Do any of you ever avoid a thing because of the ads for it?

[McMullen]

The recent conversion of the Escapist website to the Space Janitors website has been reminding me of all the times I've been irritated enough by ads to avoid what they were selling. For instance, I still don't know what Head On actually does because I know their ads are designed to make me find out what it is, and I feel like I'd be rewarding obnoxious behavior by fulfilling their goal.

For the same reason, although I would have rarely bought a Slim Jim anyway, I won't even consider it now after the ads they had on this site.

Home Depot once filled every commercial block with the same commercial while I was watching one of my favorite shows online for a few weeks, and made themselves a choice of last resort for my hardware needs. I live in an apartment. I don't give a shit about your gardening sale. I just want to watch my show, and all you're doing is getting between me and it. I've seen this commercial 20 times in the last hour, and the 21st isn't going to do any more than the first. In fact, it's only making you look like more of an asshole.

Anyone else here do the same?

 

[Newtonyd]

Every car commercial I've ever seen. Seriously, I must have seen/heard thousands of dollars worth of car commercials and all they do is make me feel like buying something used and cheap.

 

[cerealnmuffin]

I quit watching TV due to advertisements. That was 6 years ago and I still don't watch TV. I only watch the few shows I'm interested in via itunes or the net. Even then it would be like one episode a week, two or three at the most. (On Monday, I watch the latest ep of Walking Dead and Project Runway... don't give me that look...I love the dress making show). I hate commercials so much that I don't mind paying a couple bucks for episodes.

Back when I did watch TV, I used to drink a lot of soda switching between pepsi and coca cola. Price swayed my choice but so did the advertisements. I would buy the competitor's product if the commercial was really annoying.

I also plan on raising my future daughter without TV save for games or occasional movie via dvd. The TV wouldn't pick up reception for standard channels. I did read a lot when I was little, but the tv was always on in my house and I regret hours wasted watching shows I didn't even like. My parents preferred TV over paying for piano lessons or something great like that.

 

[Diddy_Mao]

Sorta.

I'm sure Terry Crews is a decent human being and I actually do like the way Old Spice smells.

But I refuse to buy it anymore because their current line of advertising was directed by the insufferable duo of Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim.

All the proof I need that there is not a kind and loving God to be found in this universe lies in the fact that these two have not yet been stuck down by an aggressive and malignant case of Amoebic Dysentery.

 

[Jonluw]

No, not really.
If I want something, I'm going to buy/use that thing regardless of what kind of ads the company responsible has been running.

Still...
I don't think I'm going to check out space janitors. Partly because of the fact that I've accidentally clicked the ad too many times, but also because it looks dumb.

 

[capper42]

As I think everyone living in the UK will agree, I will never use Go compare.

 

[BlindTom]

As I think everyone living in the UK will agree, I will never use Go compare.

Fucking Go Compare. Nothing will ever fix the damage done to me by go compare. The sounds are burned indelibly and against my will into the auditory complexes of my brain.

Lynx body spray/wash has managed to turn me away as a customer since I find it insulting that I- as a member of its late teens early twenties demographic- am always portrayed as a gormless chauvinistic fucktard who thinks that spraying this shit on himself will turn women into retards, and that this is a good thing. No Lynx, I will not buy your product if it will turn me into the ultimate pussy deflector, hanging about in lifts and clicking my sex offender warning device whenever a woman makes eye contact with me and I get an erection.

 

[MetalMagpie]

As I think everyone living in the UK will agree, I will never use Go compare.

Agreed. That song is all it takes to turn me from a normal, sensible human being into a foaming--at-the-mouth psycho-killer.

Confused.com is not quite as bad, but it's getting there. With each sight of that stupid cartoon character, I get closer to murder...

 

[Ilikemilkshake]

As I think everyone living in the UK will agree, I will never use Go compare.

Omfg this so much. Also to a lesser extent, webuyanycar -.-

Yeah... ads for most things annoy the shit out of me, so most of the time i'll mute ads and do my best to not take anything in from them... and if an ad does manage to get through to me and it annoys me i'll do my best to not buy the product.

 

[Antari]

Invasive advertising is the best way for a company to identify itself as someone I don't want to do business with, ever.

 

[tippy2k2]

I have not bought Dead Space 2 due to their "Your Mom hates this game" commercial. If it's aimed at adults, that's just stupid that you think my mother is influencing what video games I'm buying. If it's aimed at kids, that's just wrong due to it being a M rated game. No matter which way you go with it, stupidity rules.

Seriously EA, you set back gaming culture a few years with that commercial...

 

[Sylveria]

I have not bought Dead Space 2 due to their "Your Mom hates this game" commercial. If it's aimed at adults, that's just stupid that you think my mother is influencing what video games I'm buying. If it's aimed at kids, that's just wrong due to it being a M rated game. No matter which way you go with it, stupidity rules.

Seriously EA, you set back gaming culture a few years with that commercial...

My mom loved Dead Space 2 so that entire ad campaign made no sense to me.

 

[castlewise]

I didn't want to see the Star Trek reboot because of the ads. When I did see it, I kind of liked it.

 

[not_you]

If there is an add in-front of a video... I ignore the product completely.... Usually ads aren't a problem for be because of Ad Block Plus on Chrome... But it can't seem to block the ones on escapist....
oh well...

Either way, I ignore the product being sold, and shun it until the commercials disappear.... Not that I can afford any real "luxury" item at the moment anyway.....

 

[OmniscientOstrich]

Depends. If I have no prior information about it, the advertisement may appear offputting or underselling the product. Ironically, while people seem to perpetuate this idea that 'sex sells' I honestly find myself quite staunchly averse to something that tries to sway me with sex appeal as it just smacks of desperation. It tells me; 'we honestly can't think of enough features/benefits/reasons as to why you might actually want the product on it's own merits, so we're just going to distract you with tits for 30 seconds.' It's an insult to my fucking intelligence. >.> Similarly, I loathe Sony's avante-garde, faux Lynchian bullshit in their commercials as they speak nothing of the qualities of the actual product and again give the impression that they're shying away from offering up a legitimate reason as to why I would want the fucking thing in the first place. I'm also rather put off by advertisements that seem rather obnoxious or platitudinous, though while this doesn't give a good impression to a product I'm not well aware of, if I later discover that it does in fact have many features which would appeal to me, than I'm not going to let my initial preconception make me apprehensive as it was only the shitty marketing at fault not the product itself. Yes, without prior knowledge bad marketing can be very detrimental towards my desire to find out more information on the product (kinda self evident in hindsgight) with the exception of companies where bad marketing is a given regardless of the products overall quality such as anything where Sony or EA is involved.

 

[Worgen]

I wont go to go daddy because the ads for it make it look like a crappy porn site from the late 90s that would be riddled with viruses.

 

[Rheinmetall]

I usually act this way: avoid any product that is heavily promoted, unless I have chosen to buy it either way for my own reasons and with my own criteria.

 

[Odbarc]

There's an ad for something? I'm not investing my time or money in it now.

 

[Ulquiorra4sama]

I don't think it's ever been so much an issue of how it's presented as it is so much the content being presented turning me away from it.

Then again i have seen some pretty obnoxious commercials that have only strengthened my resolve NOT to buy something and in the same way i've had ads make me want to buy something even more than before.

But i don't think an advert has ever actually made me change my mind about anything.