'So That's Why I Bought it' - Advertising and Your Subconscious Calculator

"New Theory: How Advertisers Get Inside Your Head"
LiveScience (December 17, 2008)

"Even with the recession, people are doing their holiday shopping and ads are playing a big role in steering them toward one product versus another.

"A new theory suggests how the ads can work on our unconscious mind to spur purchases.

"Scientists have long known that when we see a product repeatedly, our initial response is to want that object, and then after lots of visual exposure to the object, through advertisements or other means, our preference for it dwindles.

"Now cognitive scientist...."

Sounds reasonable, fits pretty well with the 'appeal to feelings, not facts' marketing principle, and explains why product placement in movies works so well.

Interestingly, the idea this article describes is that our subconscious mind isn't being emotional at all: it's calculating the value/cost ratio of items.