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The Conversation
The Conversation
Mathieu Lajante, Associate Professor in Marketing, Toronto Metropolitan University

How advertising turns our insecurities into profit — and how you can resist the manipulation

Have you ever bought something not because you wanted it, but because you were afraid of what might happen if you didn’t? Maybe you worried about looking older, falling behind at work or simply not fitting in.

While marketing often promises an aspirational lifestyle, some of the most effective campaigns work in the opposite direction: making you feel bad about your current reality, then presenting a product as the solution.

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