I was glued to the TV last month watching my dose of Greys anatomy and HTGAWM (yeah, i am a Shonda fan) when an ad about a fitness regimen came on. It was ludicrous to say the least and went on about “how to lose 20 pounds in a day”. Really? Like how many people have the luxury of 9hours/ day for an exercise regimen. But someone somewhere would still believe this particular ad.
Over the course of the 1 hour episode, there was approximately 15 to 20 min of advertisement. From cars to foods to insurance gadgets, even doctors were advertising their practice. We are used to life around the TV set exposed to media interpretations and images and allowing our choices to be determined by companies with ad campaigns.
Advertising rates have also gone up ridiculously. Rates to advertise at well viewed events like super bowls run into millions of dollars for a 30 second slot. According to Benrick Pitch “Advertising spots should not be priced according to the number of viewers but according to their susceptibility to persuasion”
Everywhere we look, there are ads. On TVs, radios, cars, buses, wall, internet, newspapers to mention a few. You wake up and go to bed seeing ads. The products advertised are not necessarily satisfying our needs, they are basically only trying to change who we are by making us need new things that we can really do without. Advertising to create need! We are told what we are supposed to want. Really, you don’t realize you need a particular product until you see the ad on TV and it becomes a must have.
It affects how we live our lives in modern times, that in order to be happy and more successful, we need to have more stuff. Do we have the mental strength and awareness to resist the influence of intrusive and manipulative ads?
Next time you see that ad, ask yourself, if you really need that product before running to the store to spend your hard earned cash.