Hello world!
January 10th, 2011 • Personal Insights
When I was a kid, I remember thinking how colorful and playful all the advertisements were on TV. Every now and then, I would look back at the same commercials and find them atrociously corny and ineffective. How do they keep us hooked? I personally think it has something to do with evolution.
Take a look at this 1948 commercial for futuristic automobiles. http://www.wimp.com/futurecars/ The narrator of the ad sounds like Joseph Cotten in Citizen Kane (a huge star at the time), and proceeds to nullify the viewer’s senses by listing pretty much every feature of the car. This was marketing in the 50’s and people bought into it.
If we compare this to a modern day sportscar ad such as this one for the Aston Martin Vantage, 
we’ll find that there is no narration at all (only soothing background music and engine roars) therefore the viewer can simply enjoy the sight of the product and try to imagine him/herself in it. In addition, the brand name is allotted a generous 10 seconds at the very of the video.
If you take anything from this comparison of marketing eras, it should be that the general consumer has changed over time. They now know more about the product so telling them redundant information about the car is a waste of time. Instead consumer’s today will be baited hook, line, and sinker by the idea that they are in the car and that they are proud owners of an esteemed brand.