DREWspective

I’ve said it several times before, and will keep saying it until someone wakes up. We are in an age of false advertising, which is being more and more condoned by the powers-that-be. What you see is no longer what you get.

But my rant today is about another facet of advertising; an equally important one.

I’ve had this theory in the last few years that advertisers have turned to annoying, frustrating, criticising, sickening and angering potential customers into buying their products. You only have to see the countless ads (on British TV, anyway) portraying women as superior to men, as well as being told what to believe is bad and good (dull, desaturated colours for “bad”, vibrant, overexposed colours for “good”).
My theory was proven a couple of years ago, when eMule was being spammed by people advertising their modded clients. One of the spam messages ended with the following words:

“think about it, idiot”

My initial response was like most other people’s response; close the message and go about my business.

But even until this day, that message stuck in my head. Why? Because it triggered anger—a very human and instinctual emotion—and I wanted to smack whoever wrote that message in the head.

Yet another example was a site I came across yesterday, for the ebook The Truth About Abs.
Now, let it be known, I admire a lot of high-profile and successful people who have overcome life’s challenges and made their fortune. My admiration stops, however, when: they start bragging; their catch-all advice is to “get over it”; they point fingers at people who go to them for help; they forget where they came from or what they used to be.

Go to the web site, and not very far below the fold you’ll see a bold red box. And I quote:

“Feel free to leave this site… But realize that you’ll only continue to be frustrated with your flabby stomach for the rest of your life. You’ll only have yourself to blame.”

Let me tell you something, guys. I’d heard a lot of great things about that ebook, and when I visited the site I was contemplating buying it on the spot. But the honest to God truth is, that statement stopped me cold from giving him any of my money.
Call me sensitive, but I refuse to buy from anyone who resorts to fault-finding, name-calling or blaming to sell a product. The guy behind the ebook sounds like someone who could care less about your health, regardless of whether the information in the book is any good.

So why do advertisers resort to using guilt, or name-calling, to sell their products? My only guess is that those offending words help to make the advertisement memorable. The more memorable the ad = the more the potential customer will remember it = the more likely they are to buy, having been irritated.

Personally, I think it’s sick that people have to use underhanded tactics, rather than good customer service and quality products, to make money. But those are the times we live in.

I’m sure many of you have seen similar adverts around; feel free to share.