It's an ad, ad, ad, ad, world

Photo by claire jones on Unsplash

By Deron Snyder

I was at church about 30 years ago when my pastor mentioned a movie theatre where imperceptible suggestions were flashed on the screen. 

One message was, “Drink Coca-Cola.”  The other was, “Eat popcorn.” 

He said sales of Coke and popcorn shot through the roof as a result, even though moviegoers received the prods only subconsciously.

That story always impressed me and served as proof of subliminal messages. But in my studies on message development and placement this week, I learned that the tale is a hoax. Turns out that James Vicary, the man who coined the term “subliminal advertising” and conducted the theater experiment in 1957, eventually confessed to lying about the results. There are questions as to whether he actually conducted the experiment at all.

I’m still debating whether to share my findings with Rev. Wilson.

But despite Vicary’s admission, the notion of subliminal advertising has continued to fascinate (and frighten) the public. England banned the practice right away, though that might have been unnecessary. Scientists who have long agreed that flashing words can have limited effects in lab studies, have been unsuccessful in attempts to prove such subconscious signals work in real life on a mass scale.

Of course, advertisers would be ecstatic if they could deliver undetectable messages to an unsuspecting public. Their intent to influence would be hidden. Consumers wouldn’t activate defense mechanisms against the persuasive content, because they wouldn’t realize they were “under attack.”

There would be no disengagement, no drawing of inferences, no distraction and no discounting. The medium and the subconscious message would be one.

Unfortunately for advertisers, such bliss is impossible, no matter how much they yearn. The closest they can come is product placement, a far-from-perfect strategy that yields less-than-overwhelming results, at best. Done too subtly, the placements have no impact; done too obtrusively, they’re seen as negative and irritating.

But it’s no wonder why advertisers prefer to be less obvious: The public has become masterful at tuning out sales pitches, primarily as an act of self-defense.  Studies show that the average consumer is exposed to up to 10,000 brand messages a day. Trying to absorb each one would leave little time for anything else.

It also would overtax our shrinking attention spans, which on average are down to a mere eight seconds.

A desire for stealthiness can lead some marketers to fake it, using undercover operatives to create apparent word-of-mouth. Although the practice is considered unethical by many, including the Association of National Advertisers, proponents argue that agents are educating fellow consumers, not marketing to them.

In the throes of the Information Age, lines have been blurred. Especially since the public has abundant, information-seeking capability and often exercises it to make purchasing decisions.

Buzz from word-of-mouth is great and the price can’t be beat (assuming its generated naturally, i.e., at no cost). But organizations can’t afford to leave all of their marketing to chance and hope that avid fans/supporters/customers do the work of spreading the word. Even with 10,000 brand messages bombarding the public daily, organizations are remiss if they don’t make it 10,001.

If they’re not advertising in some form or fashion, they’re not trying to succeed in accomplishing their mission.

Besides, the public actually has a love-hate relationship with ads.

Despite blocking pop-ups; clicking on skip-this-ad; switching channels/stations at commercial breaks; deleting marketing emails without opening them; and ignoring stalker ads during web surfing, consumers at times exhibit soft spots for pitches.   

According to a Northwestern University study, participants had favorable responses on 13 of 20 common advertising techniques, describing them with words like “credible,” “fair” and “good.” Matching competitors’ prices, reporting high scores on consumer sites, or mentioning high rankings by a third-party source are fine. But some other tactics are considered “deceptive” or “manipulative.”

Advertising professional Chris Raih concluded that consumers are willing to play along, as long as brands play fairly. “Today’s audience is more sophisticated than ever before,” Raih said. “They know how the machine works. … The mystique is gone.”

Behaviorally targeted ads are a great example, shown to be very effective at increasing sales. But research from Harvard School of Business shows that consumers can be turned off if transparency is lacking. Being tracked across the web – or having inferences made about their lives – can make consumers reluctant to engage with ads, versus when companies steer clear of using third-party websites to determine ad targets.

Consumers can feel intruded upon by creepy companies.

But, again, it makes perfect sense to advertise because ads influence 90 percent of consumers to make a purchase. According to a Clutch survey, consumers make purchases 60 percent of the time after experiencing a TV ad, 45 percent after a print ad, 43 percent after an online ad, and 42 percent after a social media ad. And for those with an eye toward sweet-spot demographics, the survey found that advertising influences 81 percent of millennials to make a purchase.

Conversely, ads have likewise influence on just 57 percent of Baby Boomers 55 and older.

Companies and marketers must walk a fine line. Advertise a lot, but don’t overdo it. Advertise often but watch your frequency. Use targeted ads, but don’t be sleazy. Put ads where people are, but make sure the people want them there.

“If the industry continues driving toward a better advertising experience for the consumer,” Nishat Mehta writes in Forbes, “it’s clear that new advertising mechanisms will provide a win-win solution for both advertisers and consumers.”

He says its about understanding the consumers’ needs at the right time and reaching them in the right place, which will require larger investments in ad measurement and optimization. Undoubtedly, strategy and innovation will be driven by consumers’ tastes, wants and needs – not the other way around.

So, instead of telling moviegoers to drink Coke and eat popcorn – subliminally or not – a better approach is to ask them: Would you like something to eat? Something to drink? Can we interest you in this, that, or the other?

Now those ads would be welcome and useful!

Not that the rest are going away anytime soon.