Advertising stereotypes: part three

I was stopped in the street last week. A camera loomed large and a slightly patronising older bloke in a sports jacket (not seen one of them for a while!) told me they’d like to ask me some questions for market research purposes. After he assured me he wasn’t from the BBC (no live cameras for me, thank you) I agreed for my answers to be filmed. There were no pre-screening questions – nothing about what I did for a living/whether I worked in marketing.

I guessed from a quick glance at his paperwork he was asking questions on behalf of one of the major multiples and/or possibly a drinks brand.

He showed me a series of advertising scamps and asked me my thoughts. One of them showed that dreadful advertising stereotype of beautiful people in an outdoors summer setting drinking and eating. Would this image make me want to buy more spirits or other alcoholic beverages, he asked me. No I said. I explained that the image was pure cliché and could have come straight out of one of my mum’s Delia Smith cookery books from the 1970s and that it left me cold click this link here now. He looked at me in disbelief. He tried his hardest to get me to change my view. I didn’t budge, but I could see how he might have manipulated a less experienced respondent to suit his own needs.

He then showed me an image with a value message – look, this bottle of spirits will make up to 40 drinks/cocktails/what have you. Would that message make me consider buying the product, he asked. I explained to him that I mainly drink cocktails out of home and pointed to High Road House down the road. He insisted – was I really sure that an ad of that kind wouldn’t make me consider a purchase. I told him that alcohol was not a value-related purchase for me and that I looked for quality not quantity.

All in all a highly dubious research experience led by someone who seemed convinced to get me to change my mind wherever he could. He clearly thought my responses weren’t going to go down well with his client. As I say, I was having none of it and stuck to my guns.