A Few Random Thoughts
You get a little time to think while listening to the radio during my 40 to 70 minute drive to the office and back each day.
The funny part of it is that most ads seem to be geared toward the most stupid people. The bad part is, when one realizes it becomes difficult to take the advertisment, the advertiser, and even the product seriously.
In Los Angeles, and probably everywhere else, certain advertisers use saturation advertising--a program in which they buy a spot in just about every commercial break, on just about every radio or tv station. How this can be successful is far beyond my ken. I hear their ads so often that I come to the state in which I change the station when I hear certain ads. There's no chance I'd actually venture into the store in question!
Also, consider the following:
- Advertisers of British cars often employ narrators with English accents. Why don't advertisers of German cars have German accents? Why don't advertisers of Japanese cars have Japanese accents?
- How many people do not know that a ten-digit phone number requires a "1" prefix?
- Don't advertisers know that "Save 20% Off" is redundant?
- Has it occurred to anyone besides me that advertisers who announce their phone number more than twice, do so because they think we're stupid?
- How is it that advertisers know what we deserve?
- What's the difference between a laundry list and a list?
- "Results may vary" is advertiser code for "sometimes it works."
- The purpose of the disclaimer at the end of an ad is to tell you that everything previously said is a lie.
- In an ad, why is it that the smart one is always a woman and the dumb one is always a man?
- What does "Save up to 25% or more" mean?
Perhaps I spend too much time listening to the radio.
Hunting for consistency...
Warm regards,
Col. Hogan
Stalag California
5 comments:
"How many people do not know that a ten-digit phone number requires a "1" prefix?"
This isn't correct. In Houston there are at least 4 area code changes and to reach any local number you have to dial all ten digits; but not the #1 since these are local calls.
TF,
I wasn't aware of that. There is no such situation here in the Stalag.
I was referring to advertisers' continual use of the "One-800" number instead of simply "800-xxx-xxxx."
The ads for cleaning products are the worst. They start off by showing you a woman, the designer mom, going to clean her toilet and to prove the superior cleaning ability of their product, they show it eating right through the dirtiest crap you’ve ever seen. It’s at this point that I think, you’re a pig woman, who else would let their toilet or shower get to that state.
Then it’s the car ads, they tell us how powerful they are and how well they handle around corners, yeah as if anyone of them would admit their piece of crap really has a wheezy sowing machine engine and handles like an ageing school bus.
There is so much advertising out there that most of the time I don’t even see it, it’s strange I know, but I guess the brain just tunes it all out.
Definition of a Laundry List: Colloq. for everything I have to get done before April 10.
Actually a 10 digit number doesn't require a "1" if you're calling from a cell phone. :-)
You can reach me at TWinoaks 3-3431
The Wine Commonsewer
What about the car dealership ads that have to have 20-30 seconds of incomprehensile high speed babbling at the end, (read:"one available at this price..."). What if we were really interested?
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