Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Bill to lower television ads
I recently heard about a bill that is trying to be passed through congress to lower the volume of television commercials. People around the country are complaining that the ads in between programs is louder than the programs themselves. I have noticed this as well and I agree that this is can be quite annoying. Your watching a show and all of a sudden theres a burger king ad blasting your speakers. The bill would set a legal limit making it so the commercials can be no louder than the program that followed. I think this is a great idea for both the marketer and the consumer. The viewer of commercials such as these is going to be irritated by the volume and because of this will be less willing to subject themselves to what is being sold. Turning down the volume or switching the channel seems to be the usual solution for me. So I can't imagine that pumping up the volume helps increase sales for the marketer in the first place so what are they trying to do? The benefit to the consumer is obvious, no more obnoxiously loud commercials. So overall this seems to be a win win situation for everyone. I would be interested in hearing what possible negative effects this could have so if anyones got some for me I would love to hear them.
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Nice job, Jai! There's actually a long history regarding the FCC and television advertising regulation...and a rich academic literature to go along with it! One of the interesting things to think about, especially with our textbook being from the UK, is how advertising has been regulated not only over time in the USA, but also comparatively (USA vs. European models, for instance)....
ReplyDeleteHaha funny just last night I was wondering if marketing companies really thought that by turning up the volume on commercials it actually helps sell the product. I agree with you in that my solution was to quickly mute the commercial or switch channels. However, perhaps companies are targeting people with impaired hearing ;] whatever it is there should be a limit on the volume. It's a good point to raise that marketing companies will benefit from this because we want to hear about your product, but I am not going to listen/hear you if you are shouting in my ear. Another thing they should try and tone down is the number of commercials shown on television a day. I am getting sick of watching 5 minutes of a show to be interrupted by 15 minutes of commercials...Television is starting to bore me. I might end up getting Netflix someday..For now I record shows simply to fast forward them through their loud and obnoxious commercials.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree- the volume of commercials really detracts from a pleasant television experience. It makes you want to change the channel, lower the volume, press ‘mute’, or turn the TV off all together.
ReplyDeleteThe timing of your post fits quite nicely into my TV-viewing life. Just the other night my brother, who was bearer of the remote control, relinquished himself of his remote control duties because when our family’s favorite show (Two and a Half Men !) broke to commercial everyone said “Turn it down!” ..And of course when it came back on everyone said “Turn it up!”
Setting volume standards for commercials will definitely make for happier consumers. Oftentimes the mute [or ‘off’] button is used instead of turning the volume down and this shuts out potential consumers completely. Lowering volume standards will keep potential consumers tuned-in. I also agree that if these standards are set, companies will realize that it is not loudness, but quality, that will make a viewer interested in whatever is being advertised.
Its all about marketing strategy! Companies are sneaky like that. I do pay more attention when the commercials are louder, i'll admit it. I really like when a company like Mcdonalds will make the cheeseburger look absolutely enormous in a pair of hands, and make the hands look smaller. This makes it seem like the burger is so big you can hardly hold it. It is just pure genius from a marketing strategy.
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