Do you think subliminal advertising works? Does it have to be namebrand for you?

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

It very well may be an unconscious assumption that heavier is better. That doesn't mean that making heavier products is subliminal advertising. It is taking advantage of people's unconscious assumptions.

Subliminal advertising means that the advertiser is attempting to place an idea in your head without you being consciously aware of it. The "classic" way of doing this is by inserting a frame showing a word or image into film in such a way that someone watching probably will not be able to actually see or make out the word or image, but which supposedly will register subconsciously. Another standard example is the idea that some songs contain messages that can be identified when the song is played backwards.Because it was Parade magazine.

Thanks MysticCat. I didn't see it that way. It all makes sense. But what's wrong with the Parade? I like the articles in there so much that I have it sent to me when I'm away from home, in school.

[epchick]

Originally Posted by cheerfulgreek

That makes sense. Then why would they title the article "Subliminal Advertising?"

Cause they are stooopid, or just trying to get you to open up the article & read it.

[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by epchick

Cause they are stooopid, or just trying to get you to open up the article & read it.

lol

I dunno, I just thought it was a good article. I guess I'll call my mom and tell her that maybe it isn't so good after all.

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Because it was Parade magazine.

Exactly what I was thinking.

Referring to the mayonnaise example at the end of that article... subconsciously, as a woman trying to lose weight, a person might buy the thinner jar, simply thinking, on some level, “I’d like to look like that.” That’s a subconscious preference, or... subconscious reasoning? ... not realizing that you’re making a decision based on what you’re feeling.

In the case of the remote, many people tend to think that electronics should be heavy. Up until recently, that’s always been the case. Now, electronics are becoming smaller, and lightweight, and incredibly advanced, but some people tend to revert to their old ways and think that the heavier remote will work better. That’s simply thinking logically. There’s nothing hidden here, except for the extra material in the heavy remote.

Besides, advertising is generally seen in a visual sense, not a physical one. The shape of a jar or the weight of a remote isn’t really an advertisement.

Then there’s the perfume example... it kind of reminds me of a Seinfeld episode, when Jerry and George are in the pharmacy, and they’re looking at medicine. The two of them have a different kind and they’re reading the ‘ingredients’ back and forth to each other. Eventually, Jerry asks George where they make his. He says Jersey, and Jerry responds, holding up his medicine box, “White Plains.” George gives him a look like there’s no question as to which one he should get, and he takes the box out of Jerry’s hand.

It’s like choosing a car. If someone tells me that there are two cars that are exactly the same, one is made in America, the other is made in Japan, I’ll probably buy the one from Japan. That’s based on the fact that Japan generally makes higher quality cars. Plus, the American-made cars that I’ve had in the past haven’t lasted as long as the one Japanese car that I’ve owned.

Again, the example that I gave concerning Rockband was subliminal advertising.