The Persuaders

The segment entitled "Emotional Bonding" on the PBS program "The Persuaders" dished up quite a lot of food for thought. Generally speaking, I watch very little commercial television, therefore I do not see many ads. I do recall seeing the Saturn ads and the Cheerios commercial with the grandmother and baby. I found myself following them with more interest than I would give the average ad, more like watching a story unfold. Both these commercials made me smile the first time I saw them, no doubt, exactly the reaction the ad agencies and manufacturers hoped for. Additionally, while I tend to tune out the majority of commercials, even after the first time seeing these two, I actually gave them my attention, at least on some level. Babies are cute and tend to command attention under any circumstances, so I did not feel silly about watching the Cheerios ad. Furthermore, I thought the relationship between the grandmother and her TV grandchild was very sweet, and it made me a little sad to contrast it to my mother's relationship with my children. The Saturn commercials I watched with a combination of mild amusement (did people really go to the Saturn factory as a vacation destination?) and the sense that "I got it" regarding to their attempt to tap into bygone era values and simpler, more dependable times.

I have noticed the shift in recent years from products being pitched as "new and improved" (the "better, bigger" syndrome mentioned in the clip), to products being positioned as more of a concept, a club, a thing to strive towards. The earliest ads I can remember that did this came well before the 1990's. There are two that stand out in my memory, both are for soda pops. There was the Doctor Pepper ad which asked "I'm a Pepper, he's a Pepper, she's a Pepper, Wouldn't you like to be a Pepper, too?" And there is the Coca Cola spot with a bunch of hippies standing in a field swaying and singing "What the world wants today, it's the real thing" to the tune of "I'd like to teach the world to sing." When I was a kid, that Coke ad kept me riveted. How groovy was that, all those people on the top of a hill singing about this life changing, world changing soft drink? Sadly, I was seldom allowed soda pop as a kid. Just think how I might have changed the world if I had been part of the Coke Cult. (tee, hee.)

So, was I duped? Was I sucked in to the cult? I don't drink Coca Cola. I've never had a Saturn. I don't buy Cheerios. Did I pay attention to these commercials? Yes. Would I still smile if I were to see the Cheerios commercial with the grandma and baby? Yes, I would. Did the advertisers waste their dollar on me? Not necessarily. These effective ads have probably influenced my opinion of the products or their company's integrity. Conversely, I've seen commercials that so irritated me that I would never buy their products. Ads can be powerful.