In truth, we can applaud advertisers for bringing so many
health problems to the public’s attention.
In fact, did you know that before World War I, most people never brushed
their teeth until the toothpaste manufacturers began advertising in newspapers
and magazines? Now, of course, one can
spend an hour in the toothpaste/mouth wash aisle trying to decide which one to
buy. That shouldn’t be a most important
dilemma.
In our era of managed care, whether it’s indemnity insurers,
HMOs, Medicare or Medicaid, as a result of the TV advertising blitz, consumers
are becoming more aware and responsible for their health. By communicating various problems that people
may be oblivious to, hopefully the health of our citizens will improve.
But. You knew there
was a but. Several years ago the first
prescription drug company ran a TV campaign.
If you recall, it was for the purple pill. The commercial never gave its name or what it
helped cure. That didn’t stop people
from calling their docs asking for it. I
asked my internist if his patients were actually calling him for a prescription
for this mystery product. His answer was
yes. They didn’t know if they needed it
or why. Amazing, no? Year two, the company gave away the
secret. Its name: Nexium. Its purpose: acid
indigestion/reflux. And it became a huge
success.
But let’s not discuss just the drug companies and their
entry into mass consumer communications. It was inevitable that TV was also discovered
by attorneys, CPAs, stockbrokers, diet doctors and plastic surgeons. The attorneys touted law suits. The CPAs lowered taxes and/or money
management. Diet doctors hit the
overweight issue incessantly. You know
the stockbroker story. And plastic
surgeons offered eternal youth. It has obviously worked because they continue
their TV campaigns. That’s the measure
of success.
Cable has been far more lenient for these advertisers than
the major stations and TV stations are rife with commercials for professionals
who years ago would never have dreamed of advertising (the thinking was it was
unprofessional and that may be right) but it proved that it worked. In spades.
Now, with consumers able to access literally hundreds of
stations and with the wonders of the remote (my favorite hi-tech toy) that so
conveniently zaps commercials, it is becoming harder and harder to catch the
attention of viewers and advertisers are furiously testing other venues for
their ads. Nothing as mundane as
matchbook covers. The arrival of the
Internet provided a fertile area for those annoying pop-ups. Tops of cabs and inside cabs try to sell us
something or other. Heaven forbid a
sanctuary in a cab. And various hitherto
unthought-of locations are under investigation as of this writing. The day will come when advertising will truly
be inescapable unless we flee to a deserted island (becoming rarer and rarer)
or Mars becomes habitable.
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