Google+

Advertisements can be very sneaky!

Living in world, where advertisements are so common, one may think that they are almost ‘immune’ to them. Very often, we come across brand names on television or in the newspapers and we simply ignore them. However, it has been found that consciously or unconsciously, advertisements do have an effect on the consumer’s mind

 The main goal that the advertiser is trying to achieve is to form an emotional connection with the consumer’s mind. An article by the final mile, explores how different sections of Mumbai run their business through their never failing techniques in advertising. This articles speaks of advertisements that go beyond the television and on various scales:

  “No wonder, this city also hosts some of the brightest minds in corporate marketing and advertising. With immense industry clout and persuasion powers, they have managed to rake in truckloads of money. But, shift your gaze from the corridors of corporate Mumbai and see what’s happening at street level, your perspective changes.”

 From a waterproof watch seller trying to sell his product by literally displaying the watches in a small inflated pool, to how beggars on the street try to sell their poverty through emotionally appealing ways; outstretched arms with a hungry baby by their side, Mumbai is one of the many cities that have understood the idea behind advertising completely.

 All of these acts make us wonder, what is it about sublime advertising, that almost never fails to trick our mind?

Satish Krishnamurthy voices his opinion by stating that when a consumer witnesses these events, the emotional brain takes over instead of the rational brain.

 Another dimension to the tricks of psychological advertising where the overpowering nature of the emotional brain is observed is that ofthe Diderot effect. This effect explores why consumers want things that they do not need. The Diderot effect flared from Denis Diderot’s expensive new robe. Diderot was an average earner. One day he bought an exorbitantly expensive robe. However, once he placed it in his home, all of his other belongings started appearing really unappealing to him. This urged him to purchase an all new home interior as he ended up replacing everything in his house, so that it would blend in with his prized possession: The robe.

 The Diderot effect can be observed everywhere. From mannequins displaying a head to toe complete and ‘perfect’ outfit, to home furnishing stores where a complete living room or bed room is displayed. Our mind gets tricked into believing that if we buy just one of these items, they would hold no value and it would make no sense. A sense of completion gives us satisfaction.

 Subliminal advertising is a concept that has proved to be rather popular in today's commercial world. Subliminal advertising is the method of appealing to the consumer’s mind without them actually realizing that the advertiser is doing so. A normal human mind falls prey to these techniques.  Subliminal advertising is largely observed in political elections when parties offer various commodities to voters. It is a very common scenario in India to witness various political parties trying to get votes by offering potential voters with food, ration and other such commodities.

 It is highly amusing to see how initially, the advertising world only occupied our television screens, however, now they have also taken over our minds. Now that these techniques have been exposed, let's not allow them to take over our bank accounts too!

Lagan Maheshwari