In another thread, I expressed my views on the buying of expensive yoyos being mostly marketing. A lot of people (mainly Americans, young Americans.) don’t realize the grip that the marketing industry has around their throats. This is probably doomed to turn into a lecture, but seeing that I want to make my career down a teaching path, this may be good for both of us.
Many people don’t realize the roots that our (American, although much of Western cultures are like this as well) culture lie in. This root is in merchandise. Many people believe that the radio, along with television, was made for entertainment and news. But that isn’t the case. Television and radio were both made as ways to make you, the consumer, need better, more expensive things. You see a television show as a very one dimensional thing. The modern american sees a television program as follows:
Showtime- 22 Minutes.
Commercials- 8 minutes
But the way a television show really is laid out is
Showtime- 10 minutes
Commercials- 20 minutes
But, wait. The commercials don’t take up more time than the show, that would be lousy. Which is where the genius of modern marketing comes in. Ever watched Jersey Shore? Neither have I. But I do watch shows just like it, in every way possible when it comes to advertisements. Idolization is an interesting thing. Even when you don’t think you idolize someone, you have a tendency to mimic them, especially when they are on a higher level then you. This idolization is something that marketers feed on, and it is rooted so deep in your mind, that you don’t even know it. In fact, you are trained to deny it. If you see someone on television wearing a pair of hip-hugging jeans, you are more apt to run out and buy those jeans, because they were on the TV.
MTV and Viacom are my two best examples of how this is done. They create characters so appealing, or unappealing, to the average American, that it is interesting. You don’t need to like it, just watch it. As a matter of fact, when Howard Stern came to the top of his radio empire, the average Stern lover listened for 45 minutes per day, the average Stern hater, one hour and 45 minutes per day. What does this have to do with MTV and marketing? The fact that you don’t have to enjoy what you watch, to watch it. You didn’t buy the jeans because you liked the person that was wearing them, you bought them because they were on TV.
In fact, they could care less if you enjoy the programming, I mean after all, people don’t get paid because someone likes what they are putting out on television, they are paid because people buy something. So where does this all come in to play. Well, sit down and watch any Reality TV show on MTV tonight, and just wait. Within the first five minutes, you will see a name brand product. The sales of that product just went up thirty percent for the five seconds of exposure that product got on screen. Remember that TV show model i showed you? There is your twenty minutes of commercials.
This is where MTV really does exceed. Not only do they market products, they market looks, and attitude. As a matter of fact, your next girlfriend and/or boyfriend has probably been handpicked by MTV, and you don’t even know it. Many of you think I am crazy, that this is all conspiracies and the like. But the funny thing is, is that MTV has never denied it, and has even admitted to, and shared their secrets. Because they really have nothing to be ashamed of, I mean, they are standing on one of the largest marketing schemes in recent history. And they certainly haven’t done anything wrong by the ways of the American Government. We are, after all, a Capitalist society, and we allow for private business to thrive, and we allow for individuals to make their own wealth, and MTV/Viacom have done this very well. They have sculpted your mind, and mine, to need what we see as popular.
In fact, they pay kids to style looks in schools. This is a fact. MTV will pay kids to wear certain clothes in school! Why? To plant that seed. To give our minds the only feeble connection that they need to have an excuse to go out and buy a $115 dollar pair of pants, when a $20 pair will do just as well.
You may not realize it, but as an American in modern times, there are three things you learn from the time you are born, till the time you die. Those are Worship, Vote, and Buy.
That’s right, the only reason you were born, is to buy stuff.
definatly sticking to a 45$ dv888 instead of a 120$ throw… most of the professionals use expensive yoyos in competitions… marketing?
