Advertising is a result of the system we call capitalism.
Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Characteristics central to capitalism include private property, capital accumulation, wage labor, voluntary exchange, a price system, and competitive markets
Our free market economy allows it so we have a seemingly unlimited amount of choice when it comes what products we consume. The variation, at times, seems like its never ending…
Alright, so I’m in Rite Aid, Walgreens, or Duane Reade (doesn’t matter because they all have the same things anyway) and need some toothpaste. Once I chose one out of the 15 brands of toothpaste in this isle, like Colgate, then comes the hard part…Do I want the purple kind, the blue kind–or wait, the super ultra whitening kind? For only a dollar more? Sold.
This phenomenon is also known as the illusion of choice. And btw, do we really need the “name brand” ultra toothpaste that cost 5 dollars if the dollar brand in poor packaging does the same thing? Aside from this generic brand not have fancy commercials or labels that show before and after photos of people who (supposedly) use the product, is Colgate worth the 4 more bucks? Probably not. But hey, this is America.
As mentioned in the tab Advertising As the “NEW” Propaganda— much of the media we see, particularly the kind which aims to sell products over ideas, are hardcore users of media manipulators. They know if there commercial is played more than a competing brand, there’s a higher chance that when it comes to your “gut reaction” that you’re more inclined to choose Colgate over Aquafresh without actually remembering the subconscious association with them. This tactic, in particular, is called fluency– it’s a psychological effect that comes from repetition. But wait, there’s more.
Lets go over a few of these tactics …..
#1 : Depicting products to encourage mental interaction is particularly creepy, but as you can see by the images below, it does look better
#2 Celebrity endorsement
#3 Product Placement
#4 “Attractive models” using products to gain power
I stopped at #4 because this is when it gets tricky. Here we have a consumer market not only instilling in us what “beauty” is, but also, what being a “woman” it. Again, many people may find this to be harmless, however, this is actually influencing ones individual perception of themselves in relation to the “ad world”. This relationship will be explored further in the Race Gender and Representation tab.
If you want to read more about the psychology behind marketing tactics check out this video.
Media Literacy For Dummies 