"Reading this book felt a little like intellectual pinball as I was bounced between the worlds of psychology, philosophy, economics and advertising history: always entertaining while also sometimes genuinely profound. At a time when almost every pundit seems to be questioning whether advertising has a future, Faris is offering some answers."
--Will Collin, Founding Partner, Naked Communications

"Ever been on a roller coaster? They tend to hold your attention well. Slowly scaling great heights, then wonderful views, sharp unexpected turns, fast paced, and great fun. Faris's book is a roller coaster of a book - full of ideas on ideas, it held my attention at every turn. Packed full of theories and evidence to weigh and consider, this is the advertising/communications/ideas book of the year."
--Adam Ferrier, Chief Strategy Officer, Cummins & Partners

“Paid Attention gives a comprehensive view of how the advertising industry has evolved and how new technologies and social media have affected what people demand from brands today. Faris covers philosophy, psychology, behavioural economics and social behaviours to look at how planners and creatives can ensure their work is relevant, engaging and appropriate. He covers a great deal of information in an approachable and straightforward way, with stacks of recent examples of successful advertising.”
--Emily Hare, Managing Editor, Contagious Magazine

"Great ideas happen when you ask a lot of questions. If you want to ignite culture, you need to challenge conventions. Faris is one of the brightest and most curious minds in advertising, and in Paid Attention: Innovative Advertising for a Digital World, he asks questions that every advertiser and marketer should be asking themselves today about breaking through in an increasingly on-demand and attention scare world. In the process, he arrives at some revealing brand tactics and strategies that will help you create advertising people seek out not skip. Recommended reading for anyone in the advertising and marketing business.”
--Winston Binch, Chief Digital Officer, Deutsch LA

"Sometimes, reflecting on a broken mirror is a fascinating thing. When chaos disrupts the perception of order it can offer a fresh perspective and jarring insights. Faris brings indisputable advertising credibility to the fluid timeline of the now. The ongoing polemic of conversation in advertising and the precision and force of his thought, against an ever changing context, not only makes Paid Attention a powerful read, but a necessary one for any practitioner in marketing today and likely for years to come. I’m not usually one for grand pronouncements, but this could be the most important 'tool' I equip myself with for a very long time."
--Michael Kasprow, Partner and Director of Innovation, Union Creative

“Great ideas, as the book explains, are borrowed bits of other great ideas recombined in new and interesting ways. Paid Attention doesn’t just explain the concept, it lives it, combining ideas from economics, psychology, philosophy, media studies, and, of course, advertising, into a coherent narrative for this particularly incoherent time. The book is well worth your attention and you’re sure to find a few ideas to steal for yourself and your brand.”
--Noah Brier, Founder, Percolate

"Faris managed to eloquently encapsulate the ongoing radical transformations of marketing and communication as a practice. From behavioral sciences to the genesis of creativity, this book keeps on traveling between both sides of our brains in view to intelligently explain the productive tension between arts and sciences, and the recent shift towards a less intuitive, thus more evidence-based scientific approach to marketing... without, importantly, killing creativity, but au contraire, enhance it by rendering ideas more relevant and efficient."
--Christophe Cauvy, Regional Director of Digital & Innovation (Europe) at JWT

"A lively, penetrating, thoroughly intelligent investigation of how content wins attention...or fails to do so. Let Faris be your guide to new ideas and best practice."
--Grant McCracken, Affiliate Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University

"Faris's phaser is set to stun as he reverses the polarity of the ad industry in a cautionary tale against old media thinking. Salvation comes in the form of numerous helpful thoughts starters for those genuinely interested in exploring the future of marketing."
--Johnny Vulkan, Founding Partner, Anomaly

"In the digital age and beyond, marketers can no longer buy attention. That means how we define strategy, creative ideas, media, and even the role of the consumer has to change. Faris Yakob has spent a career writing and speaking about these topics. Few thinkers better understand the challenges that confront marketers, advertisers and agencies in the years to come. Finally, we have his knowledge --captured in a clear, logical text that offers readers an understanding of the recent changes, and what we can do to prosper."
--Edward Boches, Professor of Advertising, Boston University, formerly Partner and Chief Creative Officer, Mullen

"In today's global, 24/7, hyper-connected environment, our attention is the most prized commodity. New media call for new approaches to strategic communication. Drawing upon a rich and highly interdisciplinary body of scholarship on the links between cognition, symbolic expression and behavior, Paid Attention is a primer for the praxis of persuasion in the 21st century. Clearly fluent in both academic research and marketplace realities, Faris Yakob offers a welcome bridge between theory and practice. Scholars and professional communicators alike should pay attention."
--Gwenyth Jackaway, PhD, Assoc Prof & Assoc Chair of Communication & Media Studies, Lincoln Center, Fordham University