The Intention Economy

25

The Dance

There is never a good sale for Neiman Marcus that’s not a good buy for the customer.

—Stanley Marcus¹

The consumer is not a moron. She is your wife.

—David Ogilvy²

THE ARGUMENT

The Intention Economy is a dance in which vendors and customers both lead and follow each other.

In 2007, we got an apartment near Cambridge, Massachusetts, so I could be near the Berkman Center and Boston-area colleagues working on ProjectVRM. But choosing where to rent was not an easy decision. First, we wanted to find the right school for our son, who was then entering fifth grade. Second, my wife wanted to shop at a Trader Joe’s. We found both nearby.

At first, I didn’t get why she liked Trader Joe’s so much. The quality of the food mattered, ...