Advertisements More Annoying These Days?

[Rich Riddle]

Has anyone else noticed advertisements getting more annoying both in volume intensity and audio-visually?

[Lee Schierer]

No, we usually record programs we like and zip through the commercials. I have noticed that there are now 6 commercial breaks per hour and the breaks are longer.

[Keith Westfall]

Plus the fact that they seemed to be geared towards idiots! They used to say 'sex sells' - now I think it's 'stupidly sells'.

[Joe Kieve]

And I'm particularily annoyed by commercials that show women making men look stupid....(even if we are.)

[Rich Riddle]

And I'm particularily annoyed by commercials that show women making men look stupid....(even if we are.)
They go hand-in-hand with the current TV shows that make men look stupid. Seems the flavor of the decade.

[David Weaver]

They're louder here, even on PBS - who has one of the loudest commercials that I can think of. I recall there being regulations on the books barring commercials that have a louder average volume than the programs they're embedded in. It doesn't appear that anyone is actually following that.

Our PBS station has a commercial that is literally two or three times louder than the underlying program, and in an attempt to be progressive, it's some sort of faux rock music on the commercial and a bunch of once per second scene changes. If I watch PBS in the room at low level, it can literally wake my son up from sleep a few rooms away.

As far as the content goes, I find the commercials that have a skit that has nothing to do with the product the most amusing, because you can't remember what they're trying to sell you. I have no idea why someone would purchase airtime to waste it like that, but it's kind of funny, especially if it goes by, you have no idea what it was about, and then there is a list of side effects like those from the saturday night live "happy fun ball" skit.

My bigger irk than TV commercials, though, are news stories that have a false headline and then the story is something else. I can't stand that, and I know it's designed to get you to click on the article to generate hits for ad revenue. That and tiled websites - if sites have misleading titles or go from a reasonable layout with lists in progression to a random tiled layout, then I don't read them.

[Scott Shepherd]

I think I could live my life just fine if I never say another pharmaceutical add in my lifetime. Why are you wasting your money telling me about your drug. I'm not a doctor and can't write prescriptions. If I walk into a doctor's office and he prescribes something for me, should I ask him why he used this drug instead of the one I saw on t.v.?

I'm so sick of Cial__ and ___gra commercials. Do I really need to see an add 10 times a day for years to be sold on your product? If so, I'm pretty sure you'll never get your cost covered on that deal.

[David Weaver]

should I ask him why he used this drug instead of the one I saw on t.v.?


That's another irk. The drugs the tell you to go to your doctor and ask if they'll prescribe you a specific drug from the commercial. I'm sure that's translated to some people saying "hey, can you give me this pill, it sounds like it will work". Which would be extremely irritating to me if I were a doctor.

[Jerome Stanek]

The other ones that really bug me is the AARP pushing insurance.

[Ernie Miller]

That's another irk. The drugs the tell you to go to your doctor and ask if they'll prescribe you a specific drug from the commercial. I'm sure that's translated to some people saying "hey, can you give me this pill, it sounds like it will work". Which would be extremely irritating to me if I were a doctor.
+1
I even asked my doctor about this and she said people come in and ask her to give them a prescription for a drug they don't need, formulated to cure a condition they don't have.

[David Weaver]

+1
I even asked my doctor about this and she said people come in and ask her to give them a prescription for a drug they don't need, formulated to cure a condition they don't have.

I'm sure all of us run into this where we work. But do people really think that their doctor, who does this kind of work 5, 6, or 7 days a week doesn't think about what they do at a level that's far beyond what they as a patient understand?

I'm not a physician, but the same thing happens to me from time to time, and you can't really say "you know, you're wasting my time with these questions, and the level needs to go up several magnitudes before they're even relevant or might find something worthy of revision". Everyone wants to feel special, though, and I'm sure if a doctor said "you know, you are wasting my time and yours with these questions, and you've just done some of the drug maker's job - trying to advertise for them - and don't have much chance of yielding anything positive for yourself because ____".

[Mike Henderson]

My pet peeve is the web pages that start a video, with a commercial at the beginning, as soon as you go to the page. I just recently found how to stop those from playing.

I used to turn the sound off so I could read the text in peace, but I'd forget to turn it back on again.

Mike

[Steve Peterson]

There are ways to trick the intent of the noise limits by controlling the background noise level to make other sounds jump out. It is really annoying.

The commercials that bug me the most are the ones that say "ask your doctor if ????? is right for you", but they don't even tell you what it does.

Steve

[Pat Barry]

There are ways to trick the intent of the noise limits by controlling the background noise level to make other sounds jump out. It is really annoying.

The commercials that bug me the most are the ones that say "ask your doctor if ????? is right for you", but they don't even tell you what it does.

Steve
Also, the ads that tell you to tell your doctor if you have X, Y or Z disorder / disease/ malaise / etc. How do I know if I have those things? That's why I go to the doctor in the first place. LOL

[Jerome Stanek]

Any commercial That has Bill Cower in it. Why does he need a headset to do it is it that he can't remember is lines

[Rick Potter]

My biggest gripe is that they are getting better at blending the overall look of the commercial to the show I am watching. It is getting harder all the time to TiVo past the commercials without false starts. I used to be an ace at it, but lately it's getting rare to hit it right the first time.

I cannot remember the last time I saw a commercial and went out to buy the product.

RP

[Jim Koepke]

My pet peeve is the web pages that start a video, with a commercial at the beginning, as soon as you go to the page. I just recently found how to stop those from playing.

I used to turn the sound off so I could read the text in peace, but I'd forget to turn it back on again.

Mike

Care to share this? Maybe even just a PM?

Some commercials are very convincing. I recall the Windows '95 campaign. A friend told me his mother was wondering if she should get it. She didn't even own a computer.

I recall an ad for "The Purple Pill." I had no idea what it was but felt a need to find out. I never pursued it because I knew it was the persuasion of the advertising.

There are many emotions that are used to persuade people in to taking action whether it be spending money or supporting a cause. The fear of everyone else having a good time while you sit home alone can be very persuasive.

There is some advertising that will get me to stop fast forwarding and watch a good ad. Sometimes more than once.

I like some of the Geico commercials like the "Words Can Hurt" where when the words "The End" come up and Jessie hits his head on the E.

I can appreciate a commercial that is good entertainment. It may not get me to change brands, but it is fun to see good work in the field.

jtk

[Joe Kieve]

My pet peeve is the web pages that start a video, with a commercial at the beginning, as soon as you go to the page. I just recently found how to stop those from playing.

I used to turn the sound off so I could read the text in peace, but I'd forget to turn it back on again.

Mike

That's one of my pet peeves also. Inquiring minds want to know; so how do you stop the commercial from playing before you can watch the video?

joe

[Mike Henderson]

That's one of my pet peeves also. Inquiring minds want to know; so how do you stop the commercial from playing before you can watch the video?

joe
I use Google Chrome so I'll give instructions for that. I'm sure that other browsers have similar options.

Go to the upper right corner, below the X (they'll be three horizontal lines). Click on that. Then click on "settings"

Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on "Show advanced options".

Under the "Privacy" heading, click on the button that says "Privacy settings..." This will bring up a box. Scroll down to "Plugins".

Change the option from "Run automatically" to "Click to play".

There may be some sites where you want the plugin to run automatically. If so, click on "Manage exceptions" and put the URL of those sites into the list.

Now, when you go to a site, those videos will not run automatically but you can run them by clicking on the box. Those sites which you put into the list will run the pulgins automatically.

Mike

[Sorry, I can't help you stop the commercial - just the whole video. Most of the time, I want to read the text and not watch the video.]

[Chuck Wintle]

Has anyone else noticed advertisements getting more annoying both in volume intensity and audio-visually?

In addition to the increased volume during a commercial break there seems to be more time given to commercials during a given 1 hour period. Most commercials are very annoying and some really are not in very good taste.

[Greg Peterson]

The law regulating commercial volumes is called The CALM Act.

I have a SPL meter on my smart phone, and while not the most scientific tool, it does show some interesting things.

Next time you are watching a live sporting event, pay attention to the volume of the bumper music they play as they go to commercial. They really pump it up with the intent of allowing advertisers to blast their commercials.

The other thing I noticed is that the density of sound and volume throughout a show is pretty dynamic. Commercials on the other hand, pretty much keep the meter pegged right at the up limit.

Broadcasters setup the commercials, and the commercials are practically shouting at the audience. While this is all legal, it clearly circumvents the spirit of the law.

[John Coloccia]

I use Google Chrome so I'll give instructions for that. I'm sure that other browsers have similar options.

Go to the upper right corner, below the X (they'll be three horizontal lines). Click on that. Then click on "settings"

Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on "Show advanced options".

Under the "Privacy" heading, click on the button that says "Privacy settings..." This will bring up a box. Scroll down to "Plugins".

Change the option from "Run automatically" to "Click to play".

There may be some sites where you want the plugin to run automatically. If so, click on "Manage exceptions" and put the URL of those sites into the list.

Now, when you go to a site, those videos will not run automatically but you can run them by clicking on the box. Those sites which you put into the list will run the pulgins automatically.

Mike

[Sorry, I can't help you stop the commercial - just the whole video. Most of the time, I want to read the text and not watch the video.]

Thanks, Mike. That's a pet peeve of mine. It's especially annoying because 90% of the time I just want to read a news story, but no one seems to write anymore. Everywhere I click, some video starts playing.

I have a fool-proof solution to TV commercials, though. I haven't watched TV regularly in almost 20 years. If it wasn't for the wife, I certainly wouldn't have cable (didn't for a good many years), and I'd likely not have a TV either.

[Pat Barry]

I really like to DVR and fast forward through the commercials, especially for sports shows like NFL, NASCAR, golf, etc. All I need to figure out typically is how many times I need to hit the 30 sec skip button. Its usually 4 times, sometimes 6. Anyway, hit it a few extra if need be, then hit play when the show resumes, the Directv DVR even backs up bit to help you out and you miss virtually nothing and if you do, who cares, just back up a bit. This saves hours of time. An NFL game is over in less than an hour and a half, even more if I hit the skip button right after a play is over (unless you are watching the Eagles or a no-huddle offense). If I skip between every play, skip the half time, skip the commercials, skip during penalities, skip during official reviews I can finish an entire game in about 45 minutes and really not miss anything.

[Roger Feeley]

I was going through all the avenues that I could be marketed to and concluded that all the wells have been poisoned.

-- I DVR all TV shows and ff through commercials.
-- I don't answer the door except for people I know or kids selling something for schools.
-- Internet ads aren't targeted enough to have an effect on me. I'm still getting ads for a Fluke infra-red thermometer that I bought 3 years ago.
-- Telemarketers don't get much further than 'hello'.
-- My only radio station is NPR. The name sponsors but no real advertising.

About the only advertising that really works on me are movie trailers. As for the rest, it's 'don't call me, I'll call you'.

[Mark Walden]

lawyers!!!!!! My insurance said my claim was worth nothing, but ----- ----- got me a million dollars, or $700.000 or some out of this world amount. No one is going to write that check without appealing it. And what ever you do get The lawyer will get 45%, the tax man gets about 30% and what do you have left. Ambulance chasing lawyers on TV 20 time a hour just sucks. I am so tired of listening to them.

[Kev Williams]

My biggest gripe is that they are getting better at blending the overall look of the commercial to the show I am watching. It is getting harder all the time to TiVo past the commercials without false starts. I used to be an ace at it, but lately it's getting rare to hit it right the first time

I've found that nearly every channel we watch, the last commercial before the show you're watching comes back on, is for ANOTHER show on the same channel. I don't use the 30-second button anymore. I just 4xFF until I see another show ad. By the time I get "play" pushed, it's almost perfect! :)

My biggest peeve with ads is when trying to watch news channels. You get 5 minutes of news then 4 minutes of ads. The 3 minutes news, 4 minutes ads. 6 minutes, then 3-1/2 minutes. It's ridiculous.

My favorite HATED ads are the "Have you or a loved one been [injured, harmed, affected] by virtually anything known to man? ads... GAWD!!! I thought I'd heard it all when someone went after Tylenol. Tylenol? Good grief, what's next, WATER? But I swear, I saw one worse than Tylenol and second only to water: Talcum powder. Aka BABY POWDER! Millions of babies are getting poofed with baby powder as I type this, and some lawyer has come up with a class action lawsuit against it? Are people snorting it and suing for not getting high?

[Bill McNiel]

We record the shows we want to watch and fast forward through the commercials. I can no longer stomach them. Doesn't work for football games cause I want to watch my Trojans and Seahawks live.

[Cary Falk]

That's one of my pet peeves also. Inquiring minds want to know; so how do you stop the commercial from playing before you can watch the video?

joe
AdBlocker Plus did it for me.


As for annoying commercials, the point is to get you to talk about the product. The more annoying the more you talk about it. It is easier to make a bad annoying commercial than a good one. The results are the same.

[Bill Orbine]

Call the toll free number provided in the commercial to complain!!:D

[Ole Anderson]

If you rent a DVD of a TV series you will find that actual show content is about 44 minutes, the rest is advertising. When I had the 30 second skip button, it would typically get clicked 6 or 7 times per break, that is 3-3.5 minutes per commercial break on more popular programs, less popular programs don't get the advertisers. Now that I have Comcast's X1 Platform, they removed the skip forward option, so you have to use fast forward. Still have the skip back button though. BUT if you go to video on demand, the commercials are shorter, but often they repeat the same commercial over and over, very annoying and you can't FF through those.

As for Internet, ad content ruins the surfing experience because they take so long to load, even with a 60 mbps connection. I think they load slow by design, otherwise you would click on them so fast, you would never see their content. Full screen overlays are particularly annoying. Yes I use IE, have tried to use Chrome, just can't get used to it. On techy TV shows like Criminal Minds and NCIS, they show content popping up instantaneously. Anybody really have a computer/connection like that? Well other than a well managed forums like the Creek or a techy site without ads like Black Magic Design. Online newspapers seem to be the worst.

[daniel lane]

Just to share on the "preventing auto-playback" thing - I use Firefox quite often and I installed an add-on called "FlashBlock". It replaces anything flash (including every video on CNN, etc.) with a little button you have to click to allow the video to play. Works very well.


daniel