You're mistaken if you think advertising doesn't work on you.
Let's say you're driving down the street in your car. You want something to eat. There's 60 restaurants within sight.
Which do you choose?
Something that stands out to you and calls to you for some reason.
People think advertising doesn't work because they see a commercial for a burger joint and don't immediately get hungry.
But that's not the point. The point is that you now that burger joint stands out a little more to you.
Maybe you don't eat there anyways. Especially if you don't eat hamburgers. That's not the point.
The point is, it'll now stand out a little more, especially if you're the potential target market. If you're in the market for a hamburger, you're likely to notice a place that stood out to you.
I didn't understand this for the longest time. Then I met a guy in Barcelona who owned some "El Pollo Loco" restaurants in Los Angeles - it's a fast food place. The name is Spanish, it means "The Crazy Chicken."
I'd spent plenty of time in LA, but I'd never noticed El Pollo Loco.
Next time I was in Los Angeles, I noticed the restaurant everywhere.
Advertising isn't the only way to do that, but it's one way. If El Pollo Loco commercials came on TV, you'd notice the restaurants more often. As you're driving in your car and have 60 choices, Pollo Loco would become a more prominent option.
Advertising is about making the product or brand familiar, and thus having it stand out to you on the shelf or while going about your life. Your mind is good at picking up shapes and symbols, this does work to make brands and products stand out to you.
Advertising works on you.
