WHO PAYS THE SHOT? Advertising in Canada is an $800 million a year in- dustry, and the immediate question is, “Who pays the shot?” a At first glance, it’s the man- ufacturer. But where does he get the money? From -you, the consumer, that’s where. The advertising industry denies it, of course. They say that advertising lowers unit costs by pushing mass-pro- duced items to mass buyers. They say that advertising, which fosters competition, re- sults in higher quality goods and new products. They say so, but there’s no proof — probably because ad- vertising has been with us as long as somebody has had . something to peddle — snake oil or Chevys, potatoes or per- fume. COSTS MORE Let’s examine these claims (which were made in a brief to the House of Commons — Senate Committee studying ‘soaring food prices and other living costs). If advertising lowers unit costs by pushing mass sales in a massive number of pur- chasers, how come a national- ly-advertised brand of instant coffee or detergent costs MORE than an unknown “house brand”, packaged by a food chain? Isn’t the main difference the cost of four- colour newspaper advertise- ments, or TV blurbs in living colour? Again, advertising is sup- posed to lead to higher qual- ity goods and new products because competition is foster- ed. Why, then, does Procter and Gamble market as many separate brands of detergent as its competitor, Lever Broth- ers, does? What’s the differ- ence, really, between one brand of Lever’s soap flakes and another? NAME PLATE Chrysler markets Dodge and Fargo trucks. The only difference between them is the “brand identification” — the name plate and the name on the tailgate. Why two, when one would do? Why do admen talk about ‘brand im- ages,” and even about the “personality” of a particular kind of toothpaste? As for the claim that adver- tising results in the develop- ment of new products: well, it might! but how many of the new products fulfil real needs? Admen_ themselves admit that they are interested not in what’s needed, but what’s wanted. SEX APPEAL But who wanted an electric toothbrush before the admen — with their clever psycho- logical tricks — convinced the public that the electric toothbrush would reduce cav- ities and provide sex appeal? Wrap-around windshields on cars were just a styling feat- ure — a feature which dis- torted vision. But the admen told us they removed the “blind-spot.” Safety experts noted that the “blind-spot” had just been moved closer to the driver’s eye. But try to buy a Detroit car today with- out a wrap-around windshield. The politicians on the House of Commons-Senate commit- tee ripped into the advertisers on a number of grounds. Mothers, they said, are sub- jected to emotional blackmail when their tots demand that they buy the breakfast food recommended by their favour- ite cartoon “characters.” Mothers should discipline the kids, the admen replied. We're too permissive. We're a “youth-oriented” culture. And advertising has to take account of this. PLAYS HOB The committee members also said that much advertis- ing was dishonest. Honesty, replied the advertisers, was subjective — a matter of opin- ion. “Whiter than white” is “true,” they claimed, because the detergent that promises this unlikely and seemingly- illogical benefit actually does make shirts whiter than they were when bought. Committee members said that by creating a “compul- sion to buy,” advertising plays hob with the budgets of the poor. EARN MORE MONEY Selling our Men’s Tailored - to - measure Quality Clothes. Latest styling and outstanding values for quick sales. Top commissions, Free bonus suits and Profit Shar- ing cash bonuses. 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Why bother to put a pretty girl alongside anything — any- thing — for sale, anyway? You don’t have to be a psychologist to figure it out— but it still works. HUDSON CASTLE In a castle on the Hudson River in New York State there’s an “Institute for Moti- vational Research” headed by a psychiatrist named Dr. Ern- est Dichter. Now a “motiva- tion” is our real, often uncon- scious, reason for acting in a certain way. Dichter and other psychiatrists, who know all about motivations, tell ad- vertisers how to get at our unconscious minds and_ hid- den feelings — by appealing, for instance, to a man’s wor- ries about his “masculinity,” to a woman’s desire to be a good homemaker and mother. This, of course, is nothing more than tampering with peoples’ heads — invading their privacy — brainwashing them — and all for the sake of selling more widgets. We react in horror to stor- ies of the Communist Chinese and their political “brain- washing,” but calmly allow advertisers to meddle with our heads — and all for the pur- pose of selling more and more stuff to us. It makes you wonder. After all, it’s only in the last couple of hundred years that the main goal in peoples’ lives has been the acquisition of more money to buy more things. At first, the “things” were quite necessary — de- cent shelter and clothing, enough food, proper medical attention. But our values now seem more and more to de- pend on what we've got, not what we are. Advertising cares about what we are only so it can urge to get more. THE REMEDY The remedy for the exag- gerated claims, the distortions, the toying with truth, the emo- tional blackmail, the probes into our innermost selves, isn’t a “code of ethics” set up by the admen themselves. It lies in the public regulation of advertising; but our econ- omy depends so heavily on ads that politicians are unlikely to pass strong laws — laws with real teeth in them — or to tax advertising, or to limit it. Perhaps the consumer — who finally seems to be getting angry about it all — holds the key. Perhaps only consumer action will force the issue. But what chance has the con- sumer who has already been carefully conditioned by the ads themselves? After the strong criticism from the members of the House of Commons-Senate committee, it will be interest- ing to see exactly what they recommend to the govern- ment, and whether the gov- ernment acts on their recom- mendations . . COMING TO VANCOUVER? stay at the AUSTIN MOTOR HOTEL Wonderful comfort at low prices. Right in the heart of downtown Vancouver, Granville at Davie Completely refurnished, with TV, dining and lounge facili- ties. Delicious buffet luncheans. All public rooms air-condition- ed. Lighted parking for 150 cars. 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