Almost-Advertising
Not all advertising overtly promotes something specific, is seen and understood to be advertizing, is paid for, or asks you to spend money. Sometimes the almost-advertiser only wants to almost-advertise.
Types/Categories:
1. Incomplete suggestions: The advertisement takes the mind along a path far enough that the observer can fill in the necessary details. For example: advertising that promotes or increases awareness about a type of product or service without mentioning a specific brand (especially where only one brand dominates).
2. Suggestions with deniability: Somehow funding organizations that see things your way, and are very outspoken or public, and who will not necessarily divulge where all their donations are coming from (and if they do, there are several sponsors).
3. Promoting a prerequisite product or service: If purchasing a product or service makes no sense unless you also have something else (a platform) then promoting those necessary things would be worthwhile.
4. Social Engineering/Idea Ads: Suggesting a concept that may later be capitalized on. (We're almost-green!)
5. Viral Advertising: "Free" advertising may or may not qualify as almost-advertising, depending on how much time and energy went in to the promotion.
Examples (what you see here is almost-advertising):
The more you look at this, and hang out with people who watch things like this, the more you might be inclined to buy into the ideas it promotes. These things almost-advertise many things even when they are turned off.
Once you turn one of these devices on, it is amazing how often you see people shown watching one of these devices.
It's easy to hit this button, ergo . . . it must be easy to shop at the store it came from.
Put your logo everywhere you can. Let the dictionary sell for you by picking words already popular as part of your company name.
Motion draws they eye, like milkmakers to grass.
You'll be watching for them now. Buying from them later.
Hmmm. They are not really asking you to buy anything exactly . . . .
You don't need to be a great artist to create a sign. Here someone might be advertizing against something as much or more than they are advertizing for something.
Promoting life, and vigor, and . . . traditional ways of thinking.
You'll be putting money into somebody's game machine later.
Subliminal seduction, perhaps.
Sometimes you just need the arrow and the name of the place - especially if you have a monopoly.
This isn't just a train, it's a fast train. The pointy nose of the train helps sell the more-expensive tickets.
Perhaps they don't want your money, . . . but your time.
Just the statistics.
The middle part of the bomb: the real message.
