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Sense Tempting Advertising

By Frederick Corrigan

What kind of sense can we expect from advertising?

First let's step back and look at some of the definitions of, "Sense".

"Sense": A meaning conveyed or intented.

"Sense Organs": As Sight, Smell, Taste or Touch.

"Common Sense": Sound and prudent, but often unsophisticated judgement".

Now, let's look at the way some companies make use of our senses in their advertising.

Here are three of the most recognized sense tempting companies and their slogans.

Dunkin Donuts---"America runs on Dunkin"

Burger King---"Have it your way"

McDonalds---"I'm loving it"

Okay, we all recognize these slogans, so let's see how they apply to us.

We walk into a Dunkin Donuts store and we're warmly greeted by the pink, orange and tan colors. The lighted menu displays give us enough choices to visually lead us into tasty indulgence. We look at the displays of fancy pasteries and donuts. Our sense of childhood sugary pleasures says, "Go ahead, you deserve a treat". Wait, I skipped breakfast, so I better have one of those New Big n' Toasty bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches.

Now, your smell and taste buds have taken over, common sense went out the window and you're about to add 580 calories to your waistline. You realize that you'll need something to drink, so let's splurge and get a large iced coffee with cream and suger, that's another 250 calories. That my friends, is 830 calories for breakfast!

What if, we had started the day with a little common sense. Let's say, that we had breakfast at home, with a bowl of Walmart Toasted Oat Cereal, with non-fat milk, that's 150 calories. We also had a cup of coffee with cream and sugar, that's 250 calories. Guess what, a 400 calorie breakfast!!

That's 430 calories less than Dunkin Donuts! To put it another way, you will have to walk on your treadmill for about 40 minutes, at 3 miles per hour, to use up 430 calories.

How many times can you stop at Dunkin Donuts and still follow their slogan, "America Runs on Dunkin"?

Today, let's be different and stop at Burger King.

You open the door and right before our eyes is a large sign that advertises the, "Double Croissan'wich, with sausage, eggs and cheese on a flaky cruissant". The sign also reads, "It's Hearty, Satisfying Indulgence in the A.M..

You see the sign, you read the words and you know that you skipped breakfast, so,LET'S DO IT!!

The sign doesn't tell you that the hearty sandwich has 570 calories, 37 grams of fat and 1350mg of sodium. Now, combined with a regular coffee with cream and sugar at 250 calories, this little visit is going to put 820 calories into your system.

Remember that 350 calorie breakfast, well, you just exceeded it by 470 calories and a lot of fat and sodium that you didn't need!

By the way, remember that the Burger King slogan is, "Have it your way". Is that really the way you want it?

Don't think for one second, that the purpose of this intel is to slam certain food venders. The real purpose is to get you to realize that the more "common sense" you use, the less chance that "emotional senses" will effect your waistline and your heartbeat!

You did the right thing, you saved money and calories and today, you had a good breakfast at home.

I'm proud of you!!

Now it's lunchtime and it's been 6 hours since breakfast. You're starving and then your eyes see the familar yellow arches! Okay, let's stop at McDonalds for lunch.

As you approach the front door, you see a large window sign showing a very tempting looking "Angus Burger with Bacon and Cheese". Naturally, the sign also shows a large order of French Fries and a large Coca-Cola. If you buy the whole combination, which they call the Value Meal, you save money.

What they don't tell you on the sign, is that the sandwich has 790 calories, (of which 350 are fat calories), and also 2070mg of sodium which is 86% of your daily value. The French Fries will put 370 calories into you belly, with 850mg of sodium, which is 35% of your daily value. You can also expect to get 250 calories from your 20oz. Coca-Cola.

Your total lunch is 790 calories for your sandwich, 370 calories for the french fries and 250 calories for the drink. That brings the total calorie count to 1410 calories.

Now, how do you like McDonald's slogan, "I'm Loving It"?

If you keep this up, you could buy a tee shirt that says, "Fat people are hard to kidnap"!!

Maybe you can join the 40% of Americans who are obese. Many of them feel that they are being unfairly targeted as fat. I'm not talking to those people who may have conditions that cause them to be obese. My heart goes out to them, for their struggles.

Some of us will never be fit and trim and some of us grandparents will never see our grandchildren get through college. Maybe, just maybe, our bad eating and exercise habits will be the deciding factor.

However, it just might make "sense" NOT to lead our children and grandchildren down the path of eating destruction!!

Contributor's Note

I just saw an article in the local newspaper that a Pizza Parlor is now offering a breakfast Pizza, called a "Brizza". Now,we can order in a "Brizza", while the kids are getting ready for school, and they can go out the door and onto the bus, with "Brizza" in their hand!! We're not getting any smarter!!

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People get paid big money for the advertising gimmicks you describe. Their bank accounts get fat while we do. They are using "common dollars and cents".

Thanks for stopping by and for your comments, Franklyn.
The problem is, we then have to work to get rid of our fat, while they just spend their's.
Best wishes.
Frederick

I'm somewhat surprised how modern society has allowed uncontrolled advertising practices to brainwash easily malleable young minds - such as mine! A Brizza sounds awfully tempting. I'm so used to having my breakfast pizza cold.

Thanks for visiting and for your comments, Nick. I believe that it's the parent's minds that we need to effect. Each generation is getting more imbedded in the convience mode. We need to go back to good health and exercise.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Well done Frederick, a good intel such a shame that the only people who will read it are the people who rarely eat fast foods! The others if they do read any of it will say that they "only have one sometimes", who are they lying to only themselves of course, as their health is their responsibility! With all the wonderful ads who can blame people for being tempted though.
Nick, the tv and other ad companies do not really care what they advertise as long as they get paid for the ads.
Hot or cold it's still junk food! Why not have a few pieces of fruit instead?

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and comments, Adrian.
Maybe, some of our intels will appear as content out on the web, and others will benefit.
Best wishes.
Frederick

I actually have a routine of going for a sundae and the occasional french fries every Sunday with my sisters. I'm just glad that we've actually cut it to once a week. We know of the fast foods' health disadvantages but we just can't simply totally get away from it.

Thank you for stopping by and for your comments, Suzette.
Like most things, ice cream and french fries, in moderation, aren't a terrible thing. There are those who do this everyday, and they're looking for health issues.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Hi Frederick: Surely, right on the money (but don't call me Shirley). We're all provided with a complete set of senses, but they don't necessarily include common sense. As a practical matter, proper diet and exercise can extend our lives while leaving our waistlines alone. But try telling a kid he'd rather eat an orange than a portion of fries!
John

Thanks for your support, John. I understand that if we allow our kids to make the decisions, they'll go for the fast food. What I don't understand, is how we allow our elementry schools to serve fast food in their lunch programs. How healthy is that??
Best wishes.
Frederick

Well done Frederick. Let's choose a healthy lifestyle for ourselves and our grandchildren!

Thank you for your comments of support, Diana.
I think that we need to take the healthy eating and exercise, to schools and colleges. Our students are obese, before they graduate. We adults are to blame!
Best wishes.
Frederick

Gone are the days when kids ate whatever was served on the table and maybe, families eating a meal together. With the fast food craze, children are far less adventuresome with trying new tastes and cuisine beyond what comes out of a package or a drive through window. Thank you for the reminder.

Those days are gone for those parents who don't demand respect. If our children are allowed to dictate the family, then they have lost the responsibility of being a family. Eating a meal together, without interuptions from electronics is vital to a healthy family.
Thank you for visiting and for your comments, Nora.
Best to you.
Frederick

I go to burger king on occasion and get the $1.00 burger. Now I wonder if I've really saved calories.

To treat one's self on occasion is not wrong, nor should we beat ourselves up over it,Marlene. If, on occasion, is really everyday, then we need to look at the definition of on occasion.
Thank you for visiting and for your comments.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Excellent! It is to bad that the only people who see this are members of qondio. The answer to this is education starting at home at birth but then who of todays society can teach them this?

Thank you for stopping by and for your comments, Alvien.
We can only hope that the home will go back to being the backbone of our society. This me, me, me is wrecking our country.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Yep, you got it right. Advertising that appeals not to our best interests but to our appetites is insidious. We need to be alert and mature in how we view and respond to advertising.

I am not perfect person, and I LOVE fast food, which is precisely why I avoid it like the plague. I just don't like what it does to me. My weakness is ice cream, and here I really have to watch myself. I don't need advertising to tell me that I will like it. Sound familiar?

When we were children,Edwin, a small ice cream cone was considered a wonderful privilage. Today, the kids have to have a sundae, with candy toppings and a brownie mixed in.
It shows in our obesity rate, and that is on the parents and grandparents.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Thanks for counting all that calories for us. I totally agree with you. We need to cut down on the fast food. It is not easy to cook at home everyday but it is the better way to go. And we need to teach our children too so they don't get blinded by the advertisements.

Thank you for visiting and for your comments, Lian. It is tough to set by example, when we only use words. Parents need to use disipline on themselves and their children.
This is tough, but we need to do it, for our future generations.
Best to you.
Frederick

Another great post, Frederick. Senses = Temptation. It is an attack on the senses. Typical advertising ploys. Thought goes out the window.

Thank you for stopping by and for your comments, Peter.
You're right, thought does go out the window and our mouths are our biggest source of our troubles!!
Best wishes.
Frederick

Huttriver of New Zealand Apr 19, 2011 05:56

appreciated

Good Intel Frederick. No doubt about it the advertising companies employ some of the smartest minds around when it comes to knowing how to make something sell. Catchy slogans are an important part of marketing.

One has to wonder, do people buy the slogan or the product??
When a product advertises 50% less sodium, how bad was it originaly and for how many years have they been producing a product that wasn't healthy??
Thanks for the visit and for the comments, Geoff.
Best wishes.
Frederick

I still have breakfast at home; a cereal usually - what we call Weetbix. Hot water or hot milk to soften it,sugar to sweeten. A good start for anybody's day!

I too start my day with a full breakfast of cereal,fruit and fruit juice. Don't forget the vitimins!!
Thanks for youe coments, Peter.
Best wishes.
Frederick

Welcome aboard, Mary Lynn.
Thanks for stopping by and for your kind coments.
Best to you.
Frederick

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