Truth in Advertising?

Companies seem to grow bolder by the day in the claims that are made in advertising.  This may be especially true in the difficult economic times in which we live.

Today’s example:  Sharp and their limited edition (I’m not even sure what that means for a tv) Aquos TV.  I tried to find the commercial I’ve seen a couple of times on my tv recently (ironic, I know), but couldn’t find it on youtube.  It plays when you got to the homepage of Sharp.

Everything seems perfectly reasonable in the description of what I am sure is an amazing thing to behold.  And I would imagine that it would “change the way I watch tv” (as claimed).  It is the tag line at the end that I have a little trouble with:

Change your TV |  Change your life

Then you are encouraged to visit the following website:  lifechangingbox.com

Can a TV really do that?  Can we get some customer testimonials?  What if it doesn’t change my life, can I sue Sharp for false advertising.  What if it changes my life for the worst?  Then I suppose it’s true that you get what you pay for.  I just find this a shocking statement to make in a commercial, but why should be surprised.

…the shower of advertising we soak in teaches us that we are what we own and that we can be what we buy.  Mere things are invested with meaning and hope out of all proportion to their real value…We are lost, not found, in our sea of purchases.”

That’s from David Henderson’s excellent book Culture Shift:  Communicating God’s Truth to Our Changing World

We would do well to remember during this season Jesus’ words in Luke 12:15 – ” Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

We’re doing a poll here for the fun of it – there’s a first time for everything.

Great Commercial

Nike consistently has some of the best commercials.  I love how this one recognizes that one moment in time is not just that.  Our lives are much fuller and richer than any one moment and at any one time we have an opportunity to look back and see the providence of God and the many events and people that have shaped our lives to a particular point.  Anyway, kudos to the advertising firm that dreamt this one up.

Nothing wrong with that?

Maybe you’ve seen this commercial from Discover – I actually laughed the first time I saw it.  While there is nothing wrong with a company promoting their product and services, the message at the center of this commercial really jumped out at me.  It starts out:  “We’re a nation of consumers…and there’s nothing wrong with that.”  And then were told the real problem is that we don’t have enough space to put all of our cool stuff! And that they can help.

So, here again, we are taught again that we deserve stuff, that life is found in the fulfillment of our wants, and that it is better to receive than give.  No, there’s nothing wrong with that.

Quick Hitter: Advertising & Children

There was a new segment on the nightly news tonight that grabbed my attention, even though it told me things I already knew.  The same information can be read here, but this tells you all you need to know (from the article):

Food and beverage companies spent $1.6 billion in 2006 on advertising aimed at children, a study released Tuesday by the Federal Trade Commission found, often combining ploys from TV to toys to the Internet to push kids to plead “Please Mom, buy me that! Please! Please!”

Here are the two things I already knew: 1)that advertisers spend that much targeting our children and 2)it works. How you ask? I have two children. We hear from them all the time about the things they see and want.  Of course, we should we remember that we are the parents and the “buck” should stop with us.

One more thing:  I got tired of hearing our children constantly saying “I want that” after seeing a commercial for a new toy or gadget geared towards kids (blendy pens, moon sand, etc…).  So, we made a rule…the kids cannot say “I want that”; they have to say “I like that”.  We still hear that a lot, but you wouldn’t believe how different it sounds.  It also means that we aren’t constantly saying “sorry, you can’t have that” or words to that effect.

This is cool…a wonderful confluence of two of my favorite things

(Image:  Markus Yam/AJC)

That is a huge cow (sponsored by Chick-fil-a) that will be doing the tomahawk chop at Turner Field, home of the Atlanta Braves.

Okay, I know this potentially falls under the category of “crass advertising”, but I can’t help but love the idea.  Besides, I’m impervious to advertising.

I’m hungry – I think I’ll run up to CFA now.