Manipulative Advertising Works for Me
Personally, I love a good marketing technique. Even having recognized that an advertiser is manipulating me, I’ll buy. Perhaps this is because if I recognize the trick then I’m not really tricked, right? I’m the exception to the rule. Aren’t we all? Leif M. Wright says that is the reason we are all susceptible to manipulation from advertisers. He writes, “Telling you the features of a product is nowhere near as effective as establishing a trust relationship between you and the advertiser and then repeating a logo or a phrase so much that it becomes ingrained in your mind.”
On his U.K. television show, mentalist Darren Brown shows the power of manipulation by convincing a group of atheists to believe in God (when he, himself, is not a believer.) He’s also able to fool a group of advertising executives into presenting him with a campaign that he has already predicted they’d create. He simply baits the images that they’re shown preceding the meeting, and they can’t help but produce the result Brown expected.
Everyday, simple visual cues are being recorded in our brains subconsciously. A picture is worth more than a thousand words. Sometimes they are worth a thousand words and a feeling. And a feeling can be worth a few thousand words on its own. It can translate directly into a trust relationship; a perfect union of product and consumer. What could be more romantic?
We are all subject to advertiser’s influence. I’ve accepted it. It’s actually good news that no one seems to be exempt. Not me, not you, and especially not your customers. This information doesn’t change the way I operate. Because when Crest comes out with a new toothpaste formulation, I’ll know it’s not really new. But you can bet it’s going to be in my bathroom.