Today, we live in a society that is overloaded with hundreds
of brands. When a brand is able to reach out to the consumer, that is when the
brand is very successful. Throughout the decade, brands have been using clever
subliminal advertising to influence the consumer. For the most part, subliminal
advertising is considered illegal because it plays with the person’s subconscious;
however, in a very cautious way, brands will still use some form of subliminal
advertising because it makes the brand memorable and relatable. Brands take advertising very seriously and they would spend a lot
of time, effort, and resources to research subliminal advertising. For example,
in the short article, “The return of the hidden persuaders,” Shell Oil did some
research to find out why people choose certain gas stations over others to purchase
their gas. With their research they found out that people prefer the gas
stations where their fathers used to buy gas and “the company is now moving
forward with a ‘multifaceted campaign’ aimed at conditioning youngsters to be
loyal enthusiasts of Shell products” (Shalt). However, there has been a lot of
controversy of whether subliminal advertising is ethically okay. Experts and
advertisers are split. “In fashionable marketing circles, it has become
acceptable again to speak openly about harnessing consumers’ brain waves for
commercial ends. These days, the marketing history of the 1950s is being
relived as farce, as corporations fall over themselves to spelunk the minds of
shoppers, and a new generation of depth men seizes on the subconscious as prime
territory for subliminal appeals” (Shalt). Personally, I find most subliminal
advertising very clever and fun. The people who deal with this type of
advertising have to work really hard at including a message that relates to
everyone. No matter what happens, people will connect to brands based on how
that brand is perceived by the individual person. Virginia Valentine, president
of Semiotic Solutions, quotes “My belief is that, as our personalities get more
fragmented, products and brands can work with us,” she says earnestly. “We are
not at all about creating needs that people don’t have. We are about meeting
wants that people do have. If we can understand the way people want to live
their lives — the way they want to see themselves — and then put brands to work
in the service of that, I think that’s a beautiful thing, actually.” Subliminal
advertising is a powerful and effective tool when it comes to branding. I don’t
necessarily see it as a terrible thing, unless it brainwashes people to do
horrible things and I believe that is the only real threat when it comes to
subliminal advertising. Like anything, there just needs to be some type of
regulation.
Sources:
1. "The return of hidden persuaders" article by Ruth Shalt
