Earn More. Spend More. It’s All About The Bling
After reading The Millionaire Next Door
A great example of this is an ad I just saw on eBay.com.au (and yes I realise the irony of writing about people buying too much and telling you I was at eBay).
It is for a job-network site called CareerOne. The ad itself is quite eye-catching and interactive, but it’s the message it sends out that caught my attention. As you can see from the screen shots below it starts off with what is suppose to be your living room when you earn $40K, and as you move the slider upward, indicating how much more money you earn, the items in your living room change to more luxurious items. It ends with the slogan: See how a better job could lift your lifestyle.
Sending out the message loud and clear that the more you earn the more you should spend.
And once you click on the ad and get taken to the site it gets even worse.
You can now slide to increase how much your earn and watch how much better and more stylish your life becomes. From catching the bus to being driven in a limo. From eating beans on toast to eating lobster - it’s all there.
They say nothing about living below your means, or saving more as your salary increases, or living frugally. In fact, they seem to be suggesting that to be wealthy you have to upgrade your stuff and lifestyle with every new job or salary increase.
I guess the ad does what it is suppose to and gives people hope that by looking for a job at that site they can live better and, of course, buy more stuff. But it’s all just window-dressing.
Wealth isn’t about how much your earn - it’s all about how much you save.
What do you think about the ad? I would love to hear your views. Or maybe you have seen something similar that you want to mention.
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