I know. Who wants to watch the ads on TV? You can learn a lot by viewing the advertisements during and between the shows. Did you know that everything you could ever need or want is sold in the media these days? Except for world peace. Advertising is the way the American public finances its broadcast companies.

Newspapers and magazines sold advertisements, and when radio began, they had to develop spots that were totally verbal in nature. I remember in the nineteen sixties listening to the disc jockeys read on air copy for the local ads. As high school speech students, we learned how to be radio announcers and competed in tournaments.

For many years now, one of my classmates has been an anchor on our local NBC affiliate. In school, he was not a speech student. He was working at a local radio station. Our coach invited him to join us at tournaments and compete in radio speaking. He won first place in every competition he was able to enter.

It did not bother me. He was better than all the other competitors. One of my first jobs after college was as marketing director for a small company. We were a direct marketing firm and produced catalogs and flyers, and accepted orders by phone.

Some modern commercials fail to do the one thing I have thought essential. An ad is not successful unless it makes you remember the company’s name. When I see an advertisement repeatedly and cannot remember who ran the spot, I know it failed.

Funny scripts are great, but not all humor is funny to everyone. Some types of comedy just make me think that whoever produced it is stupid. Looking stupid to prospective customers is not a good idea. I always thought it was a good idea to put your best foot forward.

Local commercials about lawyers are a perfect example of what works and what does not. Some attorneys brag about the amount of money they can get for you. Others criticize their competitors and try to denigrate them. This is never a good idea to encourage people who know nothing about you and your business practices to see that you are willing to say things that are hurtful.

Some of my favorite ads just tell me what these businesses can do for me and let me know that they want to take care of anyone who wishes to do business with them. Offend no one and show everyone that you know how to get their business.

There is one commercial that I view regularly today about a perfect gift. It is for a shower head. I’m sorry, that would never be the present my wife would want. This guy must be buying this for his parents. It is a standard comedy schtick to buy your wife something you think she needs. This is against the idea that it is the thought that counts.

Which types of advertising encourage you to buy their products or services? Our economy is a free market, which is supposed to mean that we make our own decisions about what we buy from whom. Few techniques are illegal, but many that are not ethical. When a business fails to present enough information or lies about their products, I just decide not to do business with them.

©Copyright 2026 by Charles Kensinger