Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: here a cult, there a cult, everywhere a cult cult -- Section 1: the cult and marketing landscape -- The cult trap -- Cult-y brands and branded cults -- The college cult: a case study -- Section 2: multilevel marketing: the canary in the cult and marketing coalmine -- MLMs are pyramid schemes, aka cults -- Aunt Susie got sucked in by the marketing...And the "hey hun" -- How to become an ex-MLMer -- Section 3: influencers as "cult lite" -- Influencers mutate from content creators to cult brands -- Getting hooked on an influencer...and what they're selling -- From skincare to coaching to cryptocurrency -- Section 4: from "cult lite" influencers to social media extremism -- Algorithms & "anger" fuel influencer extremism -- Religion meets online extremism -- Climbing out of the online rabbit hole.

"Combining industry interviews, advertising campaign analysis, and business and scholarly research, Hoodwinked offers an insider's view into how marketers co-opt our emotions in the name of corporate profits. Armed with this information, readers can learn to spot cult-inspired marketing so they can decide how, or if, they should engage with it"--