1. I think Morgan Spurlock has a difficult time finding sponsorship for his film because companies where scared. Sponsoring Morgan Spurlock's movie would mean taking a risk and many companies will not do it unless they know it will pay off later on for sure. Sponsoring a movie like this is a big risk because no one knows if it would work, if it would make money and be profitable or not. The idea of the movie was a little weird and very different which is why I think brand companies said no because they were not sure if it would make money and if it didn't then the company would lose that money. Also, companies may not want to sponsor Spurlock because then they would have no control over the finished product. Just with the name of the movie, companies thought of this as risky. With the BAN deodorant brand, he tries convincing them by showing them how many times their brand would appear in the movie which would advertise their product which would mean they would get more people to buy it. Even then, it sounded like the movie might not be so successful because who would want to watch a movie that all it shows is brands... but he successfully convinced them and 14 other companies to sponsor his movie. That would be kind of boring so the companies keep all of this in mind and realize that they could lose a lot of money by risking it and sponsoring Morgan Spurlock.
2. They have to put in a lot of time to think of what things would appeal to us. Companies have to advertise products that will make us interested and make us go out and buy it. For example, they can use a celebrity like Britney Spears to advertise a product and sell it faster. Using celebrities will persuade the buyer even more, this would be considered ethos. Putting a celebrity in an advertisement will catch the public's attention even more and just because a famous person is on the advertisement then they will want to buy the product. For example, people will want to buy this perfume just because it's, supposeably, Britney Spears' which makes us believe that if we buy her perfume, we can smell and look like her. this is how the creators of ads successfully persuade us and get us to buy their products. Another example would be the Nike shoes, they always use famous people with a reputation to make us believe that we can be just like them by buying Nike shoes. http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01611/nike_1611821c.jpg
3. I personally identify with the clothing brands for the most part. I love Forever 21 and Charlotte Russe. I love shopping there for my clothes because the style of their clothes is what I like, it's very stylish, girlie, and unique and I like to be like that. I feel comfortable wearing their clothes, shoes, and accessories which is why I identify with their brands. Also, i like those brands because the prices are good and affordable for pretty much everyone. I can also identify myself with converse, even though I don't wear the shoes as much as I used to. I have a pair of almost every color of converse, those shoes are just..unique in a way. I can also identify with Vitamin Water and Capri Sun simply because I drink those two things a lot and love love love them!
4. I think those who use the info. they supply is like colonial powers and yes "cool hunters" in a way exploit kids but they are also providing us with desired benefits and supplies. These people make money off of us by convincing us to buy their product because according to them we want to be "cool" and the product they come up with will make us "cool". They look for trends and themes within our friends and observe what we wear and etc. But in a way we show them what it is that we want to see from their company and buy. Companies sell things that they KNOW for sure kids will like and will want to buy them because then it would be waste of money. For example, Starbursts. Another example is Sprite, they mention this is the video how when it came out it brought a new trend in the teen culture that made us "cool". People make candy because they know that every kid (at least most of them) like candy a lot so it is a sure thing they will sell them. Companies make things that they know we will like this is how they make all of their products. They might have workers walk around the streets to observe what we are wearing, drinking, eating, etc. and this is how they make their product. Or like the researcher from the merchants of cool video, he puts a group of teenagers together and asks them a lot of questions about what's "popular" in our times and stuff like that and they pay them to answer. We are the ones that "inspire" what they are going to sell. We are the ones that have the money to spend it so everyone wants to make something so we can spend our money on them.
5. I don't think the marketers from this video got it right because according to them, MTV shows reality of our lives and I disagree because some of the MTV shows are nothing like our reality and they exaggerate but those shows still have us glued to the TV every day waiting for those shows to come on even if we have nothing in common with the "actors". It might be what we want but it is not what we act like, well in my case because some people can relate to their shows but I know i can't because I do not act like those people. For example, Jersey Shore. I know a lot of people love that show but I personally hate it. It is so ridiculous, point less, and just dumb but for some reason it appeals to many teens my age which is why MTV makes things like these. Even in the video, they say that researches do not follow kids around and find their culture not to give us what we want, but to find what they can sell to us but I can't say that they got it right because they don't know me, they don't know what i want or what I want to see. Also, the girl that they follow and talk about is not like me.. she cares so much about her appearance and what people think of her and they make it seem as if all girls are like that, but we aren't. I really don't think they know me because they honestly make us teens look way different than we really are! If MTV was based on understanding me as a person, it would be laughter 24/7. It would be what I REALLY do, go to school, hang out with friends, do homework, eat, laugh a lottttt and just normal stuff like that... there wouldn't be any fights, and it wouldn't be about sex and violence like they show it in this video because that is not what makes a person "cool" unlike what they are showing.
6. Of course I am manipulated by brands, companies, and advertising like everyone else. When I see a Vitamin Water advertisement, i instantly want to go to the store and buy one. Or like Chili's logo, every time we pass by one my mind goes to spending time with my family. Another example is Redbox, whenever I'm at McDonald's and see a Redbox I rent a movie so I can watch it with my parents and have a family movie night. Advertisements play a big role in the things that I end up buying specially if there is a celebrity involved.
7. Companies go after teens through advertising by putting celebrities in their advertisements. What this does is that we see a celebrity wearing those shoes or whatever their product is and we will want to look like them and go out and buy whatever they're advertising. Another way is by advertising with kids our age so this way we can relate and connect to them. An example of this would be this make-up advertisement for girls, they purposely use Rihanna so the ad will appeal to us more. Another example of an advertisement that go after us teens is Proactiv because who doesn't want to have skin like Jennifer Love Hewitt? That is what makes us buy these products.
8. These videos have not really made me think about how I express my identity because the way I express it is by being me... but i feel like I've been exploited and that companies really don't care if you're happy when you buy their things because all they want is your money! I mean yes i am manipulated by ads sometimes but I'm not those kinds of people that get easily convinced to buy something just because they saw an ad on TV or in the back of a bus. sometimes buying those things is a waste of money so I have enough logic in me to not buy everything I see on these ads just because of how good they look or because the sponsor is a celebrity. There are things that I admit have bought because I've seen them on advertisements like the 5 gum because I wanted to try it out. Whether we want to or not, there is always going to be advertisements and people trying to persuade you to buy something but the things you buy shouldn't completely identify you. The videos made me question if some times i unconsciously see an advertisement and if that's the reason why I end up buying something. Or if I really am an easy person to convince into buying something after all? and, if companies in some way really do brain wash us???
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