Blog 9: My feelings on advertising

Advertising is an interesting field of work. After learning about its history and the development of it over the years, it is clear that those that go into advertising must have a grasp on the cultural norms as well as the psychology behind motives and behaviors.

The biggest issue that I have with advertising is the perpetuation of perfection. There's no reason to photoshop ever person, sell every product as the end all be all. If we're selling to the common man, I'd say the majority of them understand that there are tactics being used here to try and lure you in. The lack of honesty and distortion of the truth to create this ideal "perfect" product or person is an insult to the consumer in my opinion. Th image of a billboard pops into my head.

Seriously? Women don't look like this and if they did, my first thought would be how fake they look. Their tagline, "Maybe she's born with it. Maybe it's Maybelline" really means, "Maybe you don't look perfect, but you should, so use this product and finally be complete." Ads like this make me think that advertisers believe people are mostly unintelligent, obsessed with looks, and willing to believe this kind of perfection is both attainable and needed. 

However, I do appreciate clever ads. The kind that make you laugh and think, that's a product that I want to use and not because they're telling me it completes me in some way. 

Yes, this ad is still sending a subliminal message that this drink will turn on average night into something memorable, fun, and one of a kind. But it does it in a way that doesn't target the individual and it's so over the top that they aren't trying to hide the fact that this is not actually attainable; it's just meant to give you an idea of how great this product is. 

So, my feelings on advertising are split. I appreciate it when it's used in clever and fun ways, but the overall use and purpose of it lately seems to be tricking people into buying something by ploys of sexism, racism, or human insecurity.