From: Uganda's Pied Piper
Re: Uganda's Pied piper: I hate to bring this up, but the question over lack of awareness/involvement on the part of American public may require self-examination…
From: Red, White & Harry
Bring on your bad self! If some foraign automaker thinks they can make hay out of detroit, just let'em try We can hang with the best, our automakers…
From: The Poison Apple
Unfortunately, depends on your p.o.v. I don' t have the disposable income to indulge myself in every fad that comes along, ergo, I am a "late joiner"…
As children growing up in the 60's and 70's, the commercials were all about the right peanut butter or hot dogs. They weren't technical, but they were appealing. Cartoon children singing to be an Oscar Meyer Weiner was one of the best. Oscar Meyer Bologna was chosen because the children knew how to spell it from the television commercials with kids singing, "My baloney has a first name…" These ads charmed the audience at a very emotional level – and it worked.
Parents bought their families Chunky candy bars because of the little tugboat that beckoned to the bridge to, "open wide for Chunky." All of those ads were very clever and attractive to the consumer. Social responsibility was never in question back then. It was about selling a product.
Today, the emotions are given a stronger influence in the commercials on television. The normal investor would never have thought about trading their stocks on eTrade if it wasn't for the adorable baby boy handing out investment advice. Making it appear that a baby is actually dishing out advice on where to invest money was marketing genius. Geico insurance has had an incredible boost in sales due to the little green gecko commercials as well as the cavemen. Whether the television ads appeal to the consumer by loving them or hating them, they are pleading to your emotional side to urge a purchase of the brand.
The corporations selling the merchandise have a responsibility to the public to present their wares to the best of their ability. Social responsibility should not be dealt with at a marketing level. By the time the clever television ads are being created, social responsibility falls on the shoulders of the consumer.
Marketing is a perfect blend of imagination, technical skill and target research. Social responsibility should be kept where it belongs – in society. Manufacturers should handle social, ethical and environmental responsibility at the production level and leave the marketing alone. Advertising should be allowed the freedom to be creative and draw in the consumers at an intellectual level without all of the weight that social responsibility brings to a situation.
As long as at some level social responsibility is being handled, then why should it be brought into the marketing arena?
Graphic Credit:
Animationfactory.com
