Reflection of Marketing and Advertising Introduction

Even before I enrolled in this particular class, I realized the value of marketing and advertising as it relates to social interactions and society in general. However, after taking this class, listening to the lectures, reading the sources for it, and watching videos about this subject as well, I now realize that essentially, marketing and advertising are all around us. These two aspects of business are constantly in the lives of consumers, and play a significant part in the way we come to think about both society and even ourselves.

The impact these two disciplines have is extremely significant. The “Merchants of Cool” documentary and the class notes indicate that marketing and advertising actually affects how we feel about ourselves, who we are as people, and ultimately, impact the things we buy. In this regard, as critical thinkers it is pivotal for us to realize there are both positives and negatives associated with marketing and advertising, and it is important to discern the differences between them.

The Positives of Marketing and Advertising

As the thesis of this paper denotes, there are actually several ways in which both advertising and marketing are able to produce positive effects. Although these benefits pertain to different facets of society, they also operate at the intersection of sociological issues and those relating to economics. I think an excellent example of this fact is found in some of the philosophies of Henry Ford, one of the pioneering automotive manufacturers. Obviously, there are many ways in which having cars is useful for families; practically every family should have, if not outright needs, such a vehicle. Marketing and advertising helps fulfill this sociological necessity by contributing to economic factors that make it a reality. One of the boons of these business domains is they contribute to reduced pricing. They are the primary ways in which consumers become aware of products, realize their advantages, and desire to purchase them. I realize that without these business domains, many customers and potential customers would not know that such products even exist. Since advertising and marketing help increase product awareness and demand for certain goods, these factors enable producers to maintain relatively low costs.

Therefore, there is almost a cyclical effect of which marketing and advertising are an integral component. By communicating the creation and utility of products to people, they keep costs relatively low. Thus, more people are able to buy things which, in the case of the vehicles and automotives, provide tangible sociological value. The ramifications of these facts in and of themselves also are important to this virtual cycle. By spurring market adoption rates of products, marketing and advertising enables people to consume more. I think this fact leads to the creation of jobs and opportunities for employment. Again, there are obvious economic benefits providing places for people to work to make, sell, and even market and advertise the vehicles Henry Ford helped pioneer. But equally valuable are the sociological repercussions, which enable people to have higher qualities of life via the ability to earn money and provide for their families in doing so.

Another unambiguous...

Quite simply, these disciplines are some of the more effective ways to convey messages which have moral value to us. The examples of this important fact are almost too numerous to name, yet include the “Don’t Drink and Drive campaign which “does good. That’s moral.’ ‘And the Give Blood ads…they’re good too. And some charity adverts…” (1). Each of these examples showcases the power of marketing and advertising in effecting positive objects. Those objectives correlate to each of the examples. For example, the Don’t Drink and Drive Campaign saves lives. Also, campaigns urging people to donate blood can save the lives of people in need of transfusions, while drastically increasing the quality of life of those in need transfusions. Advertisements, marketing campaigns, and adverts convincing people to donate to charity help the disadvantaged and needy to get some of the basic necessities which they otherwise might not get. In each of these ways and the countless others which are applicable, “ordinary men and women in the street benefit directly” (2). I believe there is definitely a moral component to the positive nature of advertising and marketing.
I think it is also important to realize all of the different people who are positively impacted by marketing and advertising. These people do not just include the needy, but those who are more immediately involved in the marketing and advertising verticals as well. One of those groups of people is the employees working and organizations which market and advertise to customers. Advertising and marketing is a means of generating revenue so these employers can “employ and manage sizable numbers of employees”, who have jobs partly because of the earnings from these disciplines (3). I think the media benefits of advertising and marketing are also considerable. Most of the advertisements seen by people take place in various media. In the United States, advertisers’ expenditure “reaches 100% of all broadcast media” (4)—which is an enormous percentage. I also realize that advertisements help fuel creativity since there are many examples in which “numerous writers and artists worked in advertising agencies before becoming established in their own rights” (5). After considering all of these different categories, it seems clear to me that there assuredly many positives associated with marketing and advertising.

The Negatives of Marketing and Advertising

However, this course has also helped me to understand all of the different ways in which marketing and advertising can actually have a negative impact upon society and consumers. It seems to me there are two main ways in which these domains negatively impact society. The first is the reality is that advertising has the potential to manipulate, mislead, and emotionally charge large amounts of groups of people. Secondly, it can truly undermine religion and subvert its true principles as a means of simply selling items; or use religion for capital gain. Mara Einstein actually details the first of these phenomena extremely well in her book Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion in a Commercial…