SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING TURNS 50.

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SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING TURNS 50.

March 4th, 2008

Subliminal advertising just hit the big five-oh. Yup, it’s been a half century since Vance Packard’s book Subliminal Advertising hit the bookshelves. That was the book that explained how advertisers use all kinds of tricks to motivate you to buy stuff you don’t need or even want without you even being aware of it. Sort of the same way a hypnotist can get you to cluck like a chicken on stage.

Yeah, right.

While advertising could never make the claim of reflecting “real life,” (mom doing housework in a dress and heels?), it’s a stretch to conclude that its subliminal promises are being lapped up by the viewing/reading public. If anything, in the half century since Packard’s book, consumers have become overly skeptical of advertising and mass communication. We’re each exposed to something like 2,000 selling messages a day, most of which we filter out without a conscious thought. The viewer’s perception to advertising is basically “This is what they want me to hear. It has nothing to do with what’s real.”

So if Photoshopping breasts into ice cubes won’t help you sell more rum, what will? Today, the highest and best use of mass media advertising, in our opinion, is as a vehicle to share the values and vision of your company. Instead of telling all consumers “These are the seven reasons you’ll want to buy my product,” you’ll be more successful telling a select niche of customers “Here is what you and I have in common, and this is why you’ll feel good about doing business with my company.”

Even “hard sell” ads have the potential to impart the personality of the company. Look at Southwest Airlines. They are in the business of selling seats on flights. And while their TV spots prominently feature price, the “Want to get away?” campaign leaves you with the feeling that this is a fun airline.