Comment on Why so many people get triggered about ads nowadays?
freamon@endlesstalk.org 1 year ago
There’s this idea, that if the companies just knew enough about you, they could send you the perfect ads. Ads you’d appreciate. Ads for things you didn’t even realise you needed until you saw the Ad. This ignores that there are entire industries, and entire product ranges between industries, that - for one reason or another - never advertise.
All the information in the world about how I might want a new microwave is no good when you realise that you never see and ad for a microwave. Likewise, the ‘perfect ad’ for me most of the time would be something for specialised tools (for plumbing or bike repair or whatever) - again, something you never see an Ad for. So the ads I get are just weird, and I spend longer trying to figure why I getting it than I ever would do entertaining the idea that I’d click on it. In fact, the only adverts I’ve ever clicked on have been by accident, so every one is just a waste of time and space.
ProtonBadger@kbin.social 1 year ago
Maybe you're someone wholly untouchable but advertising is accompanied with thorough independent market research and sales numbers and companies can directly see the impact of their ad campaigns. It's indisputable.
In the long term it's also about brand recognition, you see a "stupid ad" today and in a year when you're looking for that kind of thing you are more likely to choose that brand over another and you don't know why but "this jams seems better". The effect is proven, scary and it's something we're relatively helpless against. It doesn't help that our brains sometimes register things running in the background on the TV while we're petting the dog. Product placement in movies works like that too, if we notice it we think it's obvious and stupid, but we still notice it and even when we don't notice it our helpful subconscious is right there helping us remember.
Moving into even worse territory, on social media like Facebook they can profile you enough to know where you're leaning politically and if you're not entirely confident in your political stance they can show you ads that looks like product ads but are designed to nudge your political stance a bit to the side in the desired direction.
The effect of ads on the subconscious is scary. It's not mind control but it's can influence you.