Motivation

You, dear consumer, are exposed to thousands of messages each day enticing you to trade your money for consumer products. The messages are filled with claims about what the products will do for you. Marketeers who advance these claims usually want you to do something for them -- to give them money. These compliance messages usually infer you will realize some value by complying with the message's instructions. But these messages are usually devoid of respect your personal values; more often they tell you what values you should hold.

To realize the best value for your effort, as you understand value, you need information about the products pushed by these messages, and how these items that fill your local supermarket got there, straight in front of your nose, packaged into coloured boxes and bags, one more tempting than the other.

Information about the products' environmental impact, workers' rights, the producer's social conscience - or lack thereof, all this has to be available at your fingertips. Which company made the product you are considering to buy, and who owns the company?

If you don't like the product or the company, don't buy it - but you could send some feedback to the producer. Tell them why you don't like the company or product, maybe the heap of mails flooding into the PR offices takes some effect. Is there somebody hiding behind the seemingly local and small brand, maybe a multinational giant who exploits workers in poor countries and purchases commodities from wherever and whoever supplies them at the lowest price, not caring about eg. for the human rights situation in the country they are produced in?

Has somebody initiated a boycott on the company and if so, who might these people be who dare to uphold that you are a bad consumer, even a bad human being in case you decide to buy this product? Even if you don't deem consumption decisions a serious means of civil activism, you may be interested in what other consumers think about this new washing powder. Have a look on what comments they have published on the product you want to try. Maybe the most essential thing is to find out how to use these expensive sun-dried tomatoes in order to make your food taste better.

Maybe you would like to watch a short employer, employee or labor union testimony video on the working conditions of the production site. You wouldn't want to support rampant capitalists exploiting workers ruthlessly, would you?

Think what you think, value what you value, consume how you please, but if you want information to back your consumption decisions, consumerium is being built for you.