Significance on Advertising

Advertising has an influence on everyone in one way or another, but it especially has an influence on the consumers in the United States and people who don’t realize the significance behind it. Catchy jingles, funny slogans, and cartoon characters are all key factors that have persuaded consumers on certain products. Advertising influences the toys children buy, the clothes they wear, and the food they eat. But the worst part is they’re unaware of the true meaning behind it all. 

Advertising influences children’s choice of toys for example. When a commercial shows children laughing and playing, children assume it must be a fun toy, regardless of what it really is. For example, my four-year-old nephew begs his mother for a pogo-stick all the time, even though he’s never used one before. Every time he sees a pogo-stick commercial, he’ll get excited and start screaming. The advertisements have made him believe that if he had a pogo-stick, he would instantly have the same fun and skill as the boys and girls using the pogo-sticks on TV. He also wants a fingernail kit like the one my sister has. He doesn’t really know what a fingernail kit is, but he knows from the commercials he sees that it has glitter and stickers, which are both very appealing. This is only one of the many ways advertisements can attract customers like parents into buying their products. 

Another influence advertising has is with the clothes people want to wear. Clothes from K-Mart and Target are no longer good enough. Brand names such as Hollister, Aéropostale, Abercrombie & Fitch and American Eagle are much more appealing to the people. My teenage sister is always looking through magazines examining each outfit with such little detail. She always wants to change her outfits to keep up with the latest fashion and most popular brand names without even properly knowing what she’s wearing. But of course, clothes worn by celebrities are always at the top of her shopping list. Little does she know of the huge impact she’s having in regards to buying those clothes. Sweatshops are a huge part of American society in such a very subtle way. Ignorance also plays a big part in advertising, not letting people know who actually makes their clothes. For example, workers in El Salvador's clothing factories make just about 72 cents an hour. In other factories, the workers only make 12 cents for every 20 dollar shirt that gets bought. As a US Consumer, we’re not aware of the huge problem we’re supporting. And it’s clothing brands like American Apparel who endorse their “No sweatshop made” policies that earn them the rightful publicity they deserve. 

Lastly, advertising influences even the food we want to eat. Cartoon characters are placed on boxes of foods like fruit snacks and cereal to influence and persuade young children. For instance, my family and I were grocery shopping one day. And my cousin asked me if I would buy her some yogurt to have for breakfast. Without realizing, for the cheapest brand of yogurt on the shelf and was about to put it in the cart when she said, "I want the Power Rangers yogurt." I didn’t realize at first what she was talking about until she pointed to the shelf behind me. I noticed a container of yogurt with pictures of Power Rangers characters on the front. I tried to tell her that the yogurt I had picked up, which happened to be a dollar cheaper, would taste the same. After arguing back and forth, I finally submitted and purchased the more expensive Power Rangers yogurt. As we continued shopping, she also spotted Blues Clues applesauce, Hot Wheels fruit snacks, and Spongebob cheese-crackers on the shelves and wanted me to buy those as well. I found myself once again trying to explain to a four year old that all the items taste the same as the other, non-branded kinds. Which means as long as companies continue to target children with advertising jingles, slogans, and cartoon characters, children will continue to be influenced. And they will be ignorant to the fact they are being subliminally influenced without even realizing. And it all starts at the young age, with the toys they want, the clothes they wear, and the food they want to eat. And the product with the most advertising appeal will determine it.