Subliminal Advertising Summary

In the reading Advertisements R Us, Melissa Rubin expands upon her analysis of Coca-Colas’ 1950 magazine advertisement, and brings many points to light about how the company uses cleverly crafted advertising tactics to appeal to a specific group of Americans. By clearly communicating her evidence to back up the analysis of the advertisement, Ruben composes a thoughtful and persuasive paper. For example, Rubin explains how simple details, such as the use of their slogan on the vending machine pictured which reads “Drink Coca-Cola - Work Refreshed”, and the placement of “Sprite Boy” in the ad, all work together to send a message that makes consumers want to buy their product. Consequently, because of the evidence presented in her writing, Rubin has crafted a paper that I find logical and persuasive.

In our daily lives advertisement are seen all around is. We see them on billboards and on our phone. This is how must things get known to people .In M.T. Anderson’s young adult novel Feed, Anderson uses satire to criticize how things are advertised in order to warn readers about how advertising manipulates them into doing things.

As the article “what we are to Advertisers” by James B Twitchell informs that Advertisers use the strategy of positioning to attract consumers to their product. Positioning is a marketing strategy that exerts a brand to get the attention of customers. The product itself doesn’t even have to attract the consumer, the advertiser just needs to make an ad that creates a spark into people's minds. Although a product might be similar to its competitors, an ad can make a difference with how they are interpreted. Twitchell makes to understand that even though all of us are put into a category, we somehow all connect.

Subliminal messages are messages that are perceived in the unconscious mind that most of the time we are not aware of. These messages are mainly designed to influence that way we think and feel. They are used to get people to buy products from their company. Subliminal messages can be perceived auditory or visually. Subliminal messages should not be legal and should be banned from being used in advertisement for it can lead to negative results. There should be another way to advertise that. Doesn’t involve manipulating our minds into buying the products.

Television is an electronic telecommunication device that transmits pictures and sounds. Since its inception and release into society, the Television has grown to become extremely popular. The undying devotion to this medium has helped shape many aspects of human life. It has become a tool for education and entertainment. Businesses have found an efficient means to access the wider public through advertising. Advertising is a paid form of publicity aimed at a large audience by businesses with a view to increasing sales. Advertisements, unlike propaganda, have clearly stated sponsors. Through advertising, businesses can communicate with the user of their goods and services. The television allowed for the exponential expansion of advertisement. While older media is still used for advertising, Television’s ability to transmit moving picture and sound put it well above print media and radio (Messaris 2)

According to Robert Scholes, author of On Reading a Video Text, commercials aired on television hold a dynamic power over human beings on a subconscious level. He believes that through the use of specific tools, commercials can hold the minds of an audience captive, and can control their abilities to think rationally. Visual fascination, one of the tools Scholes believes captures the minds of viewers, can take a simple video, and through the use of editing and special effects, turn it into a powerful scene which one simply cannot take his or her eyes from. Narrativity is yet another way Scholes feels commercials can take control of the thoughts of a person sitting in front of the television. Through the use of specific words, sounds,

The number one assumption in this spoof ad I chose was the misconception that tobacco isn't additive, when in fact nicotine is highly additive. The CEO's of six major tobacco companies wants the listen to have blind trust. Just because say the tobacco isn't additive that it isn't, one CEO even states that tobacco isn't additive yet. implying that at some point it nicotine might be. The CEO's of those company's offered no evidence the tobacco is not additive they just simply stated that it wasn't.

The Avocado from Mexico 2017 ad is a great example of advertising layering (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VneoEvAJX0g). The ad promoted a specific good the avocado. Before you can figure out what the ad is about, the ad takes you through array of media propaganda and highlights, by touching upon some of the unanswered questions, such as is Area 51 (Aliens), Big Foot, the speculation that the moon landing was faked and leaking of information (current political joke with current administration). In addition, it also played upon how even in a secret society, information can be easily shared through streaming on social media and if subliminal ads are real (great twist at the end). The ad does persuade me to include the avocado, into my daily

The viewer sits on the couch, nestled inside a cozy, warm blanket with a large bowl of buttery and salty popcorn on his lap. His heart starts racing as the movie reaches its climax. Just as his lungs stop breathing and his eyes grow wide with fascination, the channel changes to an old advertisement that he’s seen a thousand times. Ads like that one appeal to the three main techniques that have subliminal messages to viewers. These different techniques have proven to be effective with television watchers. Advertisers use these three techniques to target a certain audience.

Advertisers and marketing companies are mostly interested in subliminal manipulation because by targeting consumers’ subconscious mind, they can control their involuntary actions, emotions and beliefs. The subconscious part of our mind is able to process around 20,000 pieces of information per second, where as our conscious part can only cope with about forty. This function explains why any subliminal message that our subconscious receives, can be received and responded to by consumers without them ever being aware of it. This form of mind control can be very powerful if used correctly, it could influence consumers to want and buy a product without their control (Winder).

Dave Ramsey, America’s most trusted financial adviser and a radio show host, once said, “We buy things we don't need with money we don't have to impress people we don't like.” (Ramsey). Ramsey’s quote reflects the state of consumerism that our society is going through. Most of us can easily relate to this quote, let’s be honest most of us have been there done that and then later question our genuine need for whatever we have bought. Regardless, if we feel guilty or not we ought to ask ourselves why and what made this purchase seems so important and necessary at the time. Although this might not come as a surprise to most of us, the answer would be the advertisement industry. In 2016, The United States has spent more than 198 billion U.S dollars on advertising, making America the leader in advertisement in the world (Statista). These ads are designed to force consumers to keep buying things that are unnecessary by sending subliminal messages and applying psychology to trick the consumer into a spending spree. In his short story, “Subliminal Man”, J.G. Ballard uses science fiction approach to illustrate to his readers the preposterous techniques that the advertising industry has been using to boost consumerism. Ballard believes that the consumer’s brain has been tricked into buying against their well, by using technology and applying subliminal technics. Ballard short story questions the effect of consumerism on our moral values, lifestyle, and behavior. Ballard claims that

We have decided to deconstruct the advertisement as follows: 1.what tools of persusion have been useds? Need to consider language of advertisement? (modality words, mood/tone) (voice used active)

This paper will discuss one of the "iphone 4 Face Time" commercial advertisements (HYPERLINK "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yatSAEqNL7k"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yatSAEqNL7k) that I like most due to its ability to create emotional feelings inside me. "Iphone 4" is another appealing product of Apple, launched in 2010 along with several ads on television, newspapers and internet. Apple has a very old history of producing creative and subliminal ads that touch the heart of the consumers, as discussed in the psychoanalytic approach of Sigmund Freud (O'Shanghnessy and O'Shaughnessy 166).

“Advertising is far from impotent or harmless; it is not a mere mirror image. Its power is real, and on the brink of a great increase. Not the power to brainwash overnight, but the power to create subtle and

Everyone remembers Christmas morning, running downstairs to open up the perfectly wrapped gifts. Christmas is surrounded with great memories and warm, happy feelings, this advertisement is trying to capture those feelings with the warm red colors and Santa Clause’s heartwarming smile as he enjoys a Pall Mall cigarette. Pall Mall’s advertisement is trying to promote their cigarette’s using a classic concept to convince readers to purchase their product. The advertisement does this with the cool red colors, the company’s use of Santa Clause, and lastly play of words used in the quotes on the advertisement.