evaluate it in an objective manner. Being unbiased is important in making reports for the reason that it affects the credibility of the evaluation.
Everyone likes shopping, but everyone has their own way of spending when they go shopping. I love shopping, but I hate being at the mall, if I don’t need to be there then I won’t be there. I’ve noticed that when I have money, I do not buy anything, and when I do not have money I want everything I see. From my experience I’ve observed that there are people who shop smart, people who are just plain addicted to shopping, people who join another person while shopping, basically called window watchers.
Shopping is something that has to be done whether you enjoy it or not to get essentials needed. We all go places where merchandize is being sold for a specific reason. Whether you go to the mall, shopping centers, or your local grocery store, you 'll always encounter many types of shoppers. Shopping isn’t always as fun as it sounds to everyone, but it is something we often do. This is the only way we get products we need, by personally buying them. You have three main shoppers including impulse buyers, list makers, and bargain hunters.