Seducing the Subconscious

1. Advertising influences us subconsciously, beyond rational persuasion

"Advertising may and probably generally does 'work' without ever having been processed by our higher-level rational faculties."

Persuasion model inadequate. The traditional view that advertising works through rational persuasion and message recall is flawed. Many successful ad campaigns, like O2 and Renault Clio, worked despite low message recall or even no message at all.

Subconscious influence. Advertising can affect our attitudes and behavior without our conscious awareness through:

• Emotional associations
• Implicit learning and memory
• Conditioning of brand perceptions
• Metacommunication that builds brand relationships

Defense mechanisms bypassed. By operating below conscious awareness, subconscious advertising influence avoids triggering our cognitive defenses like counter-arguing and perceptual filtering.

2. Low attention processing of ads can be more effective than high attention

"The more we like and trust an ad, the less inclined we are to counter-argue its message, and the less attention we feel we have to pay towards it."

Attention paradox. Contrary to popular belief, paying less attention to ads can make them more effective, not less. Low attention processing allows emotional content to slip past our rational defenses.

Resource matching. Our brains deploy cognitive resources based on perceived processing demands. Creative, entertaining ads are often processed with lower attention because they appear to require less analysis.

Implicit learning. Even at low attention levels, we absorb and store information about brands in our implicit memory. This can influence later attitudes and decisions without our awareness.

3. Emotion in advertising works automatically and pre-cognitively

"All the devices which produce emotion can be engaged automatically, without conscious deliberation."

Pre-cognitive processing. Emotional responses to advertising stimuli occur automatically and before cognitive processing. This means emotion influences us even when we're not consciously attending to an ad.

Unavoidable influence. We cannot choose to not have an emotional reaction. Even if we can control our outward expression, the internal experience and influence still occurs.

Subconscious markers. Emotional associations form subconscious markers that can influence later decisions without our awareness. For example, colors used in fast food branding may trigger positive childhood associations.

4. Our decisions are heavily influenced by subconscious emotional markers

"The intriguing decision patterns described by Daniel Kahnemann and Amos Twersky in the 1970s are probably due to engagement of path B."

Dual processing. Damasio's model shows two paths in decision-making:

• Path A: Rational, conscious reasoning
• Path B: Subconscious, emotion-driven intuition

Emotional gating. Emotions act as a gatekeeper for decisions. We cannot make a choice if our emotions don't concur, even if it seems logically sound.

Intuitive choices. When time or cognitive resources are limited, we often rely on intuitive "gut feelings" driven by subconscious emotional markers. These markers are heavily influenced by past experiences, including exposure to advertising.

5. Creativity in ads often serves to lower our cognitive defenses

"By paying high directional attention (i.e., looking at the screen) but a low level of attention, the emotive content of the ad was processed more efficiently and with less counter-argument, and that made the influence of the emotive content that much more effective."

Disarming creativity. Creative, entertaining ads often work by lowering our cognitive defenses. We process them less critically because they seem less threatening or manipulative.

Misdirection of attention. Engaging narratives or humor can distract us from consciously processing brand messages, allowing those messages to influence us subconsciously.

Emotional trojan horse. Creativity serves as a vehicle to deliver emotional associations that condition our feelings toward the brand without triggering conscious resistance.

6. Brand relationships are built through emotional metacommunication

"It isn't what you say that builds relationships, but how you say it."

Beyond the message. The emotional tone, style, and context of advertising (metacommunication) often has more impact on brand relationships than the literal content.

Relationship analogy. Just as interpersonal relationships are built more on emotional connection than factual exchange, brand relationships are cultivated through emotional resonance.

Subconscious bonding. We form attachments to brands based on how they make us feel, often without conscious awareness of why we like them. This mirrors how we form bonds with people.

7. Ubiquitous brand exposure conditions us subconsciously

"Coke's marketing objective is that you shouldn't be able to walk more than 100 yards in any city in the world without seeing either a Coke can or a Coke bottle or the Coke name or the Coke logo."

Pervasive presence. Ubiquitous brand exposure through advertising, product placement, and environmental cues creates a constant stream of subconscious influence.

Familiarity effect. Repeated exposure to brands increases our comfort and positive associations with them, even if we don't consciously process each encounter.

Environmental priming. Our surroundings can subtly influence our choices. For example, orange-colored objects might increase preference for orange-flavored products.

8. Ethical concerns arise from advertising's subconscious influence

"Critics of advertising usually forget that if it were eliminated or abolished, other methods would necessarily be substituted for it."

Manipulation concerns. The ability of advertising to influence us without our awareness raises ethical questions about consumer autonomy and informed choice.

Regulatory challenges. It's difficult to regulate subconscious influence through traditional means focused on factual claims and explicit messages.

Societal impact. Subconscious advertising may shape cultural values and behaviors in ways that are hard to measure or control.

9. New media and product placement amplify subconscious seduction

"After a time we just won't notice them. But our subconscious will carry on registering them, sitting alongside our favorite characters, and sometimes even being drunk, eaten, or used by our favorite characters."

Blurred lines. New media and product placement integrate advertising more seamlessly into our entertainment and daily lives, making it harder to consciously filter.

Parasocial influence. Characters in media can act as powerful endorsers, even when we don't consciously register the product placement.

Multiplatform exposure. The proliferation of advertising across diverse media increases opportunities for subconscious influence through repetition and varied contexts.

Last updated: July 22, 2024