You mean all those claims may not be true?

NielsenBuzzMetrics (which seems to be in the process of simplifying its own identity) reports that its “Brand Association Map – which plots how consumers naturally think and talk about brands across billions of unaided conversations online – (finds that) attributes like “false”, “deceptive” and “misleading” are highly associated with advertising . . .”

Nielsen releases this finding shortly before Advertising Week 2007 which comes next week to New York, saying it has “enormous implications for how marketers interact and engage with consumers.  Media are splintering, new platforms emerging, and consumer trust toward advertising remains tepid, if not cynical.” The release was twinned with an invitation to a briefing Friday.

I think advertising has a far more profound problem. Household debt is high. We are heading into a tougher economy if not a recession. For the last several years luxury has ruled. High end consumers were the strongest buyers and that should continue. But the mass consumer will have more trouble keeping pace. Words like “value” and “bargain” may predominate online conversations. It would be interesting to see how those words map in the Nielsen tool.