Advertising and Its Effects

Total words: 1508

Advertising Effects

In our society today, we the people take much pride in everything we say and do. We value everything surrounding us and we take much passion in everything we have in our possession. Whether it's materialistic items, families, freedom of speech or even
Freedom of press, the American society is surrounded by a magazine, newspaper, billboard, etc., attempting to catch the American consumers eye. The guidelines used by advertising campaign are largely focused around sex, money, women, flashy cars, and partying and living life to the fullest. Sometimes we tend to take advantage of things and when we do it sometimes is misinterpreted wrong, but in the end whatever we did or said, did catch somebody's eye or ear.

As a young man who has just moved out, I have to be more organized and prepared. I can't go around spending money on another pair of shoes or more clothes or some more take out food, I have to use it wisely and keep my eyes and ears open for certain sales on food, bathroom and accessories and whatever it is I need. So I depend on those coupons and those advertisements to let me know.

Advertisements nowadays have started more trends than ever before. Not only are businesses growing, but also the use of technology has risen and is still rising. Not every advertisement is trying to get you to buy something, but advertising is also used to issue out messages or keep you informed. With the growth of new technology businesses are able to create different features that will be eye catching and once they catch the eye, you look or read to see what it is about.

One thing that's very obvious is that companies use a lot more famous people. You can find movie stars, sports stars, and politicians, anybody who is known to the popular culture. You can see Shaquille O'Neal on a nestle crunch commercial and be pictured in an advertisement, you'll find Catherine-Zeta Jones in every T-Mobile advertisement, Rick Fox, with Ford trucks, and when sports player sign shoe contracts you will see them all the time. Shaq is used because he is big and popular and the kids love him, Catherine Zeta-Jones because she is beautiful, Rick Fox because he is a "pretty-boy" and plays for a National Basketball Team, also because he is married to Vanessa Williams, and when the younger crowd sees their favorite player, have his own shoe or wears a certain one they are apt to want what their favorite celebrity has or wears. So these major shoe and clothing companies market their sales by advertising with the youth's favorite star. It is prevalent that advertising companies know who will make this companies money, include a famous person and your sales jump up. Especially if the company endorses the professional athlete or rapper with their own shoe. This a plan to get sales high for company profit, allowing a celebrity to print their name to a shoe and cut the celebrity a portion, but the majority of the profit goes to the major shoe or clothing company. This all based around the advertising game.

With advertisement today they have grown to be some kind of a sporting event because it is all competition. Sometimes, the competition is directed to a positive direction. For example, when you use to see all those cigarette advertisements on tons of billboards and every commercial and in every magazine, which triggered people to fight back. Fight back against the idea that cigarettes made you get this gorgeous girl, luxurious car, tons of money. Now there are advertisements to send the real message about the harmful effects of cigarettes. For example, in the advertisements entitled truth, showing you and telling you what the cigarettes advertisements obviously weren't going to express to you and that is the statistics of deaths caused from smoking a cigarette and giving you a little visual perspective on how many people that it has effected. So not every competition is a negative to a negative.

One thing I have noticed even more nowadays is that some advertisements are the stupidest things ever, put together. The one advertisement I can always remember, is when your driving down the interstate 210, headed east in Irwindale, you drive by the Miller Brewery and see a big billboard that says, "Think When You Drink." Now, every right-minded person understands their message, but when someone is drinking they don't have the full and proper mind setting, so they wouldn't really be thinking in the correct mind if they had been drinking. The proper statement should have been, "Think Before You Drink." The major beer company is sending the subliminal message it is ok to drink, but think while you are doing it. If the advertisement company had chosen to put the correct statement, then they would steer potential customers away from drinking. So, my take is they wanted to put a message that they are concerned with people's well being, but just as long as you're drinking there beer it is okay. It is safe to say advertisements do contain subliminal messages.

The major idea when advertising agents formulate new ads they focus on pleasing a type of audience. They believe if they just specifically market towards a certain type of consumer they will create more sales for these major companies. One of the major focal points for all companies is, sex. From beer, cigarettes, cars, cologne, hair products, etc. all advertising agents use sex to make sales go up. For example, in the advertisement for Herbal Essences, a beautiful women, who is an attorney is in the court room, takes a break from her case to go in the bathroom, to wash her hair, while washing her hair she is making obvious sex noises, very loudly and with emphasis. When she comes back to the courtroom she is gleaming with a smile and as vibrant as ever. So basically the messages that is sent to the public is that if you purchase this shampoo, you the consumer, can feel this good, as good as an orgasmic event. You can be this gorgeous women feeling just as great.

Agents are hoping to catch that consumer who will believe they will attain the life of the person in the advertisement if they purchase the product. The real effect of the product for sell may have harmful effects such as beer or cigarettes. The ads for beer won't tell you that there is a great possibility you can have health problems from drinking or they won't tell you that you can possibly die from drinking, from a car accident. Or take for example, cigarettes the advertising agents will not put in the ad that there is an enormous chance that you can get cancer from smoking. These advertisements are just marketing false ideas. False idea that the consumer who purchases this product, will become the person in the ad, with beautiful women on your arm, with money falling out of your pocket, and enjoying life to the fullest. The agents only want you to believe these false images or that these lifestyles are obtainable.

Since advertising is such a big part of our social and economical environment its important that we know what these images our doing to us. Advertising influences us in many ways, often we don't even notice its effects. This is why advertising has become such a controversial topic today in our society. Advertising is a business; everything in an advertisement is planed right down to the last word. However, we might ignore an ad if it was not filled with flashy slogans and excitement. The way ads are composed promote the consumer to buy unnecessary goods. . Advertising is designed for one purpose - to sell. To achieve this goal, advertises are willing to stretch and distort the truth, just to convincing people to buy their product. For example, an advertiser may convince buyers to purchase their product by stating that has been tested and found superior. In reality, the product is not likely to be better than any other the tests themselves doubtlessly conducted by the promoting company conducted to ensure at least something is superior about the product, even if it is only the color. These advertisements are worded carefully so that they are telling the "literal truth" - the truth is exactly what the words say, although people misinterpret the message. By using low tactics to get a consumer to buy their product. The whole concept is misconstrued.

Consumers today are blinded by the flashy themes presented in the advertisements, so they are never fully aware of the product. May it be beer or cigarettes all agents campaign to ensure the next person viewing their advertisement is going to go out and purchase their brand. The effects of advertisements are tremendous if the consumers don't open their eyes to what they are falling for. All consumers must realize that everything they see and hear may look and sound good, but in the end was it really.

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