The dig - is archaeology the new ethnography?

Simon Blyth and Simon Roberts

How market research has failed to deal with material culture is astonishing. The irony cannot be escaped: an industry largely concerned with the consumption of things (products), yet takes as its singular unit of analysis (consumers).

The dig – is archaeology the new ethnography?

Simon BlythUnilever plc, United Kingdom

Simon RobertsIntel, Ireland

INTRODUCTION

Archaeology is the study of the human past, using stuff. (King 2005:11)

It is archaeology's use of stuff in studying, understanding and building up pictures of cultures that first drew us to it. Archaeology provides us with a practical approach to 're-instating the missing masses' (Latour 1992) in market research. We remain astonished at how market research has failed to deal with material culture. The irony of this cannot escape you: an industry that is largely concerned with the consumption...

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