I am a social scientist at heart. This probably comes in part from my mom (who was getting her doctorate in sociology when I was a preteen), and my Dad (who was an engineer), so science was constantly mixed into our day to day lives. To this day, I love non-fiction that gets to the heart of social phenomena- Freakonomics, The Tipping Point, Blink, and other books that take a close look at the day to day through a different lens. Couple this with my ADHD and the fact that anything new and novel in my environment gets my attention, and you’ll get an idea of where this post is going.
I went into a local grocery store the other day. It’s been completely renovated. Sounds great, right? NO. Why? There are now TV screens at every register, posting non-stop ads. There are TV screens at the end of aisles with commercials playing non-stop. I feel bombarded by noise and information I don’t want to see or hear, but have no option to turn it off. I know that’s what the advertisers have in mind, but I can’t stand it, and I will be avoiding this market in the future. Yuck.
The future of every space becoming ad space is verified by an article in the NY Times on January 15th, entitled “Anywhere the Eye Can See, It’s Likely To See An Adâ€, which shows that everything from eggs to airline tray tables to subway turnstiles are becoming ad-laden.
I feel bombarded by ads large and small everywhere. But it’s not just ads everywhere that’s a problem, it’s not being able to control the message. Access to media and information anywhere, anytime can be terrific. Being force-fed information, on the other hand, is rarely okay.
For example, when I went to the hairdresser not too long ago, they had added computers with internet access. They were for stations where people are getting longer services, such as foils and color. This, I thought, was brilliant. While I was waiting and “wasting†my time, I was able to quickly check email, and had time left over to play a quick silly game, before it was off to the next part of the process, the wash and the cut. My 2 ½ hours of “beauty detention†were a bit more productive than before. This worked for me.
What’s the difference? Why are TV screens at the checkout annoying and computer screens at the salon a home run? Well, first of all, at the salon, I could choose the content I wanted to engage. It wasn’t a TV with non-stop up-sell messages about shampoo. It was a tool I could opt to use or not; Just as easily, I could have read a magazine. It was great. In contrast, at the grocery store, the check out TV is like watching infomercials and not being able to find the remote. It was obnoxious and an intrusion into my space. I had no choice or options.
I’ve become spoiled by the iPod and DVR. I can now customize my channels of information and programming as I have never been able to do before. It may keep me in a bubble that I create, but I can choose when and if I want to break this bubble. Whether I want silence, or entertainment, or information. Whether I want interaction or solitude. It’s my choice, not someone else’s. And if I choose to view your ad or interact with your product, it is because it is adding something valuable to my day, not subtracting from my already fragmented attention.
What do you think? Has the intrusion of advertising into everything (including TV shows being promoted on eggs) struck a nerve, or do you like it? Are babies going to get stickers on their foreheads at birth, like Chiquita bananas, with the name of the Hospital and OB GYN who did the delivery? Freshness guaranteed for 20 minutes or your money back? Where will this all end? And what is appropriate advertising?
Contribute your thoughts here. Inquiring minds really want to know.
[tags]advertising, images [/tags]
Thanks to Alibree. from Flickr, used under a Creative Commons License.
7 responses so far ↓
Megin Hatch // Jan 17, 2007 at 5:47 pm
First off, I am having intimate relations with my DVR. Seriously, how did I survive before this amazing invention? At casa de Hatch we have been cutting back on expenses left and right, but DVR? I can’t give it up. It has so permeated my existence that I often try to rewind the radio or fastforward through radio commercials. Ah, blessed DVR. PBS shows for my kids no matter the time? Dora, Magic School Bus? Ahhh…
Uh, so tv ads are completely irrelevant now for a good number of the tv consumers. I hate tvs in “restaurants” of course it could be argued that if there is a tv then it isn’t a restaurant… I also hate them in waiting rooms and well, everywhere outside a person’s home. I would never shop at the market you mentioned. yuck.
I’m cool with product placement in the tv shows that we watch- adult shows- but are we headed towards Dora eating Jello pudding pops or drinking Coke? Will Ms Frizzle start talking about the benefits of driving a ford over a honda? Or will she reveal that her haircolor comes courtesy of Loreal? Will Clifford refuse to eat anything other that kibbles and bits? Will Swiper develop an acne problem that calls for clearasil?
Hmmmm…
Whitney // Jan 17, 2007 at 7:22 pm
Stu- awesome picture- I swear, I have never seen that sticker before!
Megin- really funny, but I worry that we aren’t too far away from it. Arthur will be all about the latest band for his iPod while the Brain talks about where he is applying to college while scooping Breyer’s ice cream at his mom’s shop, while Arthur’s mom gets a new job working as an accountant for H & R Block , Grandma is using the latest arthritis meds and going to AARP meetings. the only thing that frightens me is that Madison Avenue types will mine these comments for ideas.
Megin Hatch // Jan 17, 2007 at 9:55 pm
Update: I’m making dinner and the Punks are watching Dora. Dora left her homework at Boots’ house. So she called him. On his cellphone. From her cellphone.
No kids, I am not joking. I think I might have seen Nokia on the back (ok that part’s a lie).
Annie // Jan 17, 2007 at 10:23 pm
Kinda reminds me of that scene in Minority Report where Tom Cruise is trying to get away and he’s walking past these screens and those ads are addressing him by name.
Yeah, it’s ridiculous!
Stu Mark // Jan 18, 2007 at 12:31 am
My internet provider, Verizon, has really blocked the spam, but for a good few years, while I was with Earthlink, I was hit with 20 or so bits of junkmail a day.
As a purist, I’m opposed to product placement, as I still believe that Film, like Writing, should be about the capital A Art. But that’s me.
Oh, and if they really are datamining, then, hey, I’d love to win a free iPod!!
Chantal Hubert // Jan 19, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Like Megin, my PVR and I are involved. Not a lot of people understand it, but that’s because they just don’t know.
…sorry, my eyes glazed over a bit there.
I have ADHD as well and a trip to the grocery store for me means more than buying food. I can get off track so easily if I don’t stick to my list and plan. In store advertisers are the worst for me. They tackle me as a I shop and veer me off course. That leaves me overwhelmed and cranky.
Noise, not necessarily visual items, assault my senses. I just can’t handle the overload.
Whitney // Jan 19, 2007 at 5:11 pm
I know what you mean, Chantal- all these “novel” inputs just distract me and drive me slowly around the bend and off task. This also means I do better when I have a snack beofe I go to the store- going hungry means a lot more crap ends up in our cupboards and stomachs than when I go well-prepared and sated in advance.
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