>selling ~~great~~ products Their greatness is subjective. Needs override wants, advertisement is the art of inverting wants over needs. Let's indulge our wants then, if we want something, what we want is attached with all sorts of expectations. If we're going to do something as egotistical as indulge our wants, then we want to feel like we made a great choice. That we got the best of the best. Now, let's see, if you're spending money advertising, spending money in places instead of making your product great, then are you really better than someone who spent the money making something great instead of spending money boasting about it? Surely you think, the more you sell of something, the greater it is? Maybe you're right, Hondas are great because they sell millions of them, along with millions of parts to keep them running. But then what about the rare, difficult to acquire status symbols of greatness. Such items don't need to be advertised, because the ones you're advertising to can't afford it. The rare boutique items that have unique properties due to development programs that would otherwise fund advertising programs. Why would you spend $25 on a quart of oil, when you can get 5 quarts for the same price? Because you know what that expensive oil is capable of in the harshest environments, you've put your money where your mouth is. In any case, I would argue the truly great products speak for themselves, they don't need corporate level advertisement. It's those brands, that have true customer loyalty. The Acura/Honda NSX is an amazing car, but no one cares, because it's out of the price range of most Honda buyers, and the ones that can buy it want better status symbols.