Advertising

Nowadays, we are used to watching lots of advertisements at every place we go. We can find them on TV, books, magazines, social networks, radio and also on bus background. That’s because capitalism is getting bigger and bigger so we are exposed to such marketing strategy. However, some people is against of that since they think that advertising tries to manipulate our mind.

Personally, I am not against advertising if it is used in a right way, although not always it is. Advertising experts know how to make their product attractive to consumers. Last year, in my psychologist class at high school I learnt some advertising strategies. From there, now I know that, for instance, they use different colours or a catching jingle depending on the effect that they can make or a powerful slogan to catch public’s attention. This means that they can get into users’ subconscious “obligating” them to desire something that they don’t really need.

Advertising has been focused specially to child and young people. This sectors haven’t got the same personality as adults have so there are more possibilities for them to be manipulated. For example, on Christmas time around 80% of advertisement are offering toys or videogames with lots of special effects such as Wii’s announcement. Another successful advertisement is for selling Coca-Cola, one of the most powerful business all over the world. Everyone from all ages, particularly young people, has ever drunk coke. In the same way happens with adverts for mobile phones.

I understand that the different industries has to offer their products, but they must do it respectfully. Consumers are free to decide what product or service they need (or desire) and what don’t want at all. People don’t like the feeling of being manipulated, so maybe government has to control advertising. Is supposed that we live in a Free State, so we have to be free also deciding in what we are spending our money.