It’s hard to believe that a 30 second commercial can influence your behavior. So you see people having a good time, there are attractive women around, they tell you that you need something – like that’s going to influence you?
Except it does.
Do you really think companies are paying 5 million dollars for 30 second spots at the Super Bowl if they’re not making the money back? McDonald’s spent more than a billion dollars on advertising in 2015. Do you think McDonald’s would do that if it couldn’t turn it back into money?
You may think these commercials aren’t influencing you, but obviously a lot of people are being influenced by commercials. And how are they influencing people? Mostly, by convincing them that they have a deficit in their life. They tell you you’re not happy enough, not having enough fun, not good enough and you can fix that by buying their products. Of course, that’s a lie. The beer isn’t going to get you beautiful women; you’re not going to laugh uproariously if you use that detergent and you’re not going to have the best meal of your life at that fast food restaurant.