Understanding the Influence of Ads
Written by Travis Takarangi
Throughout the day we are bombarded with ads. In 2007, the marketing firm Yankelovich Inc. estimated that we see around 5,000 ads each day (Story, 2007). We certainly see many more ads today than we did in 2007 (Atamaniuk, 2020). So, we see lots of ads, but does that really matter? Aren’t we smart enough not to fall victim to these obvious attempts at persuasion?
Some experts believe that advertising is less effective today than it used to be because internet advertising is sometimes considered futile (Duffy, 2016). Internet-savvy millennials as well as those from generation Z are often targeted by companies who use online advertising (Appleton, 2016). But most of these younger individuals report negative attitudes toward being targeted by online ads, leading some to believe that online advertising is ineffective. (Appleton, 2016). We may not like ads, but that doesn’t mean that ads don’t work. Research indicates that advertising is generally effective at creating desired changes in consumers’ attitudes (Eisend & Tarrahi, 2016). And of course, no company makes it to the big leagues without advertising. From Apple to McDonald’s, all of the most successful companies in the world utilize advertising. Without advertising, it is extremely difficult for a company to flourish. Consumers must be aware of a company to buy its products.
Interestingly, many people appear to believe that advertising works on others, but not on themselves. I used to agree – just because I saw a Coca Cola ad on TV, I didn’t immediately go out and buy a Coca Cola. But neither would you. Instead, we gain familiarity with Coca Cola, and that makes us more likely to choose it over a less familiar cola brand, when given the option.
There are some interesting psychological factors at play here. Our belief that advertising works better on others than it does on ourselves appears to be a clear case of the bias blind spot - our tendency to perceive ourselves as less impressionable or biased than others (Pronin, Lin, & Ross, 2002). Research indicates that the bias blind spot affects all of us (Scopelliti et al, 2015). In one study, only one out of 661 participants reported that they were more biased than other individuals (Scopelliti et al, 2015). Additionally, this study found that individuals who were more susceptible to the bias blind spot were less likely to listen to advice from experts or peers, and were worse at understanding their abilities, relative to others’ abilities (Scopelliti et al, 2015). Therefore, it may be beneficial to understand that we are all susceptible to persuasion and do not always know better than others.
Why does advertising work? As mentioned, familiarity seems to play a key role. The idea that we like things better when we are more familiar with them is called the mere-exposure effect (Zajonc, 1968). In one study, students read an online article containing banner ads (Fang et al., 2007). The students rated the more frequently shown ads as better than the ads that were not shown, or shown less often (Fang et al., 2007). Therefore, even if we don’t click on ads that we see online, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t influencing us. (Fang et al., 2007).
We should also understand that ads can largely influence us at an unconscious level. A 1994 study revealed how ads can influence us without our conscious awareness (Perfect & Askew, 1994). Participants in this study each read 25 magazine ads. One group of participants intentionally looked at the ads, and another group of participants looked at the ads incidentally while reading the magazine. They were then given the previously shown ads and new ads, and were asked to pick out those that were previously shown. They also indicated how much they liked each ad. The intentional group of participants was able to recognize 60% of the ads they were previously shown, while the unintentional participants only recognized 11% of them. Intentionally viewing the ads clearly helped create conscious memories of them. However, both the intentional and unintentional viewers reported liking the previously seen advertisements better than the new ads. We usually see ads unintentionally, perhaps assuming that they have no influence on us. But it seems safer to assume that they do influence us, and that we are largely oblivious to this influence. This is certainly disconcerting, but luckily, we still have plenty of control over the purchases that we make.
The psychological concept metacognition may be the key to resisting the influence of ads. Metacognition is thinking about our own thoughts (Flavell, 1979). For instance, what thoughts do we have when we make a purchase? Are these thoughts rational, or are they largely biased by advertising? Just being aware of the reasoning we have for our purchases makes us more deft consumers. The less thought we put into our purchases, the easier it is for unconscious biases to influence them. For example, if you decide to buy an SUV without researching various options and looking into pros and cons, you may just decide on a certain SUV because you have seen it in ads. Making purchases this way will eventually result in regret, as products that are advertised the most are not necessarily the best options. I am not asking that we look through every single chocolate bar or tissue box before making a decision, but just taking a minute to evaluate the reasoning behind a purchase is a great habit to have, and may just be the cure to buyer’s remorse.
Ads are a part of our lives that we have learned to accept. They don’t necessarily harm us. We just need to understand that we are not immune to their influence and that we should think critically about how they affect our attitudes and actions. By doing so, we can make more informed decisions on our purchases rather than letting companies make that decision for us.
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References
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The blog posts are for informational and educational purposes only. The posts should not be considered as any type of advice (medical, mental health, legal, and/or religious advice). All blog posts have been researched, written, and edited by the undergraduate students and alumni of the Lifespan Cognition Lab. As a teaching and research-based lab, we encourage all lab members to help make knowledge more accessible to all communities through these posts.
