Advertisements are everywhere. We are commonly exposed to advertisements through a variety of media such as television commercials, print ads in magazines and newspapers, flashing icons on the internet, and even applications on cell phones. In a world surrounded by advertisements, it has become a huge challenge for ads to break through the clutter and be noticed by consumers. Today, we have practically become immune to all of the advertisements around us, and are continuing to find ways to avoid their messages. We have learned to tune out television commercials during TV shows, or entirely evade them with DVR recorders. We flip past the print advertisements in magazines, and ignore the annoying banner that flashes on the webpage as we browse the internet. By being exposed to so many ads, we barely pay attention to the “best” product of the season that we “need” to have. While we all realize that we avoid advertisements to an extent, I was able to recognize the forms of media that exposed me to captivating ads by keeping track of my media usage for two days and recording what messages I noticed.By collecting information on my media usage, I realized that most of the advertising messages I noticed were commercials on TV programs that I had not recorded. Since I typically use the internet and watch TV every day, I am exposed to advertisements through these two mediums the most. However, even though I use the internet daily, I rarely notice advertisements because they are more annoying than effective. On the other hand, I am much more likely to notice a TV commercial that captures my attention during shows such as House, American Idol, or Grey’s Anatomy, which I usually watch when they originally air rather than record. During shows such as these, I am most likely to notice and remember advertisements that use either humor or music appeals. Funny commercials, such as Old Spice’s current ad, are enjoyable and effective because I not only notice the ad, I remember it. When a commercial uses humor well, I want to watch the advertisement rather than change the channel. Also, some of the most effective commercials use music. Hearing a song, such as in an iPod+iTunes commercial, immediately grabs my attention and causes me to be more interested in the advertisement. Commercials that use music are so successful because in addition to the song getting stuck in my head, I also am more likely to remember the product.
Creating an innovative advertisement is not an easy task, but can become simpler if you understand how to effectively reach your target audience. Based on my media usage and the messages that I notice, the best way to target me would be through TV commercials. Since I often record TV shows, it can be challenging for an ad to connect with me unless I am watching a program as it airs. Shows that I am watching live, such as American Idol, can be the best programs to run advertisements on, but I still will only notice an ad if it captures my attention. In order to reach me, an advertisement typically must involve humor or music and should always be fun. Accessing a target audience is difficult, but by keeping track of the media and advertising messages I notice, I have realized what ads impact me.
