Are you influenced by advertising?

[Mirage]

A bit of a clumsy header really,but I didn't know how to put it.

DH & I were watching TV & he asked me how influenced by TV/magazine adverts I was.Did I actually go out & buy things purely because I'd seen an ad? And did I believe what the advertisers claim?

I had to say that I can't ever remember buying anything because of an advert.If there is something I'm looking to buy,I go on reccomendation,prior experience of the brand or reviews in magazines/mumsnet ect.I am by nature quite sceptical & don't believe that xxxx washing powder will wash whiter than yyyy ect,just because the voiceover says so.

Is it just me-or are advertisers wasting their money? What makes you want to buy a product/visit an attraction ect?

I confess for usually going with a known brand (so there I suppose the adverts play a part), however, I've long since realised that what they claim in the ads isn't necessarily what the product does (took me a few failures from infomercials to work it out though - I obviously have gullible tatooed on my head!) so much more sceptical now ;)

looks like I just wasted thirteen years of my life then

I'm an advertisers' dream: I don't consciously buy stuff because of adverts, but I almost subconsciously select it from the shelves and put it in the basket ... it's scary really! Dh is much better - he can remember seeing the advert, and is aware in the aisles of Tescos that he is being influenced by it, then makes a reasoned judgement based on all the facts.

(Fortunately I don't watch much ITV, so don't see many adverts, and dh does most of the shopping too!)

My boys watch no ITV, but they do constantly comment on the billboards they see, or adverts on the back of buses. So yes, they are definitely influenced by them too.

I don't think advertisers are wasting their money because a lot of people are swayed by advertising. The advertisers wouldn't do it otherwise and they do monitor sales responses and sales before and after an ad campaign to decide whether it worked. But I was thinking about this too recently Mirage and no, I really, really don't think I am swayed by advertising. I don't buy processed foods (well, very, very rarely) so none of those ads speak to me and you don't see many advertising carrots do you? - and we turn the volume off and talk in the ad breaks. I don't believe manufacturers' claims about make up, I buy stuff and try it or listen to friends and I don't eat somewhere or use something because an ad told me I ought to. I guess I have the odd bit of brand loyalty: to Marmite for example but it is the very odd thing. So no, on the whole, I'm not swayed by advertising.

Roisin, I'm also very aware that the supermarkets will try to manipulate me by putting goods they want to sell (i.e. high margin or maybe volume rebate from supplier or promotion because of tv ads) at eye level and on end aisles. And they will make me walk all the way round the shop to buy basics so that I buy some things on implulse on the way but I just don't fall for it: I know what I want and it's mostly organic unprocessed stuff.

No, I don't buy because of advertising, but I will try something if a friend recommends it.

Do often see ad's and think ... mmmm, wish I could buy him

Oh dear Am I the only one who gets home with a load of shopping, and thinks "Why on earth did I buy that?!"