NationStates Jolt Archive

Advertising funds practically every form of media in existence, including this forum, so I don't see it going anywhere soon. But yesterday, I heard a story on NPR (one of the few sources without advertising) about an ad agency which hoped to use smells to attract people in the form of scented mail. A scientist working at the company said that smells bring back memories, so if someone smells, say, baking bread when they see an ad for Vista, they are more likely to associate Vista with something good.
This is slightly troublesome to me, and so I have two questions: one, do you think advertisers should be able to be this manipulative in selling their products? My second question is, if ads really do have an effect on how people buy things, how does this affect the market? In other words, what happens when a business controls not only supply, but has a large hand in controlling demand?

NPR (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16368920)

This is slightly troublesome to me, and so I have two questions: one, do you think advertisers should be able to be this manipulative in selling their products?

hmmm, I think some visual methods they already use are at least as manipulative as smell, the only difference might be that smell is harder to "look away from", you can only close your nose. What is more worrying IMO is advertising using false claims, especially if they use "science", and even more if they just say it's proved without giving some form of information about the actual science behind it.

Almost all advertising is manipulation. Instead of detailed facts and useful information about the products it's all irrelevant but nice pictures and slogans that they want you to associate with their brand. The purpose is not to inform you about their product, the purpose is to make you feel that their brand is familiar and good.

It's the same with the products too. It's more important what social role and lifestyle clothes signal than how good the quality is. It's more important that a cell phone or mp3 player looks cool than that it has the best features for the price. The taste in food comes more from chemicals than from what you think it tastes like.

Just accept that it's your fate to be constantly manipulated and try to believe in it. Let yourself be told those things make you happy. ;)

A scientist working at the company said that smells bring back memories, so if someone smells, say, baking bread when they see an ad for Vista, they are more likely to associate Vista with something good.

It is generally inadvisable to eat the Vista installation disc.

Since this thread is more active than the dupe one...

one, do you think advertisers should be able to be this manipulative in selling their products? they already are. now do you think perfume companies sell their product? they have pages in the magazine soaked with their scent. pick up any magazine targetting women or fashion and you'll find em in there. they started doing the same for men's cologne.
My second question is, if ads really do have an effect on how people buy things, how does this affect the market? In other words, what happens when a business controls not only supply, but has a large hand in controlling demand? no real big change. just... smellier mags will be on the newstand.

and before you think scented adverts are all powerful. I would retell one tale a military friend of mine told us about smells.

"[I] was stationed [somewhere in Europe] and on either side of the base there was a Bakery and a stockyard. when the wind blew one way, the base would be covered in the smells of the bakery and people would be craving fresh baked breads and cookies. when the wind blew the other direction... the smell would be sickening. really disgusting.

and on some rare occations... when the wind was just right...

people would get cravings for the most gawd awlful things... :p"

they already are. now do you think perfume companies sell their product? they have pages in the magazine soaked with their scent. pick up any magazine targetting women or fashion and you'll find em in there. they started doing the same for men's cologne.

To be completely honest, that's truth in advertising, since the scent is the entire purpose of cologne and perfume, haha.

Advertising funds practically every form of media in existence, including this forum, so I don't see it going anywhere soon. But yesterday, I heard a story on NPR (one of the few sources without advertising) about an ad agency which hoped to use smells to attract people in the form of scented mail. A scientist working at the company said that smells bring back memories, so if someone smells, say, baking bread when they see an ad for Vista, they are more likely to associate Vista with something good.

WOOHOO!! I'd be totally immune to this form of advertising! I say... BRING IT ON! I'm totally for this because it would have ZERO affect on me. :D