The average American spends fifteen hours a week watching television. During that time, viewers are exposed to an infinite number of advertisements. While not everyone is influenced by all advertisements, each of us is bound to become an advertising junkie at some point in our lives. Billions of dollars are spent by American companies to create, manage, test, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. American companies use various advertising techniques to manipulate consumers into buying their products. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayAn essential element of advertising techniques is to capture the attention of viewers and make them remember the product after seeing the commercial. Without carrying out these tasks, the commercial is useless regardless of the quality of the product. One way to grab viewers' attention is to arouse their curiosity at the beginning of the commercial. For example, a Powerade commercial featured a football player painting his nails in a locker room before a game. The scene may seem peculiar to most viewers. The image intrigues viewers and encourages them to continue watching the commercial. Slogans in commercials help viewers remember products. Nike is one such commercial that has been very successful with its slogan: Just do it. Consumers around the world associate this imperative with Nike shoes. When someone is thinking of buying a pair of sports shoes, they will remember the slogan and think of Nike shoes. When advertising their products, companies keep their potential consumers in mind. After all, consumers will determine the effectiveness of commercials. Commercials make their products seem potentially useful to their intended audience. For example, most of Handi-Snacks' intended audience is young children. Although Handi-Snacks are not a major part of children's diets, advertising makes the snacks seem like something delicious to eat. For this reason alone it is powerful enough to make children beg their parents to buy them Handi-Snacks. Some companies make viewers' concerns, needs, and problems more important than the product featured in the commercial. They focus on how their products can solve viewers' problems. To illustrate, instead of saying we have more than fifty service centers nationwide, the commercial would feature the phrase You will be guaranteed courteous service and prompt delivery of spare parts from one of our fifty service centers located nationwide ." In this way, the company puts the audience at the center of the commercial. Another advertising technique used by some companies is to make consumers believe that their products are different and more valuable than competitors' offerings. The result is to attract customers by creating a positive and unique identity for the company and its offerings where there are more and more products and services every day, customers are exposed to an endless amount of advertising. So they choose something to believe in and stick with that idea until a message breaks through and convinces them to change. There may be very little difference between one company's product and its competitors." However, the company promotes its product successfully if it finds a way to communicate uniqueness and connect it to a need of the target group. The company is making consumers believetarget who, due to this uniqueness, should purchase the product. Companies also use celebrity status and professional titles to convince consumers that their products are worth buying. One of Burger King's recent commercials features the Backstreetboys. In the commercial, the band initially said they didn't advertise. However, they agreed to participate in the Burger King commercial when they were told they would receive a vital supply of free whoppers. The implicit message was that if the Backstreetboys were willing to do something they didn't want to do to get huges, then those huges must be extremely delicious. By having a popular band in the commercial, Burger King must attract numerous viewers. Using the title of a professional such as a doctor also helps promote a product. For example, if a doctor at John Hopkins said that Vioxx was effective in treating arthritis, arthritis patients who saw the advertisement would try the medicine. The doctor may not be famous, but his knowledge has earned him credibility. Sometimes companies use promotional techniques such as offering coupons and discounts to increase product sales. This promotion adds value to the product offered. Drive sales for reasons other than product benefits. Companies offer coupons and discounts to convince consumers to try their product and change their purchasing habits so that light users find reasons to buy more. Coupons and discounts work because people like something for nothing. They respond to buy-one-get-one offers and really enjoy their purchases. Images presented on television and in magazines manipulate consumers by appealing to their desires. Many images present ideal elements and conditions in people's lives that almost everyone would like but few possess. Most people want to have physical beauty, be successful in life, be loved, be rich, be healthy, and be happy. People envy others who have what they want and wish they could live other people's lives. The desire is so massive that they are willing to try anything to make it come true. Some are willing to believe that the products advertised contain the answers to their searches. For example, the Nike company features famous athletes such as Michael Jordon in its commercials. Jordon shoots baskets wearing Nike shoes in commercials. It is well known that Jordon has led his basketball team to win countless games and has been named the NBA's Most Valuable Player many times. Nike commercials featuring Jordon present the image that Nike shoes make a significant contribution to his success. The implicit message is that if a successful basketball player like Michael Jordon wears Nike shoes, consumers who wear them will perform better in their sports. Sports gamers who are really looking to improve their performance in games will buy Nike shoes without a second thought. As a result, they allow images to be manipulated and thus meet the objectives of advertisers. Companies use various images to satisfy consumers' desires, convincing them to buy their products. The placement of advertisements in magazines and television time slots is determined by the particular consumers that companies target. When advertising through magazines, companies largely consider the type of magazine suitable for placing product ads. They must reach specific audience groups with relatively little gap to groups outside the target audience. The ads.