The Joneses was a great movie. Personally, I would categorize the Jones family’s lives as personal selling. Just because they don’t tell the client to buy the product straight up doesn’t mean they’re not telling them to buy it. For example, when Steve went up to Larry to convince him to buy some gifts for Summer to improve his romantic relationship with her he wasn’t telling Larry he had to buy it, but he suggested it could help because it works on Steve’s relationship. Steve was telling him to buy the products without being obvious about it, like how Summer would market her products. The family is smart about the way they present themselves and the products. It’s strategic so that a customer would subconsciously think, “Wow, that’s so pretty. I have to buy it.”

I don’t have a favorite brand just because I don’t pay attention too much to brands, so I personally can’t tell any similarities between the Jones family and a brand.

I don’t think the way they marketed the products in the movie was ethical at all. They entered people’s lives and built a relationship with them just for it all to be a lie. It ended up with Larry committing suicide because of all the products the family was marketing. It went too far.

If I were friends with someone in that family and found out their secret, I would be so upset. I would feel lied to and exploited just for personal gain. I would probably be very petty and expose them just because what they’re doing to the neighborhood is just messed up. I would reassure them I wouldn’t tell anyone, then tell everyone.