Advertising is remarkably effective because it is particularly skilled at attaching emotions to brands, often circumventing logic to influence consumer behavior. The true impact of an advertisement rarely lies in its direct message but in its subtle, emotionally charged elements—what is known as metacommunication.
Metacommunication and Emotional Appeal
Metacommunication refers to all the non-verbal and tangential elements of an ad: the music, the characters, the setting, the storyline, and all the "twiddly bits" that aren't actually about the product's features. The interesting and concerning thing about metacommunication is that the human brain is programmed not to be able to unprocess it once it has been exposed. Once the emotional link is made, it is difficult to undo.
A classic example is the launch of the Renault Clio car in the UK. The overt message of the advertising campaign was that the car was terrifically easy to drive. However, the emotional metacommunication focused on a French couple flirting and being "terrifically sexy." The result was that people subconsciously associated the car with sexiness—a quality many people desire. This emotional association led to one of the most successful car launches ever in the UK.
Another famous case is Apple's 1984 Super Bowl ad. The ad, which showed a woman hurling a mallet through a screen watched by zombie-like people, only aired once at midnight in 1983 and once during the 1984 Super Bowl. Yet, the ad is known practically all over the world. The message was simple: the world was dominated by IBM, and Apple was the iconoclast, the defender of freedom and the people. This idea reflected onto co-founder Steve Jobs and became a permanent part of the brand's reputation. Even people who never saw the ad on air feel that Apple is a great company because of this established emotional mythology.
The Defense: Counter-Arguing Emotion
Since ads work by emotionally appealing to consumers, resisting them requires engaging with that emotional content directly. There are primarily two ways to prevent your emotions from being influenced by advertising:
Do not watch any advertising. This is the simplest but most impractical method.
Watch the ad very carefully and counter-argue the emotion. This method involves actively engaging with the advertising content by asking:
"What are you trying to do?"
"What are you trying to influence?"
"What is really behind this ad?"
If you see a furry animal or hear uplifting music, ask yourself, "Is this here to make me feel good about this brand? Yes, of course it is."
By looking at the emotive content and consciously acknowledging the advertiser's intent, you engage in counter-arguing the emotion. This process allows you to feel slightly more in control of your life and decisions, even if it doesn't always stop the influence entirely. Self-awareness of emotional manipulation is the best tool for protecting yourself.
Posting Komentar