Hopefully you've seen this gorgeous ad from VW about the little boy wandering around as Darth Vader. If not:
What's the issue?
Volkswagen is showing off a $20,000 car by highlighting a $200 feature.
This is so common it's infuriating. Lots of companies do this for a wide variety of products; bike companies point out a $20 derailleur upgrade on $700 bikes, computer companies with DVD drives or card readers, P&G, which has around 70% of the detergent market share, shows off each detergent's superior power as compared to the "other guy" or "competition." Maybe that's a different point, but the problem is the same. Consumers are idiots and they're only getting dumber and easier to market to.
Yes, none of this is a big shock. What's sad isn't that marketing works--it's supposed to work-- but that it's just that easy.
Within a few years I can imagine the Nike commercials: "Check out our shoes. With SOLES! Compare that to the other guys' shoes: just a scruff of a Hobbit's foot hair."
Pfft.
