Thursday, July 16, 2009

We All Hate Some Ads: but a study shows that we don't hate all ads

We've all met them. People who condemn advertising for "blighting" our TV, movie and computer screens - plus more mundane "opportunities" like radio, highway billboards, over urinals and on grocery store floors - with advertising. Or who say, "I never make a buying decision using ads because I don't pay attention to advertising." Or who theorize that "advertising makes people buy things they don't want or need."

Each one of these has an element of truth. Advertising in general has overcrowded all of our lives with ads for crap or copycat products and/or badly conceived and badly executed ads.

There's plenty to hate right there, but read on.

This, from today's adweek.com, is the top line results of a global survey that found, among other things, that "67 percent of respondents agreeing (including 14 percent agreeing 'strongly') that 'Advertising funds low-cost and free content on the Internet, TV, newspapers and other media.' Likewise, 81 percent agreed (22 percent strongly) that 'Advertising and sponsorship are important to fund sporting events, art exhibitions and cultural events.'"

Pretty interesting stuff to think about.