Classical Conditioning in Advertising

Advertisers are always looking for new ways to push their products onto the average citizen. Ads can be seen and heard everywhere from television and the Internet to blimps and clothing. For decades, advertisers have been using classical conditioning in advertising to influence consumers on a subconscious level into buying the advertised product. Clear examples of this marketing technique is particularly prominent in ads for foods and drinks, and perhaps even more obviously so in political campaign ads.

Foods and drinks depicted in ads on television, billboards, and other visual media are known for being exceptionally deceptive in their tantalizing, refreshing appearances. (When was the last time you received a Big Mac that looked as good as the one’s you see on TV?) However, altering the appearance of their products is not the only trick that the marketing divisions of major food and drink companies use to make consumers buy their products; they often pair their product in ads with upbeat music and feel-good imagery. Take, for example, the Coca-Cola commercial that debuted during 2012’s Super Bowl game. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2nBBMbjS8w) NE_Bear is very visibly distraught about his team’s performance in the game, but he clearly is much happier once he gets his paws on an ice-cold bottle of Coca-Cola. The emotional imagery presented serves as an unconditioned stimulus which is meant to condition the consumer to associate Coca-Cola, the conditioned stimulus, with positive feelings. Perhaps the stronger UCS in the ad is the use of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, which is a very well-known and respected piece of classical music. Another commercial which uses similar techniques is the Budweiser commercial revolving around prohibition, which also debuted during the 2012 Super Bowl. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGgosT-v5sw) The commercial depicts a massive celebration to commemorate the end of prohibition, which, just like the Coca-Cola commercial, aims to associate positive feelings of celebration (the UCS) with the product for sale, in this case Budweiser (the CS). The Budweiser commercial features well known, triumphant music, which further mirrors the Coca-Cola ad.

Examples of classical conditioning are even more blatantly obvious in political ads, specifically in ads aiming to defame opposing candidates. Ironically, the aspects of classical conditioning in these ads are often so obvious that many people consider the ads to be counterproductive, even laughable. One strong example of classical conditioning in political advertising is an anti-Obama ad marketed toward women and focusing on “Obamacare.” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iys1BWUf-Nc) The entire video is structured and formatted like a Nazi public announcement. The Orwellian context and grim color scheme serve as unconditioned stimuli that are supposed to connect Obama, the conditioned stimulus, with oppressive, totalitarian government. Another ad, which targets Mitt Romney, does a better job of showing the more common stimuli that are used for classical conditioning through poltial advertising. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtSeLTOeXBs) The majority of the ad is simply quotes and statistics about Romney’s career as a businessman, but the presentation of these statements is where conditioning comes into play. The entire ad features dull, dark colors like gray and brown, without any music or any other appetitive stimulus. This is the model followed by most negative campaign ads.

In conclusion, modern advertisements rely heavily on classical conditioning to influence consumers. Through the use of visual depiction of emotion, as well as other audiovisual stimuli, advertisers form a connection between the advertised product and positive feelings, or in some cases negative ones.