Kayla Stover

Expository Writing

Advertising Essay

May 31, 2005

In the United States of America we pride ourselves in being a free nation, everyone is allowed to think for themselves and dress, talk, and act how they choose. However, the citizens of this free nation still allow themselves to be under the command of other forces, the forces of advertisement. How can this society of so-called free minds allow the obvious commands of companies out to take their money and give them products they don’t need? Well, according to author Kalle Lasn, “advertisements are the most prevalent and toxic of mental pollutants,” and I wholeheartedly agree with her (Maasik and Solomon 217).  When the average American consumer’s mind is pounded with approximately 12 billion display advertisements and more than 200,000 TV commercials everyday, it seems inevitable that they would be influenced (Maasik and Solomon 218).

In an article in Advertising Age’s Creativity called “The New Commandments,” the trend of motivational commands and phrases in advertising is revealed and analyzed. According to the article “It may have all started with the groundbreaking Nike slogan “Just Do It” back in the late 1980s. And it’s possible the trend kicked into high gear a decade later, when Apple Computer advised us to “Think Different.” Whatever the case, by the late 1990s, it suddenly seemed that most advertisers were selling not so much a product as a philosophy, an attitude, or a way of life, conveyed via slogans which often consisted of two-word commands: Live better, go farther, do more, be bullish” (The New Commandments 1).

If this technique isn’t an obvious example of the effect advertising has on our society, then I don’t know what is. The companies behind these advertisements are doing their best to influence society through their catchy commandments, permeating into consumer’s minds and, not so subtly, telling them what to do. “As Luke Sullivan, CD at Atlanta’s WestWayne, points out, “It has become more difficult to find and promote a unique benefit to a particular product.” Consequently, many advertisers and agency creatives have turned away from the product itself. Sullivan observes that advertisers have elevated the conversation—“laddering up,” to use his phrase—from mundane product benefits to higher emotional benefits. Hence, an ad for a camera now is less likely to claim that the device takes better pictures, and more likely to urge you (or to gently order you) to get the most out of your sorry life by documenting and savoring experiences. And do it now, before it’s too late” (The New Commandments 2).

This technique is dangerous because it is obviously trying to get into consumers minds and influence them, not with products but with blatant orders on how to live. I don’t think the execs behind these advertisements have any right to tell consumers how to live their lives, especially when it most likely will benefit the company and not the consumer. “As Amster Yard CD Jeff Weiss puts it: “Today, the great brands are our new philosophers, telling us how to think about life” (The New Commandments 2). Also, according to this article there are six specific command trends that are particularily prevalent in the multitude of advertisements we are exposed to everyday. The first of these messages is to “break all the rules” (The New Commandments 2). “No matter how generic and unoriginal their own products may be, advertisers are urging consumers to be different—to become rebels and nonconformists. Of course, the dropping of the other shoe comes with the suggestion, implied or stated outright, that the advertiser’s products can somehow play a role in helping people to blaze their own trails” (The New Commandments 2). The effect of this message can be seen in societies hidden love for rebels and value of individual thought and action. Society feels that in order to be that individual, you must be unmistakably different. “The voices in our heads are urging us to be more bold, advertisers are echoing back that command, again and again—sometimes verbally, sometimes through imagery of quirky, off-center behavior” (The New Commandments 3).

Another inescapable message advertisers feed us is to “have no fear” (The New Commandments 3). These advertisements blatantly encourage risk taking, forcing the idea that to be successful you must take chances and never look back. The idea of “re-inventing yourself” is possibly one of the most common messages in advertisements (The New Commandments 3). “According to Syracuse University television professor Robert Thompson, “the first commandment of advertising, and always has been—the notion that you can change your life by way of a particular purchase” (The New Commandments 3). This idea seems to easily affect consumers of our modern society, this is probably because of our notion of an “instantaneous world.” People generally feel everything about their lives, the way they look, their jobs, their outlooks, their friends, even their love lives can be changed in an instant if they have the correct products and services. Needless to say advertisers picked up on this societal attribute long ago and have been capitalizing on in for years. “Advertising has helped foster this new mindset, consistently reassuring us that anyone can be anything. A soccer mom can re-invent herself as a hip woman of style, according to a Nordstrom campaign from Fallon; an aging Baby Boomer can feel like a kid with a rubber duck again, just by buying a Mercedes-Benz” (The New Commandments 3).

“Be Proud,” is another mantra repeated over and over into society’s ears and eyes from advertisers trying to make a buck (The New Commandments 4). “For advertising to move in this direction took some daring on the part of marketers—who were always more comfortable showing Hallmark images of a homogenized society in which everyone played on the same team. The old approach was designed to appeal to the mainstream of society—the essence of mass marketing. The problem was, by the new millennium, there wasn’t much of a ‘mass’ to market to anymore, so advertisers had to begin to speak the language of each group” (The New Commandments 4). To say that media and advertising has no effect on racial and social tensions would be a lie. Advertisements capitalize on the differences among groups of people and emphasize them, trying to gain that one specific market and thus encouraging not only pride, but also prejudice.

Another aspect of American life that advertisers have tainted is that of “prioritizing your life” (The New Commandments 4). This technique promotes products by allying them with the “significant” things in the life of the average consumer (The New Commandments 4). These advertisements “encourage us to always remember what's important: family, friends, helping the poor, relaxing with a cup of Maxwell House International Blend coffee” (The New Commandments 4). The last of the six predominant advertising commandments is to “control your own destiny” (The New Commandments 5). These kinds of advertisements focus on the individual and encourage each consumer to take hold of their own lives, and of course buy a certain product.

In an article in Advertising Age’s Creativity called "The New Commandments," the trend of motivational commands and phrases in advertising is revealed and analyzed. According to the article "It may have all started with the groundbreaking Nike slogan "Just Do It" back in the late 1980s. And it's possible the trend kicked into high gear a decade later, when Apple Computer advised us to "Think Diffferent." Whatever the case, by the late 1990s, it suddenly seemed that most advertisers were selling not so much a product as a philosophy, an attitude, or a way of life, conveyed via slogans which often consisted of two-word commands: Live better, go farther, do more, be bullish" (The New Commandments 1).

If this technique isn’t an obvious example of the effect advertising has on our society, then I don’t know what is. The companies behind these advertisements are doing their best to influence society through their catchy commandments, permeating into consumer’s minds and, not so subtly, telling them what to do. "As Luke Sullivan, CD at Atlanta's WestWayne, points out, "It has become more difficult to find and promote a unique benefit to a particular product." Consequently, many advertisers and agency creatives have turned away from the product itself. Sullivan observes that advertisers have elevated the conversation -- "laddering up," to use his phrase -- from mundane product benefits to higher emotional benefits. Hence, an ad for a camera now is less likely to claim that the device takes better pictures, and more likely to urge you (or to gently order you) to get the most out of your sorry life by documenting and savoring experiences. And do it now, before it's too late" (The New Commandments 2).

This technique is dangerous because it is obviously trying to get into consumers minds and influence them, not with products but with blatant orders on how to live. I don’t think the execs behind these advertisements have any right to tell consumers how to live their lives, especially when it most likely will benefit the company and not the consumer. "As Amster Yard CD Jeff Weiss puts it: "Today, the great brands are our new philosophers, telling us how to think about life" (The New Commandments 2). Also, according to this article there are six specific command trends that are particularily prevalent in the multitude of advertisements we are exposed to everyday. The first of these messages is to "break all the rules" (The New Commandments 2). "No matter how generic and unoriginal their own products may be, advertisers are urging consumers to be different -- to become rebels and nonconformists. Of course, the dropping of the other shoe comes with the suggestion, implied or stated outright, that the advertiser's products can somehow play a role in helping people to blaze their own trails" (The New Commandments 2). The effect of this message can be seen in societies hidden love for rebels and value of individual thought and action. Society feels that in order to be that individual, you must be unmistakably different. "the voices in our heads are urging us to be more bold, advertisers are echoing back that command, again and again -- sometimes verbally, sometimes through imagery of quirky, off-center behavior" (The New Commandments 3).

Another inescapable message advertisers feed us is to "have no fear" (The New Commandments 3). These advertisements blatantly encourage risk taking, forcing the idea that to be successful you must take chances and never look back. The idea of "re-inventing yourself" is possibly one of the most common messages in advertisements (The New Commandments 3). "according to Syracuse University television professor Robert Thompson, "the first commandment of advertising, and always has been --the notion that you can change your life by way of a particular purchase" (The New Commandments 3). This idea seems to easily affect consumers of our modern society, this is probably because of our notion of an "instantaneous world." People generally feel everything about their lives, the way they look, their jobs, their outlooks, their friends, even their love lives can be changed in an instant if they have the correct products and services. Needless to say advertisers picked up on this societal attribute long ago and have been capitalizing on in for years. "Advertising has helped foster this new mindset, consistently reassuring us that anyone can be anything. A soccer mom can re-invent herself as a hip woman of style, according to a Nordstrom campaign from Fallon; an aging Baby Boomer can feel like a kid with a rubber duck again, just by buying a Mercedes-Benz" (The New Commandments 3).

"Be Proud," another mantra repeated over and over into society’s ears and eyes from advertisers trying to make a buck (The New Commandments 4). "For advertising to move in this direction took some daring on the part of marketers -- who were always more comfortable showing Hallmark images of a homogenized society in which everyone played on the same team. The old approach was designed to appeal to the mainstream of society -- the essence of mass marketing. The problem was, by the new millennium, there wasn't much of a 'mass' to market to anymore, so advertisers had to begin to speak the language of each group" (The New Commandments 4). To say that media and advertising has no effect on racial and social tensions would be a lie. Advertisements capitalize on the differences among groups of people and emphasize them, trying to gain that one specific market, encouraging not only pride but also prejudice. Another aspect of American life that advertisers have tainted is that of "prioritizing your life" (The New Commandments 4). This techni

Title: Alcohol ads under pressure. Authors: Halonen, Doug Source: Electronic Media; 12/30/2002, Vol. 21 Issue 51, p22, 1/4p, 1c Document Type: Article

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