He provides a synthesis of the new thinking on advertising's contributions to the information environment and the dynamics of competition. Drawing on research, he argues that competitive advertising generates richer and more fundamentally balanced information than can be achieved through detailed controls over advertising and information. What follows is an edited version of the author's Introduction to the book. It is produced here with the permission of both author and publisher. There are three great truths about advertising.
Advertising is a tool for communicating information and shaping markets.
It compels sellers to cater to the desires of consumers. Advertising is always under attack. There is nothing obscure about this purpose or what it means for buyers. Decades of data and centuries of intuition reveal that all consumers everywhere are deeply suspicious of what advertisers say and why they say it. This skepticism, far from representing an irrational fear or a barrier to creative advertising techniques, is in fact the driving force that makes advertising so effective.