People love advertising

People like to complain about advertising. They see it on the internet, on the tele, on billboards, in magazines, and in the mail, and it annoys them. People would prefer to have their entertainment cakes and just stare at them with syrupy eyes, never having to engage their minds in the inner “manipulative” advertisements.

Thing is, advertising is not manipulative in the least. In fact, people actually value advertising as part of their daily lives, more so now than ever before.

All advertising mediums are completely optional. Without the branding and adverts that people love to complain about, none of the mediums would exist. Advertising pays for the entertainment we treasure and learn from. Advertising is a win-win for everyone. You get your entertainment, the advertiser gets a great response (when they do it right), and the medium – be it a tv program, magazine, website, or whateva’ – continues. Win-win-win, in fact.

Do you watch movie previews? They’re adverts. Do you ever see a movie preview that entices you to go see another movie? That’s an advert that worked the moment you paid for the next ticket. If the movie previews annoy you, you are free to look away or come in just in time for the feature. I usually see a packed theater during the previews.

The same choice to look away or simply not engage applies to every other advertising medium that exists. Try thinking about advertising like this: Advertising pays for the entertainment you love. Which forms of entertainment do you love? What types of advertising are bringing that value to you?

Kelly Hobkirk - teaching marketers how to harness strategy, goals, reality, and purpose to connect and do better work.

 

Kelly Hobkirk has been helping companies succeed in creative ways for nearly 25 years. His work has been featured in Time Magazine, and books by Rockport and Rotovision. Get exclusive articles when you sign up for his monthly newsletter.

Thank you! This is going to feel good.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *