Today, technology has allowed businesses to more quickly achieve a goal that started with the first carefully designed store window- find out what your consumer wants and show them you have it. No need for window washing, item placement, or standing around waiting for customers to pass by. It’s an opportunity because those who have run a business can tell you that simply building the store, doesn’t build the buyers.

But is there something still to be said for that traditional storefront window? The one that in this picture gleams and reflects to catch our attention as we walk?

When a store owner or clerk had to be physically present to set out items or wash the front window, we could strike up a conversation with them. It might be about what was on display or it might just be complimenting the brilliant red of their dress. A relationship was formed, one that kept us coming back and glancing again at the window until we made our first purchase, then another, and another. When we had questions, we knew exactly who we trusted to provide the answers.

Perhaps that’s why advertising today, even when it is more carefully targeted than ever can feel a bit off putting. We need the human element, we crave the store clerk. We don’t just want a window full of things, we want to smile as we see the familiar motion of our friend out front caring for a space they designed just for us.

It’s a balance that’s hard for businesses to find when consumer’s faces are buried in screens of all shapes and sizes. When stores have to compete not only with the building next door but the abundance of them sitting right on our cell phones. If we don’t like living in a world of targeted ads perhaps it's time we look up, and wave at the woman washing the window.