ENG 215W RD#2 Advertising & Consumerism

Kristine Asato

8 October, 2010

RD #2

The average American spends most of their time watching TV.  Half of the TV they are watching consists of commercials and adds. [THESIS]  In twenty seconds, distributors advertise products that do no support a productive lifestyle in any way.  [THESIS]  Some say that these commercials are for the fool hearted, but for those who read, advertisement can be inconspicuously found in magazines, and newspapers as well.

The main reason that ads and commercials generally have a negative impact on our lives is it leaves us insecure.  Popular advertisements include products for loosing weight, getting clear skin, and money issues.  Those who are faced with these problems are directly affected.  The before and after photos of selective commercials, are used as a base of judgment for peoples outlook.  Sometimes people are worse than the after picture making them feel even more vulnerable about their personal image. 

Some advertisements use the save time with less money approach.  If the consumer spends money on this particular item, it will save them time in the day to do other things.  For example, a consumer purchases a multi purpose sofa that is a five in one living room set.  You save money on a whole set of living room furniture, but there are flaws that some people don’t think about.  Since the sofa is five in one, there is always the issue of needing more than one at a time.  The consumer that purchased the item has guests over, but needs an entire living room set, and only has one.  The idea of a five in one living room set may sound very appealing.   Unfortunately, in retro speck the product may cause consumers to spend more money to accommodate what product lacks. 

An over exaggeration of things can delude consumers to believe the product in question is better than it is.  Over exaggeration can also lead to unnecessary purchases.  Companies spend a handful of money to produce an over exaggerated idea of a finished product.  One powerful example is a movie trailer.  Most of the great special effects, or funny parts, are shown in the trailer.  The order of the movie clips lull viewers into an anticipated excitement.  When the movie finally comes out, it’s usually a big disappointment.  The cost of the ticket, snacks, and drinks, from each person in the theatre, more than covers the cost for the misleading trailer.   

In some instances, the quality of the product being advertised is the last thing on a distributor minds.  It may be something as simple as a makeup product, all the way to affordable life insurance.  Many of the best commercials are effective among the weak hearted, or elderly.  Without realizing its hidden propaganda, the distributor feeds off of the elderly lack of awareness to decipher the false advertisement.  This leads to unhealthy habit of purchasing unneeded products.  The purchasing of these products is negatively affecting the monetary worth of a person. 

The consumer industry is being negatively impacted by false advertisement, attack of insecurities, and highly advertised inadequate products.  Many commercials feed off of the insecurities of the thousands of obese men and women.  Flamboyant advertisement, also mislead even the best of us into believing a product may have some promise.  The impact these commercials have on us as a person, and as an entire lifestyle is phenomenal.