Persuasion... I'm Not Convinced

[Viola Moonlight]

In the modern world, there are many things that seem to sway people to choose to act upon something for the better or for the worse. You have huge companies & government authorities trying to get their messages out there to the general public or their targetted audience at least via many outlets. For the most part, they try to lure you into what they are preaching to hopefully satisfy what they are producing & for themselves to gain a profit or benefit from the whole scheme. I could talk in generalisations all I wanted to, but it isn't going to get anywhere but a neat little introduction. Since that has been satisfied, here is a nice example:

I have been a member of Subway Restaurants for about 2 & 1/2 years as a casual employee whom works in both industrial & commericalised areas. Every possible situation has surpassed me & I have handled each situation accordingly. In other words, an expert of the fast food industry that shouldn't be washing away their own career as a server. Everytime us as a business place up an advertisement on the menu boards that has its own dedicated window or space on the wall with the head offices airing TV & Radio advertisements as well to promote the product. During the usual six week promotional period, it seems that an influx of people seem to be purchasing that particular product...

What I am about to ask will be seemingly confusing to some people but I have to make the discussion. Why do people find these advertisements compelling? What makes them get pulled into the company as they persuade them as what they are promoting is the best thing going? I ask this question not in direct reference to food, but to other situations where people socialise intricatly to convince someone to run in front of a car or to chug a keg of beer or when thee governments places high-fear ads of the risks of drink-driving.

The reason I ask is simply because I am an analytical person whom does not feel persuaded by anything. Place an advertising campaign on TV to show me, someone who spends money on dining, about the latest fast food restaurant or the new burger being released has absolutely no affect on me. When I go into a restaurant like Subway, I go inside, assess how much money I have ready, what my tastes feel like that day, compare the food/drink/sides options for the ultimate combo & go from there. For the other situations, I don't feel anything at all when a drink driving ad comes on & shows people getting mutilated in front of me. If anything, I get shocked by how the human body can be wrapped & tortured, but not persuaded to NOT drink drive, despite the fact that I know not to do it.

Any thoughts?

 

[Nitafrong]

I think advertising works on different levels for different people. There is the conscious decision making process and then there is your subconscious on at work behind it all. From my experience very few people will ever admit to their decisions being dictated or influenced by an ad campaign. Why would you? No one likes to think that their decisions are influenced by anything other than their own thought processes, or that they can be controlled in such a manner.

In reality though look at yourself. Do you sometimes eat in fast-food restaurants? Do you sometimes shop in places that advertise on TV? If you fully analyse your actions you will probably find that you tend to shop more at well advertised places than not. This will be due to a mixture of reasons- if they can advertise they will probably be a bigger store and offer more savings, but I think its naive to think that our subconscious is not also at work here. We also tend to trust a company once they can make an advertisement- not on moral grounds- but trust that they aren't tricksters and will disappear with your money. We don't tend to be aware that its happening. (Now all I need to do is start hiding hidden messages in my posts about visiting my threads )