Immune to advertising?

Well that picture of the Curtis made me want one, so I guess it does😀

Advertising does work, but may be trying to do something different from simply making you want to buy something now.

Typically it boosts awareness of a product/brand, so when you are “doing your research” it’s something you have heard of and feel is the kind of thing you might buy, rather than something cheaper and nameless from China that might actually be just as good.

The reality is that for significant purchases none of us are 100% analytical about deciding what to buy - some level of emotion plays a significant part, whatever we may like to think.

Anybody who thinks they are immune to it is fooling themselves. Possibly if they are that easily fooled then they are actually even more susceptible to it 😉

You might not buy the headline products but it will have an effect

Anybody who thinks they are immune to it is fooling themselves.

Maybe that's why I asked in the OP!

Am I fooling myself

I do accept the answer might be "yes"!

The bulk of advertising is for the bulk of people who are "normal". If you are situated outside of that "normal" (for whatever reason) then those adverts will be pretty much meaningless.

The bulk of advertising is for the bulk of people who are “normal”. If you are situated outside of that “normal” for whatever reason then those adverts will be pretty much meaningless.

Err, thanks. I think? 😄

Some of what is used to influence you may not even occur to you as advertising.

What happens when you do your research for example? The search results you see or the articles you read or the journalists (influencers) you rely on are potentially pushing a certain brand your way in exchange for payment.

Likewise, running an ad blocker doesn't mean you don't see any advertising.

Err, thanks. I think? 😄

Speaking for myself!

You need to read the terms and conditions of STW, Footflaps. 😉

I had long since given up trying to use Youtube or STW on my phone then came... .

I find the least obtrusive advertising the most effective. When the adverts come on TV the volume goes up so I turn the sound off and  do something else for the time they run. I don't even try to watch films on channels with too much advertising such as RTL. However a channel which doesn't turn the volume up and tells me that the ads are going to last 90s I watch.

Huge banner ads are just part of the scenery and I just don't notice the product apart from the purple ones for the sex toy shop and a lingerie ad that nearly had me walk into the bus stop.

As for STW, the trowser co ad worked and I was amazed to find Sarizin still exists but I've been trying to remember the companies behind any of the really irritating shite and can't.

What happens when you do your research for example? The search results you see or the articles you read or the journalists (influencers) you rely on are potentially pushing a certain brand your way in exchange for payment.

I get that if I was looking to buy say an airfryer and just I Googled "best airfryer".  I know the top hits are sponsored.  So I'd probably ask my mates or on here or look at past threads on the subject.  For hobbies and stuff, I'd go to specialist forums - i.e. motorbike forums for biking clothes/accessories.

I'm researching tents at the moment so am using YouTube a lot.  Now clearly a lot of big channels on YT are sponsored, but there are a gazillion smaller ones with just a few dozen followers who definitely aren't.  I think it's relatively easy to spot the genuine reviews from the sponsored ones.

Ha....what Edukator said 🤣

More broadly, yes. We are of course all influenced by advertising.

One of Patagonia's most successful ad campaigns ever was their 'don't buy this t-shirt' campaign. So an anti advertising messages clearly work too. There's a 'Big Hitter' who famously claims to be immune to advertising. Looking forward to that contribution.....😜

Which reminds me. Watched a thing on Prime video a few days ago. Several adverts in a 40 minute episode. I knew it was coming.  I think I will not renew my annual subscription and just get deliveries to the corner shop.

Don't use the video enough to justify the add free version at £12 a month

It's things like the football shirt sponsors I don't really understand. For one team's supporters they are going to see it a lot - and think favourable things about the brand. But for 19 teams worth of supporters they are going to have at the very least negative subconscious feelings about the brand if not openly hostile one surely.

Or those big advertising hoardings in airports. I might not remember what brands were there - but most of my conscious feelings about being in airports are about being bored, frustrated, kettled and herded. Why would companies want my feelings about their brand these subconsciously transposed.

I think it’s relatively easy to spot the genuine reviews from the sponsored ones.

But those "genuine reviewers" will have been influenced by advertising, so you're not immune to its effects either.

Personally, I don't look at much advertising but I know it's there. And many types of advertising just don't push my buttons. For example, motor vehicle adverts rarely feature the things that influence me most.

Well my road bike still has rim brakes, mechanical gears and inner tubes so I must be immune to bike industry advertising at least! 😂

And since most of my TV watching is Eurosport and I haven't developed a gambling habit I guess television advertising doesn't work either, thank god.

Am I fooling myself, is it subliminally making me buy shizzle I don’t want? Or does it genuinely not work on some people?

Maybe?

I would differentiate between buying shizzle you dont want vs sticking a particular brand or even a product group in your memory. Show me an advert for Farage action figures for example and I am happy I wont be influenced, unless I then see an advert for throwing axes.

To take your "air fryer" example. The advert for "dissonances airfryer which includes a wax your bikechain mode" might not get you buying my airfryer (please do since seconds of research has gone into my usp) but might get you looking at airfryers in general. Since you arent prone to advertising you then come here to ask about airfryers but since most people are prone to advertising we have a bunch of people on this site who have looked at air fryers and then seen they can also use it for their bikes which then results in them all telling you to buy my great product (15% off if you buy before July).

As a general rule I am always treat people who announce they are purely rational and uninfluenced by advertising etc with suspicion. Whilst there are probably a few exceptions most of us have a bunch of cognitive biases and if you dont accept that then you will be even more at risk.

All the adverts you are exposed to throughout the day have an effect. The banner ads, the posters on bus stops, the carrier bags people are carrying, the ads that are on in the background while you make a cup of tea thinking you’re not paying attention - they all sink in.
When you go to buy a product all that info is stored in your brains somewhere, so when you are choosing which are ‘good, reliable’ brands you are influenced by stuff you didn’t even know you’d seen. And if you ask your mates they’ve experienced it all too.
I doubt if many people see an advert and think “I’m going to buy that”, not on a daily basis anyway, but surely everyone realises that they’ve been influenced sometimes for years, decades even, before they make a purchase. We buy Yorkshire tea in part because of our good associations with Yorkshire. If it was called Rutland tea it wouldn’t sell nearly as well.

I can still remember the huge ad hoarding in the entrance to our local airport the last time I visited. No idea which company had chosen the model to pose for them though.

Car ads are the ones that baffle me. Usually filmed in the wilderness or on deserted urban streets rather than in a traffic jam and the stereotypes they choose as models can't possibly correspond to the pensioners that buy say a Renault Capture. I guess even Renault know that so they've taken the piss out of car advertising and used a model wearing a cardigan in their latest effort:

As a general rule I am always treat people who announce they are purely rational and uninfluenced by advertising etc with suspicion.

Suspicion seems an unusual reaction, I wasn't expecting that!  Whilst I wouldn't claim to be purely rational I have, sort of (not entirely seriously) claimed to be immune to advertising.  Why would that make you "suspicious"? Of what, dishonesty? Ulterior motives?  If you said I was naive, deluded even I could accept that. I'm not sure how I've done anything to arouse suspicion though?

We buy Yorkshire tea in part because of our good associations with Yorkshire. If it was called Rutland tea it wouldn’t sell nearly as well.

Ah.... but how come it still sells in Lancashire? 😉

While talking about advertising what is the point of showing cars that aren't UK spec or video games which state not actual game footage? 🙄

I must be immune to bike industry advertising at least! 😂

How did you end up with glf wax then🤔

If you said I was naive, deluded even I could accept that. I’m not sure how I’ve done anything to arouse suspicion though?

Sorry that was badly phrased by me.

It wasnt meant as a direct answer to you asking about whether advertising works especially since you are actually asking which shows some uncertainty. I meant those people who state they arent influenced by advertising/news headlines/whatever without any doubt at all.

I've looked around the house in seach of things that advertising in any shape or form might have influenced the purchase of. The Marshall amplification definitely: ads, product placement; ambasadors for their products. The Samsung stuff: ads. The Fender stuff; yup, I've seen that logo in so many contexts. The really nice leather sofa; hmm maybe, it's a local furniture store that stuffed things in my letter box for years and one day I was passing. The cars: madame Edukator's choice definitely down to ads, my choice following with interest EV development rather than ads - but the ads may have helped persuade Madame to go along with the purchase. The food in the fridge: Nope, I shop in Aldi because I discovered Aldi in Germany over 40 years ago and liked the concept.

Edit: Oops, just looked in the wardrobe: Addidas stripes, Quicksilver waves, DC logos, North Face... . Buy the dream Mr Edukator.

“ but how come it still sells in Lancashire? 😉”

Fair point well made.

I wonder it it sells less well in Lancashire than anywhere else? I’d love to see figures.

I know that when Kevin Keegan advertised Sugar Puffs sales went up just about everywhere but rocketed  in Newcastle. In Sunderland, however, they plummeted.

While talking about advertising what is the point of showing cars that aren’t UK spec or video games which state not actual game footage

They only need to film one advert for multiple countries, just change the voice over, so much cheaper.

And, I'm guessing here as I don't play computer games, but the not actual footage probably looks better than the actual footage?

I have once consciously bought something from an advert, but it was actually the CD of the album which contained the song used in the soundtrack (Lightning Seeds, Jollification if anyone really wants to know) I like to think I'm immune but as people have said above it may be influencing my perception of different brands well in advance of when I go looking for the thing I need. One which I am aware works on me is the buy two get one free type promotions in supermarkets, if it's something I usually buy anyway and the sell-by date is ages away, or it's non-perishable then I'll buy more than I usually would

The food in the fridge: Nope, I shop in Aldi because I discovered Aldi in Germany over 40 years ago and liked the concept.

Same, circa 1984 as a young squaddie in BAOR.  Aldi then was laid out even more randomly and chaotically than now. Always an Aladin's cave though.  I still love the aisle of dreams - going in for some halloumi and yogurt and coming out with a MIG welder and a five man tent!

Munster tanks NAAFI 1980  😉

You may think you're immune...... trust me you're not. Just about to career move out of the advertising/adtech/marketing industry after 15+ years and there's never been more tools to segment, analyse, predict snd nudge consumer behaviour. The ability to to use propensity modelling (watch The Great Hack for an excellent layman friendly explanation how this works) to drive campaigns & change behaviour is equally amazing and terrifying.

The sheer number of eyeballs on a brand now thanks to internet and connected TV mean the first part of the AIDAA (awareness-interest-desire-action-advocate) funnel is easier than ever, adtech takes care of the rest. There's already connected TV adtech that will serve relevant ads to you based on behaviour predictions from which buckets/segments you fall into.

TLDR: It's almost impossible to be immune. You may *think* you're immune, but even then, there's a consumer profile modelled around that persona, and a map to nudge you!

TLDR: It’s almost impossible to be immune. You may *think* you’re immune, but even then, there’s a consumer profile modelled around that persona, and a map to nudge you!

Interesting. But I'm clinical. You are thinking about it from the wrong end of the lens.

Advertising is about numbers isn't it? Taking the sales of product A from X to Y. The marketing department or agency would be happy to meet a target of sales. But that sales number won't be 100%. I think you could say you could sway the general mood towards a brand/product - but I reckon you'd fail the test to take that down to an individual level.

To live up to your statement I challenge you to generate a sale from a specific user here for a specific product from a specific brand they have never bought from before. Lets make it easier for you and making it a product and a brand they are demographically likely to buy from, but just haven't for whatever reason.

Now, the STW collective is a pretty narrow subset of society and I'm pretty certain you could turn the heads of a profitably large number of us - but one specific person from that crowd? Whilst the crowd might not be immune, the individual can be - and normally is.

It oftens help to let Homer explain:

Hmmm ... how do I post a video so it appears as a nice little preview rather than as a blue text link? Bonus points if you can tell me subliminally.

@convert -  an excellent question.

But - and it's a big but - there's zero interest in the individual at granular level commercially. But group a bunch of individuals and you very quickly see patterns. We're frighteningly predictable animals (see also profiling in crime).

That said - the length of the sales cycle varies wildly from category to category, territory to territory, so driving sales is one but not all of the success measures. Net promoter score, brand awareness, market share capture, customer profiling are all uses of "advertising". But I reckon with the right timescale, the right data and the resultant plan, pretty much anyone at individual level could be influenced. Data privacy has made it a little harder but I think even I as an individual could do it. Looking at your earlier post, I picked up that you focus on "pain points" and emotions attached to boredom, frustration, stressful locations like airports, and negative feelings towards rival football teams. In your case, I'd target you with things that made you experience more of that. Then "pattern interrupt" with subtle mood lifts where my client brand subtly features, subconsciously positioning them into positive feelings. Repeat in more places, more different messages and before long, if you're "focused grouped",  you'll report positive sentiment without even realising its happened.

Hmmm … how do I post a video so it appears as a nice little preview rather than as a blue text link? Bonus points if you can tell me subliminally.

It's cut & not paste possible the url
>

<

There is a section of society that cares very little for consumerism and thus advertising has very little if any influence on them.  Looking round my flat almost all my electronics are secondhand and old.  The razer I shave with was a gift 40+ years ago.  I have never bought furniture apart from secondhand, same with crockery and cutlery and pots and pans ( I bought 3 properties fully furnished over the years)

This place is probably a bigger influence on me than any adverts.  I don't really watch TV and when I do adverts are muted and I often go off to do something when they are on.  I buy no magazines, I run adblock so I dont see any ads online, I am logged out of google and refuse cookies so I see no targeted ads anyway.

Stuff is bought for function and convenience and price.  Not for aspirational reasons.

thought of one thing - my fatbike was advertised by a bike shop as ex demo at a good price so I bought that - but I was looking for one anyway so all the add did was let me see the bargain price - and the only reason I saw it was because I follow the shop on facebook because I know the bloke running it.

I cannot think of anything else I bought because it was advertised

I do understand this sort of lifestyle is not very understandable to many

blokeuptheroad

Nice sublimity!*

that's what I did, but it came up as link. However, I'm about to try pasting the 'embed' code. Here goes:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Blimey! I tried it and got to a scary looking page that said (in big letters):

A potentially unsafe operation has been detected in your request to this site
Your access to this service has been limited. (HTTP response code 403)

If you think you have been blocked in error, contact the owner of this site for assistance.

Block Technical Data

Block Reason:
A potentially unsafe operation has been detected in your request to this site

... so I won't be trying that again.

*not sure if that's the word.

I think it depends what device you are on. I posted that from a Chromebook but I think from my phone it's just the link with no preview.

Oh, this got interesting when andyrm joined. Not in a here for the arguing sense.

There’s a ‘Big Hitter’ who famously claims to be immune to advertising. Looking forward to that contribution…..😜

Incoming!

tjagain

Full Member

There is a section of society that cares very little for consumerism...

Hi TJ. 😁

I was reluctant to contribute because I knew I would be mocked.  shame some of you cannot understand that there are folk who live very different lifestyles.  If you knew me and saw my flat you would perhaps understand.  I did change it to "very little influence"

The bulk of advertising is for the bulk of people who are “normal”. If you are situated outside of that “normal” (for whatever reason) then those adverts will be pretty much meaningless.

I'd love to know how folk think I am affected by advertising when I simply do not buy new consumer goods, I buy food without looking at the brands

I know some of you simply do not have the experience to understand that some lifestyles are very differnt

What do you think I have bought because of adverts?

A fair assessment. Oh the ironing!

Hey tj, I do understand where you are coming from, and I admire those who live the kind of life you've chosen.

However:

"What do you think I have bought because of adverts?"

A laptop? Your panniers (or bike trailer)? Your electricity provider? Your mobile phone contract? Cycle gloves?

You don't have to answer in the negative for those by the way, though I'd believe you if you did. They're just examples of things I think you might pay for, and if you pay for something, someone somewhere has tried to influence you.

Advertising is everywhere. You might think you bought your food without looking at the brand, but the brand might have paid to have their product on the shelf at eye level.

I'm sure you're as immune as anyone can be - certainly in a whole different league to me - but the gits always get you, they're professionals and they're paid a lot of money to do it.

Sorry TJ, I didn't mean to annoy you. I'm not sure that anyone is truly immune to advertising, you included, in all it's subtle forms. OK, maybe the most blatant banners, but there's much more to it in today's Internet+ age as andyrm suggests.

Edit - what easily said with more clarity. I'm 3 pints and a 1/3rd of a bottle of red in.

Given the amount of drooling on this very forum (from people who already have more bikes than they need) when Bike Company X drops their latest Enduro/Hardtail with slightly more/less travel/rake, I'm certain that the vast majority of people here ARE influenced by advertising, whatever they like to claim

^^^Wet dreams turned into reality over decimal place differences.

Tthew - no worries - I knew someone would.

Easily

"A laptop"  I don't own one.  I have a 10 yr old desktop that I bought following recommendations from more IT literate friends from the nearest bricks and mortar shop.  I can't even tell what make it is without looking

Your panniers (or bike trailer)?

Panniers bought on recommendations from friends and because they suited my needs ( ortlieb).  trailer bought secondhand

Your electricity provider?

Been with Scottish power since before there was any alternative.  Can't be arsed to change

Your mobile phone contract?

Vodafone - because they had at the time by far the best coverage in the mountains.

Cycle gloves?

Aldi builders / gardening gloves

None of those things have been influenced by advertising at all.

but the brand might have paid to have their product on the shelf at eye level.

I almost never buy the stuff at eye level.  I usually buy the stuff thats on the lower shelf.   Usually have to search for the stuff I want.  Eye level shelf usually contains stuff I do not want.  I know the ticks and thus I look at the lower shelves first 🙂

I really think you guys would be very suprised to see how I live my life

I do not see any adverts on the internet.  I don't see any on tv.  I don't buy magazines.

I did have a real think about this.  I couldn't tell you what brands stuff like toothpaste and washing powder are.

Advertising is everywhere. You might think you bought your food without looking at the brand,

He probably did. But seeing some adverts may have influenced whether he went to Tesco or Sainsbury's to do it...

I've thought of another one that does get me, and I actually seek out. Bike and running races. Some of it is word of mouth but some of it is seeing it advertised on social media and thinking 'that looks fun' and then entering. Without advertising how would I even know the race was happening? I guess that is a little different in that I want to do a thing and need an advert to inform me where and when the thing is taking place, it's got nothing to do with brand awareness, it's just information.

I am fairly immune to it.  For example I have never clicked on or purchased anything as the result of any of the literally 1,000s of adverts I have seen on STW over the years.  In fact STW would be a good test for people as you won't get many more adverts on any other site, it is at a ridiculous level.

I did recently buy a bottle of Kraken though after seeing Kraken adverts on every episode of a series I was watching and before that had never bought a bottle of rum.  Glad I did as it is rather nice!

I suppose I am more susceptible to very targeted advertising within Youtube content telling me about cycling products that I may not have been aware of.

I'd love to be immune to advertising.

Currently wearing a pair of Alpkit shorts.

Now I probably haven't seen an advert for all kit shorts, but when I needed shorts I went to the hatheresage shop. How did I know it was there?

Advertising. I walked past two other outdoor shops to get there with out going in because alpkits adverts clearly worked on me.

If you have any branded stuff, you've been advertised to ( in my opinion)

Air fryers- from none to half my mates having one in 5 years. Excellent advertising

@kormoran it wasn't an advert but here's another not an advert, happy to help 😉

Isn't the point of some really effective advertising simply that you don't know you've been, erm, tangoed, I mean, 'influenced'? Stuff that seeps into popular culture, so faced with a can of Tango and a can of own-brand orange fizz at the same price, you unconsciously grab the name you're aware of?

Just thinking you're not influenced by the process, doesn't necessarily mean that you aren't. Personally, I don't think I'm overtly influenced by ads in the sense that i gormlessly see an ad for, say, Specialized bikes, and immediately speed over to my local Spesh store and buy one, however, it might increase my awareness of the brand or, in some subtle way, shape my perception of it.

If I were TJ - which I don't believe I am - then Patagonia's promotion of its sustainability ethos might conceivably influence my perception of the brand - is that a bad thing? But basically, advertising is so embedded in our culture that even if you think you're not influenced by it, at some level, you almost certainly are.

Why are people so emphatic that they're not? Is it the subtle shame that somehow you've been manipulated? Or maybe a just 'I'm just so much better than the rest of you. Very few of you could possibly understand just how amazing I and my lifestyle are? 😉

Advertising. I walked past two other outdoor shops to get there with out going in because alpkits adverts clearly worked on me.

I'd say there is a reasonable chance you went to Alpkit this time because you've been before and liked what you previously bought. So that translation is nothing to do with advertising. But I guess why you went the first time might be advertising driven. My first Alpkit purchase was something tiny (in their first few months - so I guess about 20 years ago now) because a friend had the same thing and I borrowed it and liked it. So I don't think advertising played much of a part there either.

Where I probably have been manipulated is with a stream of adverts that have probably kept me aware of the brand over those 20 years even if they have not directly made me lust after a specific product.

He probably did. But seeing some adverts may have influenced whether he went to Tesco or Sainsbury’s to do it…

And the food available in Sainsbury's or Tesco is influenced by advertising. One of the main jobs of food advertising is persuading stockists to give over shelf space to brands. And, of course, you can't pick up most food without seeing the advertising on the label, the shape of the packaging, never mind tickets and other PoS advertising in store... everyone is exposed to it, and it's unlikely that any of us is entirely unaffected directly by it. But even if you were to be unaffected directly by it all, your options available to you are still altered by its effects on retailers and other consumers.

Were any of the three houses that you bought advertised for sale?

Word of mouth advertising is still advertising…

TJ, Just to wonder on the point of how ubiquitous advertising is, and bearing in mind that fatbikes are mostly considered a marketing gimmick, how did you know you wanted a fatbike if you're immune? Somewhere along the line, the fatbike advertising found the chink in your armour and you became aware of them and thought "I am that very demographic" and took the AIDA train from Awareness to end station Action to buy one. Somewher, however unwittingly, you've been advertised to...

A phrase wheeled out regularly in marketing courses is:

"“Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half” and it's probably the same with consumers we don't pay attention to lots of advertising, but some of it will get through when the stuff targeted directly at our very own niche segment pops up and says "Orro frames are in the sale" and boom we're on the AIDA train too (that was a short 15 minute ride for me)

Social media makes finding that chink much easier (Cambridge Analytica anyone), and at a recent meeting with a multinational consumer goods company, an AI speaker was talking about how Meta are gathering all sorts of metrics on each individual user, and will have over 100 data points on interests, health, mood, activity; all gleaned from browsing activity and other phone app data scraping - and based on those data points, Meta knows what you're purchasing online next, before you do...

Pretty scary scenarios when that falls into the wrong hands, and as a non-FB user, I have no idea how dirty the election manipulation is getting on FB.

An interesting aside that in advertising even the best plans can misfire, I saw this ad stand in waitrose the other day....

You’ll all find the nudge podcast interesting.

https://www.nudgepodcast.com/podcast

I'll happily admit to being a knowing participant in the great game as a consumer as my the various branded items filling my house will attest to.  Actually, I participate more at the brand level - i think industry insiders would call that marketing - rather than product specific advertising, as when I decide I want a particular something I will then research it to find the best something for the job rather than the most promoted.  Which brings me to the final level of the game - selling.  As someone who spent over 30 years  in a job where I was being pitched ideas multiple times a day I am automatically programmed to switch off and close down a sales conversation unless I initiated it.

I think lots of folks are inured to it rather than immune, as a society we are soaked in it after all. But if you can name a brand of fizzy pop, or a fast food outlet, or a coffee shop, or a on-line multi channel reseller or detergent, a bike brand, or well any product made by any manufacturer then you've been advertised at and its worked on you. Even if you don't understand the purpose of advertising, it's worked on you.

A lot of what I get will miss me, they are products that I have no interest in possessing or using - gambling, perfume, verbos (whatever they are). However there will be hits and brand awareness is brand awareness which is not unlearned.  It is like spamming but with better odds - stick it out there and given the number of targets you will get a hit.

If you think you are immune - think again.

bearing in mind that fatbikes are mostly considered a marketing gimmick, how did you know you wanted a fatbike if you’re immune?

If you believe that fatbikes are a marketing gimmick, that's because you've been led to believe that. It's not a conclusion you've reached on your own.

TJ has friends with fatbikes, some of whom (ahem) may have told him how much fun they are and would have ridden with him and maybe even gave him a ride on one.

If you think that marketing or advertising doesn't work on you, try this thought experiment.

You're walking along your home town high street and some random stops you and says to you "Excuse me chap, do you know where there's a MaccyDs" I will bet money that 1. You know the colour and shape of that sign, and you're mentally calculating where you've seen it, 2. You know what MaccyD is, and 3. you know what they sell.

That's advertising. That's way a brand like them and Coke, and lets face it, there isn't a human over 2 who doesn't know what those two things are, advertise so much, they don't care whether you personally buy from them or not, but they care very much that you know what it is they sell.

And we all do.

Fat bikes - I live on the coast of East Lothian. It was inevitable. It took one niche blog, that's all.  However I expect if I had seen ads for them, they would have worked.

It's now the videos that do the lifting - they don't call them influencers for nothing.

But if you can name a brand of fizzy pop, or a fast food outlet, or a coffee shop, or a on-line multi channel reseller or detergent, a bike brand, or well any product made by any manufacturer then you’ve been advertised at and its worked on you.

Even if you never buy those brands?  I never use chain coffee shops, I never use on line resellers, I very rarely buy any consumer goods new.

It really does amuse me that people who do not know me tell me what I do and why

Even if you never buy those brands?

Advertising isn't just about making you want to buy certain things, its also about making sure you know that it exists. Even when you're in the supermarket and you're looking for washing up liguid, you know what you're looking for right? You know the shape and colour of it, why else d'you think they all look the same? Why else would every brand of dishwasher liquid use the same palette of lurid colours and the same shape of plastic bottle. Why d'you think that every bleach bottle is the same shape, or that every brand of laundry detergent is sold in that shape of cardboard box?

In another thread you mentioned that you wouldn't buy coffee from Starbucks. If advertising and marketing doesn't work on you, how do you know what they are? or what they do?  I'd bet money that you'd be able to recognise the particular shade of green that they use outside their restaurants, even if you've never darken their door.

I’d bet money that you’d be able to recognise the particular shade of green that they use outside their restaurants,

You would lose that bet.  Starbucks is a green logo?  I did not know that.

So according to you adverstising still works if you never buy that product - thats weird.

how do you know what they are?

Political reading about their unethical practices

thats weird.

Of course its not. Why d'you think that Coco-Cola and McDonalds advertise so much? when every person on the planet knows what they sell.

Starbucks is a green logo?

Yep, right first time.

 I did not know that.

Weird then, that you knew, huh?

So according to you adverstising still works if you never buy that product – thats weird

That's right - advertising is primarily about increased brand awareness. Or at least, brand awareness is measurable and can be used to judge the effect of a marketing campaign whereas there's a lot of noise or variables in sales data.

Nickc - your post said a green logo - thats how I knew.  I didn't before.  I would have said black

So according to you advertising is still working if you never have and never will buy the product.  Riiiiight

By the way, I'm not mocking you, and I believe you when you say you shop randomly and don't look at brands. But Tesco (you know who they are, right?) don't need to tell you that "This is washing up liquid" you know what it is when you see it.

If threw up a picture of a fairy liquid bottle, you'd be able to tell me what it is and what it does.

I very rarely buy any consumer goods new.

But I bet there are certain brands you got to or avoid.

Some of that will be based on brand awareness, some will be based on previous buying experiences, some based on recommendations.

 Riiiiight

Read my thought experiment post, you know what those golden arches mean when you see them hanging outside a door.

To live up to your statement I challenge you to generate a sale from a specific user here for a specific product from a specific brand they have never bought from before.

It's not about evaluating the ads and making a specific purchase based on those - not usually, at least.  For some things maybe - if you see something for say, a particular EV that has a 400 mile range you might go 'ooh that's interesting' and follow it up.  That's useful when there is a genuine development that makes it above other things.

But if I say to you 'washing powder' or 'dish washing liquid' you are quite likely to think of Persil or Fairy Liquid. Why?  Because for people of the age you probably are, we were bombarded with ads for those products.  We have no idea if they are objectively better than anything else, but we simply think of them.  You've also heart of Cillit Bang and Ronseal. Why?  You're much more likely to gravitate towards something you've heard of.

I simply do not buy new consumer goods, I buy food without looking at the brands

So when you buy say, pasta sauce, do you end up with a different one each time?  Or do you close your eyes, spin around and grope the shelves to get one at random?  Why do you think supermarket own brands are so prevalent in the UK?  What supermarket do you shop at?  I assume that living in a city there are multiple options available to you.

Let's say you tore a hole in your cycling shorts, and STW plastered a huge Endura advert over this thread saying "95% off shorts!" would you think 'wow that's cheap, I'll check it out' or would you think 'I won't go there, I will go to my usual shop and pay 20x more because I must not respond to this advert'.

Sometimes adverts notify you of things you need at good prices, or with good developments.  It's not always about sentiment or image.

We live in a culture that is immersed in consumerism and advertising. Its impossible not to be influenced in some degree by it. But there is a world of difference between Awareness and Action, which I think it what TJ is getting at - direct advertising doesn't influence his purchasing decisions.

Of course things like recommendations from friends/forums etc do derive from other people being advertised to/ influenced, which comes back to the total immersion  society we live in.

Plenty of people have consumerism as a hobby - I wish I didn't and am trying harder to avoid pointless purchases. Its just unfortunate that bike bits are so shiny and that I seem to think a 2 year old phone is at the end of its life.

It really does amuse me that people who do not know me tell me what I do and why

We just think you're unaware of what you do 🙂

We all discuss gear and bikes on here.  We discuss the things we've heard of. Why have we heard of them?  You've been on here asking for recommendations before, and been given them - but why do we recommend them?  Why did we buy them in the first place to be able to recommend them to you?  Advertising and marketing pervade our entire existence. You'd have to be a literal hermit to be immune, and even then you'd be aware of brands because their names are on the rubbish you'd find blowing around the place.

It took one niche blog, that’s all.

A niche blog written by someone who had a fat bike. How did that person get the fat bike? If they bought it, why did they buy one?  How did they hear of it?

This isn't evil, by the way - fat bikes are a genuine and useful innovation, but people still need to be made aware of it.  If you invent something great but no-one knows about it, that'd be silly.

Question for TJ: how did you find out about Putoline?

From a social media marketing angle, ads & marketing has been great.  It's put a few small businesses on my radar which have provided me with some nice, good quality UK made products rather than mass-produced mega-corps stuff.

So it's not all bad.

Question for TJ: how did you find out about Putoline

I was looking for linklyfe which is what we used to use back in the day.  No longer available but putoline is a similar product and the only one available at the time.  So I was looking for a hot melt wax motorcycle chain lube and found the only one on the market.  Cannot actually remember where I bought my first tin or why I chose thaqt retailer.

But if I say to you ‘washing powder’ or ‘dish washing liquid’ you are quite likely to think of Persil or Fairy Liquid.

Nope.  I would think washing powder or washing up liquid.  I wouldn't think of a brand at all

We just think you’re unaware of what you do

Whereas I know you are unaware of what I do 🙂  It just seems beyond your ken