Bad Advertising

I’m doing research online, and I came across an ad (despite my ad blocker) that made me a little uneasy in my tummy. Here’s the text:

Now even the CEO can edit the company Website!

It’s no surprise that advertising is often misleading, making false implications like "Use our product, and you can get the guy/girl, get the job, feel great, look great, etc. I even had a teacher tell us not to get involved in a career of advertising because it’s a career of lies.

We’ve all grown used to such advertising, and we know how to differentiate between the truth and untruth in ads.

But what I’m noticing now is the bad advice being thrown around, playing into people’s weaknesses, with no remorse from the advertisers. Granted, Coca-Cola isn’t healthy for you, and cigarettes can’t be good, but there are tons of other products and ads that slip under our radars and are destroying people’s lives.

1. The above mentioned ad states that the CEO should be editing the website, the only complication is that he isn’t technical enough to handle it himself. The CEO should be an officer, directing others on what to do. I’ve worked at several companies where the CEO got his hands too dirty in everyday tasks, and the companies all suffered because of it. You should know your role in your organization, focus on what you’re good at, and hire or outsource for anything else. (Although I’m a CEO and programmer, I only intend to retain one role after the start-up phase. The difficult question is, which role do I give up?)
2. Banks advertise in Israel all kinds of loans: quick 6,000 Shekel loan, only 99 NIS/month for your dream vacation, etc. Credit card companies talk about reward points like you’re getting richer as you go further into debt. We should be using shock therapy to zap the 30% of the country living in poverty from looking at such ads. If you want to blame anyone for the great divide growing between the classes in Israel, these leeches top the list.
3. A recent article in a local paper (I only read the headline, whatever) discussed the growing number of kids gambling between breaks in school, and accruing massive gambling debts before they’re 18. I’m no rocket scientist, but when the national lottery sponsors and plasters its logo at most of the school houses in Israel, the kids aren’t being taught that gambling is an addiction. I mean, it’s great that the lotto is giving back to the community, as per the agreement goes with the government, but c’mon!

Griping aside, the answer is education. Teach your children, students, etc, about the dangers of gambling, teach them about money and debt management, teach them about proper work protocols, whether they’re running their own business or not, and then, with G-d’s help, we can look forward to a better country and a better world.