Marketing techniques are changing rapidly. According to the
Thought Leaders in the field, it’s no longer sufficient to read a story; the
audience should now be “immersed” in it. We’re told that individuals now want
to be part of the story.
One possible reaction to this would be the old admonition,
“Get a life.” You’ll never be more immersed in anything than the reality you’re
living. You can try to change that -- there are chemical compounds that can
give you the illusion for some period of time -- but even that’s happening
within the larger framework of real life, and unless you’re careless you’ll
wake up in it sooner or later.
Immersing oneself in someone else’s experience seems like a
an odd proposition, even a scary one, although certain professions might make
good use of the technique: guidance counselors and psychics come to mind. But
what is the process supposed to be like? Do you retain your own opinions and
moral code, or are you expected to take on the views offered in the story?
Reading something,
you can retain your power of skepticism. (Ever had the experience of laughing
out loud at a bit of writing patently slanted toward someone’s agenda?) At
least you’re in your own world, surrounded by familiar things. But immersed in the story, you give that up.
Do you now take on the sponsor’s views? This isn’t the old “willing suspension
of disbelief.” That would end when you walked out of the movie theater.
Marketers today want to get at you at a deeper level. Think Mein Kampf, an early success in which a lot of people immersed themselves, with remarkable
results.
