Today's customer is more logical, less emotional....
[We] tested a site where people were supposed to click on a link in the top of the right column of a page. This link was part of a colorful banner. Nobody clicked on the link. People scanned up and down the center column, scanned up and down the left column, but totally ignored the right column. The banner with the link was by far the most prominent piece of content on the page, yet people totally ignored it.(Emphasis added)
... in another test, the content that the customer needed to see was placed in a banner in the center column, and they totally ignored that too.
We saw another test of a financial website which showed that adding pictures caused customers to trust the content less. What we need is evidence. ... More and more customers are becoming immune to traditional marketing and advertising. The new marketing is much more meat and much less bells and whistles.
First of all, he may be totally right -- people may really be more dependent upon facts than emotion. This would be a welcome change.
The evidence presented here doesn't prove that, though. It suggests what people don't react well to, not what they do.
Data is dangerous this way, though. Start telling yourself stories and the data will magically seem to prove you're right.