Personalisation Is Asymmetric Psychological Warfare

I believe I shall purloin the term "Uncanny Valley of Sincerity".

From Terence Eden's Blog:

Another privacy nightmare. An airline wants its cabin crew to know your birthday as well as favourite drinks order, to amend personalise its service to you.
My commencement instinct is to recoil inwards horror. It sounds similar every dystopian sci-fi epic.

But why produce I experience this way? Partly it is the lack of genuine personality behind the interaction. It is the Uncanny Valley of sincerity. When Facebook wishes y'all happy birthday, it is a purely mechanical reply - non an fountain of genuine feeling.

There's too the termination of why they produce this. At a base of operations level, it is money. They desire y'all to experience a positive association alongside their "brand" as well as therefore that y'all volition pass coin alongside them.

They are hijacking your emotions. Nothing novel hither - the half-naked adult woman on a billboard trying to become y'all to purchase car insurance, the catchy pop-song designed to build y'all alternative ane build of cola over another, the ruggedly handsome homo telling y'all how white your shirts tin be...

But inwards the airline example, at that spot is a sinister asymmetry. They know everything nearly y'all - as well as y'all know nothing nearly them.

Let's right that.

Imagine every bit y'all become on the bird y'all grinning at the pilot, glance at your phone, as well as tell "Hope this landing is smoother than your in conclusion few, Sandra! Still, y'all should hold upwards fine every bit y'all exclusively had ii gin-and-tonics in conclusion night."

As the cabin crew serves y'all a drinkable "Dave! Can I become to a greater extent than peanuts? I know you're on your in conclusion alert from HR - as well as I'd loathe for someone to lay inwards some other complaint."...

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