Big Brother Is Watching You - Seriously!

One of the books I like to read and discuss with my English students is George Orwell's classic 1984, a novel which was written in 1948 and predicted a dark and depressing future. It describes a world in which everybody is manipulated by the creation of a new language (Newspeak), brainwashed into believing everything the government (called the Party) says and maybe most frightening of all - being watched at all times by devices called telescreens. Now while the gloomy picture that is painted by Orwell is - for the most part - very unrealistic in our part of the world, it does contain some ideas that are worth taking a closer look at. Because they might just have crept into our lives without us even taking notice...

While in 1984, Big Brother is the name of the head of state, here's what Martin Lindstrom, the author of Brandwashed has to say about today's Big Brother:

"Thanks to data-mining companies, or as I like to call them, Big Brother, every time we do a Google search, write on a friend's Facebook wall, swipe our credit card, download an iTunes song, look up directions on our cell phone, or shop at the local grocery store, an unseen data collector is shadowing us, recording every last bit of information, crunching and analyzing it, and then turning around and reselling it to retailers and marketing firms." (p. 205)

It turns out that Orwell was right about Big Brother watching us. What he got wrong was that it would be an involuntary supervision. Almost every day we give our personal information to a number of companies without them having to force us. Sometimes they don't even have to ask. What they do with all that data, you ask? They use it to bombard us with specialized advertisements in order to get us buy even more. But isn't that a benevolent Big Brother then? Someone who helps us find the products that we will like, the products that we need, the products that best fit our personality and lifestyle? To a certain extent that's probably true. But chances are that it will lead you to (a) buy more things that you don't necessarily need and (b) spend more money than you should and/or can afford to.

In the following, Lindstrom describes a fictional trip to a fictional grocery store called Sparky's. While probably a bit exaggerated, it is fascinating to see what kinds of strategies companies use to get us to buy more: 

"First off, mind if I note right off the bat here that Sparky's was smart to position its front door on the right? That's because data compiled from a study of two hundred stores reveals that shoppers who move counterclockwise spend two dollars more per trip than those who go in the opposite direction. Human beings are naturally more inclined to move to the left (because it's easier to reach out with our right arms to grab whatever it is we need), so a right-side entryway is a subtle yet effective way to ensure a counterclockwise shopping flow. I might add here that Sparky's was smart to outfit its store with oversize shopping baskets, as studies show that the bigger the shopping basket, the more likely we are to fill it to the brim.
After desperately making my way through the labyrinth of shelves, towers of products, and special displays looking for the apples, I find the Granny Smith apples and put five in my basket (I really only wanted three, but I saw the sign saying 'buy four, get one free' and immediately fell for the classic ploy that author William Poundstone calls 'nonlinear pricing,' meaning the store has upped the price of those four apples by 20 percent so I'm actually paying the exact same amount per apple even though I think I'm getting a bargain). My choice of organic apples tells Sparky's database that I'm pretty well-educated, make a good living, and am more likely to buy eco-friendly products. No surprises there..." (p. 219)

He goes on with this story for a couple more pages, so it would have been too long to post it all here. But here's my point: most companies are not interested in your well-being, they're only interested in your wallet. I believe if we keep that in mind while we're shopping (or even while we're being confronted with all kinds of ads), we'll be better off in the long run. Trust me, your wallet will be very grateful. If only George Orwell had known who the real Big Brother would be, what would his book have been about?