There was an article I read recently where a woman created a phoney child's name on a form once and it ended up becoming a "real" person as far as advertisers were concerned. She got ads in the mail for baby stuff. Then for little kid stuff. Then for pimple cream and whatnot. Then for college stuff. On and on it went for years like that.

>"woman created a phoney child's name on a form once"

That's where the bad guys get ya - by getting you to fill in info on a form. Notice that ethical online retailers never have forms except for ordering and for registration, and they ask you if it's ok to share your info when it's registration. In direct marketing, buying info has really fallen out of favor because the results just don't make it worth it. Last time I personally saw it happen, a company I know of bought a list of about 500K email addresses, less than 50 people from that list ever came to the site, and none made a purchase.

Surely all of us here have noticed right here on our beloved BPL forum... that whenever you type in some brand name or another... a ad link will follow? Oh so convenient for a "quickie price check" following every post on the Gear Swap!! :)

I can't believe advertising works on anyone. Almost nothing I own is advertised. I mean what products on this site see any type if advertising?

Advertising occurs on this site all the time, and works to great effect, it's just that the manufacturers and retailers don't pay for it - the product users and prospective users do it for them. BPL users talking about products, reviewing products, recommending products to other users - boiled down, fits nicely into the dictionary definition for advertising.

The UL cottage gear industry wouldn't exist if no one ever talked about their innovations. The kind of talk that frequently occurs here - the kind that can convince someone they need to spend $335+ for an 11oz piece of fabric to use as shelter (with an 6 to 8 week lead time, no less) - if that isn't advertising, then just what is it? :D

look in the back of outside, backpacker etc. Jacks R better are in there western Mountaineering, feathered friends six moons designs.

This fourm is hundreds of thousands of posts advertising products for cottage brands. word of mouth or links.

Mom and Pop stores used this info for years and nobody objected, it was called a personal relationship and they probably knew more about you that Target could ever hope to know.

So very true Sean ;-) I worked in a small business (a busy coffee shop) for 8 years at one point on an island and I knew ALL the gossip. I could have told you who was cheating, getting divorced, having a baby, dating,, on drugs, etc...people love to talk. Or their actions did.....example? If a customer started drinking decaf suddenly and it was a female it was often a sign she was pregnant. A man? It could be heart issues. And so forth. I was much more observant than my customers realized.......but then, they were my paycheck. It paid for me to remember everything!