by Richard M. Coad,
Executive Creative Director

In the beginning of the mass media boom, the average consumer enjoyed a curiosity about advertising. It was all part of the wonder of television. For some time, that curiosity still held. But now, even enthusiasm for watching Superbowl commercials has waned. After all, it has been more than forty years.

Most would blame it on clutter. According to David Shenk in his book, “Data Smog,” the average American encountered 560 daily advertising messages in 1971. By 1997, that number had increased to more than 3,000. Current media pundits say that today, the average consumer is exposed to that many before breakfast. Or, as another authority put it, “each of us see more ads in a year than people of 50 years ago saw in a lifetime.”

Perhaps that’s an exaggeration. Certainly there would be discussion around what constitutes exposure. But none of that matters. What matters is what has happened to consumers. Globally, corporations spend over $620 billion annually to make their products seem desirable and get consumers to buy their brands. Advertising is everywhere. From increased frequency– the networks have added another minute of advertising to each hour of programming; to a “nothing’s sacred” POV about where advertising can be placed – in golf holes and bathroom stalls, on cash register receipts and even sand on the beach.

Or, to paraphrase one focus group attendee, “Your ad’s BS unless you make it interesting to me.”

Not far from the truth according to Tom Neveril, a writer for Advertising Age (so it must NOT be BS), “Simply put, if the ad isn’t a story about them, they will ignore it.” So, finding a way to engage consumers isn’t the easiest path to find.

How to detect BS in your advertising
It would be wonderful to say, “So, here’s the magic formula for creating advertising that neuters the BS Detector.” There isn’t one. But there is a growing body of evidence that suggests what doesn’t work – the things in advertising that aren’t interesting to consumers.

• The message was designed, compromised and approved by overly-broad consensus building. It is a Frankenstein, cobbled together by agreement and concession, not taste, creativity, intuition and a clear understanding of the audience.
  
  
• YOUR logo is the most prominent element (it’s YOUR logo, not THEIRS). It is HOW you seduce a consumer to pay attention to your logo that is the art.
  
  
• The story is about what’s in it for you, not them. Or to say it another way, it’s about what you want to say, not what they might want to hear.
  
  
• The entire message feels like you’re being accosted by a used car salesman.

When the human BS Detector is activated, you lose your audience.
Ads become expensive place holders instead of engaging overtures. When you’re reviewing advertising, ask yourself:

Is it seductive? We’re in the business of enticing people with our self-serving messages. How do we make each message attractive for the audience and not just accurate for us?

Have you seen anything like it before? Consumers get tired of seeing the same thing. (Many ads use the same stock photos. BS Detectors notice). Is the advertising showing something people haven’t seen before, and saying something in a way they haven’t heard?

Finally, it may be helpful to think of advertising as a way of talking WITH consumers, not to them. Successful campaigns are those that share a common language and build a bond based on making a real emotional connection.

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