ADVERTISING IN SOCIETY
Looking at the advertising of a particular company, industry, society etc., over the years, would this profile be seen in the community not only about the product but also the "brand image" which is of benefit to societies. As advertising campaigns can be looked upon as part of business - they are also representative of society which is sometimes not viewed on the agenda of the advertising clients.
When advertising is used as a means of communication, it has an effect on society that can last alot longer than the selling of the product.
Consider that paintings and drawings etc., were an "advertisement" in the past to put across to society the ideology or message of the day, and it was done in the most flattering way possible to catch a moment of time or the attention of the mass but nonetheless cold and motionless, it hangs on the walls, placed on a pedestal by its admirers though it can crack with deferring opinions of its worth or beauty.
It was referring to a particular era of society but it did put across to the citizens the view of how the community should function or aspire to become like. As mixing the themes of politics and advertising also takes this same position but that particular advertising concept is called propaganda perhaps the quote that sums it up states:
"You can tell the ideals of a nation by its advertisements" ~ Norman Douglas.
Its purpose then was to serve a community because not all it's citizens had the ability to read, write or hear messages even to an autistic person, so images where used, advertisements. Much the same way advertising does still help those who haven't the access to communication today by the written word.
Nowadays, those same paintings can be viewed on a CD- ROM at random with background detail and its historical timeline included there at your fingertips called multi-media for access to most people with various abilities in different forms. Perhaps in the next century people would be looking at the advertising presented today much the same way and questioning whether it was of any real use to society.
However look at the advertising for a soft drink company stated the following:
"......The "I'd like to teach the world to sing" commercial featuring a group of ethnically diverse teenagers on a hilltop singing in perfect harmony became one of the best-known and best loved ads of the 1970, but throughout the time the commercial was on air in the US the sales remained flat [and] all it did was give people a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling about the product. In fact it was so unsuccessful that we lost market share in the entire time it ran especially in the US...."
(1)Does this reflect the fact then, as now, that people weren't or aren't ready to see diversity other than of themselves in the mirror of advertising especially if the company is global or in society?
It is better to question the purpose of any advertisement in the first instance even when going to build upon an established brand image or the objective is to sell the product for a larger market share... anything that leaves the taste flat, warm and fuzzy perhaps needs an reinvigorating advert which is as important as the business operation and not an appeaser only.
There is a soft drink called "Ginger Beer" made by Desnoes & Geddes that as far as I know has hardly advertised anywhere but its still on the shelf space in the local supermarkets. Or is it the advertising industry has become rodomontade in its professions in how it sells products to consumers without questioning whether it is the correct strategy to advertise every single time or item of any product instead of finding other methods which might work better in society.
The article written states:
"....Benetton was also an early proponent of the view (which I share) that advertising has a role to play in social awareness. As consumers become more sophisticated, they look behind the products, first of all for signs of the company's reliability, then deeper to establish its ethics and behaviour..."
(2)Therefore clients of advertising agencies should be aware of as well as profit margins but considering at the same time communicating a message to consumers regarding your products. Advertising has the possibility of improving and connecting with societies.
"Advertising is of the very essence of democracy" ~ Bruce Barton.
This can been viewed from the Nortel network company's advertisement which is a very good example of how the medium of broadcast advertisement does convey more than the product with a simple message - network.
REFERENCE SOURCE:
(1) 16th January 2000, Advertising section - Sunday Business newspaper.
(2) Rupert Howell in the Guardian Newspaper, Media Section 5, 14th February 2000.