The marketing industry has been transformed in recent years. In the past, there was a vague understanding that certain types of advertising could affect purchasing behaviour, but there was no real scientific approach to marketing. Some companies conducted basic research, but most simply created advertisements based on what emotionally appealed to them, not necessarily their customers.
In the 90’s and 2000’s marketing methods became much more scientific. Researchers have discovered a lot of new things about consumers, and marketers are using those findings to create more effective advertising campaigns. This doesn’t mean there won’t be any more spectacular failures in the future, but they likely won’t be as common.
A Baby’s Smile
Using cute babies to sell products isn’t a new development. We’ve always known on the subconscious level that their cure little smiles were appealing, but we never really gave any thought to what might be going on inside the brain. There is actually real science behind what’s happening here.
