hw #3

After watching The Persuaders I learned how advertising has evolved over the years. I feel the biggest advancement in the way companies advertise their products is by switching from explaining to what products do to what products mean. They use Star Bucks as an example by saying we all know what coffee is and what it does when you drink it, but what coffee means at Star Bucks is a place of community where it is a place to get away, a place that is not home nor work.

Some problems that occur with contemporary advertisement is the fact that companies are constantly are creating new products which need completely new promotions. Everything from color schemes to product commercials constantly need to be re-made and this creates a never ending cycle.

Ethical problems that we need to be aware of with advertising is competition. Companies who sell similar products do what they can to make themselves look better then others. Such as Advil vs. Tylenol. Advil frequently talks about how to Advil a day is equal to 8 Tylenol. Is it right for the Advil company to bash Tylenol's product? No, but it is an easy way to convince consumers to switch over from Tylenol to Advil.

Homework #2

The brand of the product that I chose is Paul Reed Smith. PRS is a guitar manufacturing company that prides themselves in creating quality guitars. What seperates these guitars from others are their uniqueness in design and parts. They use a varitey of stones, different toned wood, and shells to create beautiful works of art which have a sound quality unmatched by other guitar brands. The general review of this particular PRS( the SE Coustom) is that it is made by the high quality PRS brand, but still at a affordible price for someone who is looking for a more advanced guitar. When I purchased this guitar I was looking for a step up from my beginner low quality Squire Stratocaster. I saw the PRS SE Coustom and thought why not jump up two steps for the same price as a guitar that is only one step better.