Because they see results. Even in this age of incredible material prosperity, it's hard to fathom responsible corporate types forking over the cash to pay for this stuff. Even the most serious academics and the most acute existentialists now acknowledge that brands become anthropomorphized. Romann, a jaunty, exuberant German in a black turtleneck and jeans, glances at his watch. That's what people have to recognize.
Advertising is no longer just jokes and fun, and TV commercials.
It's taken a much more serious turn. The turn probably began back in the '50s, when the admen realized, much to their chagrin, that advances in technology and the growing standardization of ingredients were resulting in brands that were technically identical. But somewhere along the way, the process appears to have gotten a bit out of hand. In their zeal to mesmerize an increasingly jaded public, the image builders have pumped the brands so full of personality that they've sagged under their own weight. You hardly need a semiotician to tell you that the consumer brands of today are comically overdetermined, stuffed with signifiers, choking on meaning.