Let's conclude this module by talking a little bit about some exciting new technological developments that I believe are going to fundamentally change the way we think about the self, and how marketers should be talking to each of us as a self. So let's look at how some new technologies are helping to fuel the explosion of what I like to call the digital self. What do I mean by the digital self? Free or inexpensive applications all around us, allow virtually anyone to dramatically modify his or her digital self at will, as we strategically modify the profile photos we post on Facebook, or the descriptions we share on online dating sites. I've mentioned in earlier modules that young people in particular are spending huge amounts of time online, as if you need me to tell you that. And so it stands to reason that much more of our identities are being communicated online.

And as a result, we now have the ability to literally change the type of person we are much more quickly, easily and cheaply than we ever could in the real world. For example, many people create additional identities in the form of avatars in virtual worlds like second life. And in mmm oh geez. Or massive multiplayer online games, like World of Warcraft. Americans alone, believe it or not spend about $1.6 billion dollars per year to buy virtual goods just for their avatars. That's right.

I said billion. our physical bodies continue to merge with our digital environments. We're moving from you are what you were to you are what you post or Related development is the explosion we're about to see in the area of wearable computing. Whether devices we wear on our wrist, like the Apple Watch, on our face, like Google Glass, or woven into our clothing. Increasingly, our digital interactions will become attached to our bodies, and perhaps even inserted into us, as companies offer ways to implant computer chips into our bodies. The photograph you're seeing here is a primitive version of just that technology.

Where individual so called bio hackers have already successfully inserted computer chips that monitor various things. Physical readings into their hands. So let's look at some of the applications of wearable computing that are already starting to be rolled out in the real world today, not in the future. One is sensing for sleep disorders by tracking breath, heart rate, and motion. Another is detecting the possible onset of Alzheimer's by monitoring a person's gait with a GPS that's embedded in his or her shoes. Another application tracks the ingestion of medication via sensors that are activated by a person's stomach fluid.

And finally, we have products on the market now, that can actually measure a patient's blood sugar via a contact lens that that person inserts and wears during the day. We also So talked in the very first module on perception about the revolution in augmented reality. And this is another example of the importance of the digital self, where innovative companies like Warby Parker, for example, are rolling out new applications that allow us to virtually try on a variety of objects ranging from clothing to eyeglasses to cosmetics. So the takeaway here, new technologies allow your customers to manipulate their selves with zero risk and minimal effort. Think carefully about the opportunities available to merge your brand with the digital self.