Sunday, January 21, 2007

Annoyingly effective

Head On, apply directly to the forehead.
Head On, apply directly to the forehead.
Head On, apply directly to the forehead.

Maybe the only commercials more annoying are the new Head On segments, where the Tourette's-like slogan above is interrupted by people telling the company how annoying its commercials are, but how great its product is.

I bet a lot of Head On is being sold, despite (or probably because of) these asinine spots. In an widely circulated article, "The Language of Advertising Claims," Jeffrey Schrank wrote, "Ads are designed to have an effect while being laughed at, belittled, and all but ignored." He also notes:


"A person unaware of advertising's claim on him or her is precisely the one most defenseless against the ad writer's attack. Advertisers delight in an audience which believes ads to be harmless nonsense, for such an audience is rendered defenseless by its belief that there is no attack taking place." *

The makers of Head On have taken that philosophy to daring new heights -- or lows. You might say you buy the product in spite of the commercials, but chances are good the product came to your attention because of them.

*The examples in Schrank's article are a little dated, but the information about weasel words, puffery, and other persuasive techniques is still spot on. To read an online copy, click here.

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