I recently found myself quite bored at my
day job. Almost always there’s something for me to do to chip away at the old
9-5 (either work-related or personal). But this past Sunday, with no new client
inquiries and prime touring season yet to take hold, I found myself in a
situation that proves rare in my life: I had TOO MUCH free time! Anticipating
that we wouldn’t get hit with a sudden influx of activity (I had worked the day
prior and it was much the same), I planned in advance. From a stack that’s been
building up since last April (no word of a lie), I gathered some 10 magazines
in hope they would provide me with some amusement as a means to pass the time.
Admittedly, it’s been a long time since
I’ve even conceived of having a moment to sit back, relax, and delve into
something non-academic or career-oriented; given this, I prepared myself for a
very different reading experience, prior to cracking open the spines. While
I’ve never held delusions that women’s fashion magazines primarily contain
in-depth thoughtful analyses of the modern world, at one point in between the
hair colour, acne, and jewelry ads, there was room for cheeky editorials,
touching personal stories or at least somewhat interesting featurettes…apparently
NOT anymore.
Ad after ad after ad followed by thinly
veiled “fluff” pieces for companies no doubt contributing to the magazines’
payroll, and yet MORE ads is what I encountered. Christ, I couldn’t even read
the sections regarding health advice, without having products pushed in my
direction that would no doubt “cure” the very ailments that were being
discussed. Coincidental? I think not!
The sections, however, I found most “interesting”
(and I use that term loosely) were those of the “readers’ letters” in which
women (and I suppose perhaps the occasional man) sent in their praises for their
favourite mags and all they have to offer. Seeing as I’ve previously established
that beyond being pimps for consumerism and materialism the magazines
collectively lacked altogether in the substance department, I came to the
conclusion that these so-called “readers” must too either be on the magazines’
payroll, or at the very least work for the companies who got sweet deals on
their advertising rates.
A recent attempt at watching a little on
the boobtube proved equally disappointing. My viewing experience, one that was
sub-par at best (and I’m talking about when the program was actually ON) ended
rather abruptly when I just couldn’t deal with being inundated with commercial,
after commercial any longer. If there’s anyone out there my age or younger who STILL
listens to the radio by CHOICE (ie: NOT because it plays in the background at
your workplace), you’ll find much the same: the sheer volume of campaigns for publicity completely overpower any
sense of enjoyment and entertainment the media once offered. Ironically,
ads that I once upon a time looked forward to taking in (ie: the “coming
attractions” and “coming soon to DVD” trailers that previously held homes on
movies you rent from the store) have been for all intents and purposes
eliminated!
I will give marketers that in today’s
oversaturated and over-stimulated world, reaching let alone maintaining the
interest of a given target population is proving increasingly difficult (hence,
why we are now seeing annoying efforts to have our social networking sites fully
infiltrated with promotions for this thing and the next). With that said
however, I’d like to point out there are
certain products and services that, at this point, really do NOT need to be
promoted, even if they’ve undergone “makeovers” or have had “improvements”
made to their model. Perhaps advertisers are aware of this fact and simply
don’t want to lose their jobs? Let’s take something as common sense as the
razor blade:
Frankly, I personally don’t really care if
I’m buying “no name” or store brand so long as I’m getting the specifications I
desire fulfilled. Price too, weighs heavily into the equation. Do I really need
to see yet another Mach Three or Daisy Razor commercial demonstrating their
ever expanding razor heads? Not really. I know what works for me. I know what
doesn’t. I can’t be the only one.
