Daily we are bombarded by the persuasive messages that the media sends us until we are on board with their ideas, products, and messages. In a sophisticated world were the techniques of persuasion keeps growing more and more complex, it’s important as members of society to have at least some understanding of how our media makes turns us into consumers.
There are up to 29 techniques used in advertising, speeches, broadcasting etc. that persuade us to agree with what we are being exposed to. These range from The Big Lie persuading through dishonesty, Simple Solutions persuading by offering one quick solution to life’s problem, to techniques like Fear persuading by appealing to an enemy, Beautiful People persuading by having good looking individuals marketing a product, to Maybe, which is persuading by using assuring words. Any of these sound familiar? There is a wide range of techniques that we all are faced with everyday without even knowing.
Some of the most common techniques used are Hyperbole, Bandwagon, Simple Solutions, Fear, Beautiful People, Warm Fuzzes, and Plain Folk. Each of these persuasive techniques are prime examples of our media manipulating us into order.
Hyperbole is to make an exaggerated claim, when we see a product that is followed by a tag line reading “The best smoke ever!” we’re going to have assumptions, we’re going to think, ‘what does the best smoke ever feel like?’ It’s a trick that is played in our mind until we spend the five dollars to try the product and know for ourselves.
Bandwagon, saying that everyone is doing it can be beneficial for both advertisers and politicians. It allows the politician to make you feel secure in your choices, and putting your faith and reliance in their hands. To consumers, it gives off the feeling that if you don’t have this product, you are going to be the only one without it, therefore dubbing you as an outcast.
Simple Solutions will offer you that quick fix to that on going problem, a perfect example are weight loss products that claim they will take away all that extra weight without you having to exercise and eat correctly. Not to mention the restoring of your probably suffering self esteem.
Fear is a technique that is controlling our news. To persuade by appealing to an enemy, such as a communist or terrorist, is something that our news media exposes us to daily. It is always bad news; it’s always something negative that is the top story and rarely an achievement of any kind, but we as society would rather hear the bad then the good.
Beautiful people is a technique used that persuades us because we see advertisements that are endorsed by good-looking individuals. It leads us to believe that since they use this product, we will look like them if we use it too. This is mainly used for the advertisement of make-up, which can also fit into the Simple Solution technique.
Warm Fuzzes is typically used in advertisements that are directed towards children or families. These ads typically feature children or animals that are larger and fuzzy, or talking. An example would be dog food commercials or even a family oriented mascot for a company, like “Little Debbie”.
Finally, Plain Folk, and this technique is one that can be featured in most media outlets. This technique uses people that they feel are relatable to the typical average American. They feature people in everyday jobs with a problem they encounter, and then comes the product to save the day. One example is advertisements for things such as Aspirin or Tylenol. A mother can mention that lifting her child or doing housework causes her back pain, take an Aspirin! A construction worker says that the noise of the site causes a sever headache, take Tylenol!
All these different techniques are just some of the ways that we are manipulated into being a consumer of certain products, or believing certain news briefs. “It effects me much more then I realize,” says Meagan King, a sophomore at Clark University. “I believe it much more then I’d like to admit. If I see a commercial and can relate to someone, I’ll believe what the advertisement is telling me.” This is true of many people in today’s society. Meagan is just one of many that believe what they hear, and why shouldn’t she? We should feel that we can trust in the media to want to benefit society over their wallets. Unfortunately, this statement falls far from true most of the time.
“I’ll try many products until I find one,” King begins. “But I’m a busy person; I just grab what I know. If your advertising campaign is better then the competitors, I’ll purchase your product because it’s in my head.” With such hectic lifestyles, we all put some reliance on the media to make things easier for us, and to directly give us what we need.
“It’s the same with the news really.” King says. “I usually just hear bits and pieces of stories, and that’s what I have to go from. If the media wanted me to believe a pig flew and CNN did a story, I’d probably believe it.” There you have it media sources – you’ve officially got us.
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