Personally, I do think that (some) ads and ad companies try to subliminally persuade us to want a certain product. I mean, why wouldn't you? It's a smart marketing ploy. If the ad can successful make the viewer crave/have the urge to buy their product, without them realizing they've been tricked, they will most likely buy or invest in the product. This happens to me quite often, except I know when I'm trying to be subliminally persuaded and/or primed.
For example, I like gingerale. It's a nice refreshing soft drink, and I don't usually drink them that often, but always enjoy them when I do. Now, say I'm watching a TV show or in a movie theatre watching previews before my movie, Canada Dry decides that this is a perfect time to show their commercial. Usually in these commercials, they do some extreme close-ups of gingerale being poured into a glass filled up with lots of ice. Usually when I see this, I think of how delicious and thirst-quenching an ice-cold gingerale is. I immediately wish I had one (or another beverage) right now. I'll now go buy one or find one to drink, because I watched a commercial.
That isn't always the scenario (I don't always end up buying the product from the commercial), but it does happen quite often. And there are a lot of factors which these companies must take into consideration in order to get the best possible outcome from their 'priming'. For a soft drink or food company, a commercial on TV or in theatres would have the most successful outcome. Who doesn't love watching TV/a movie and eating? It seems to be engraved into our minds that this is a great combination (is that because of us, or because of the advertisements?). It's been a part of our culture for so long; our dates or nights out usually centre around this combination of activities. We combine these two activities so often that some of us might always eat or drink while watching TV. This is why a company like Canada Dry, or Coca-Cola, or McDonald's, etc., invests so much money into television ads.
Another factor that food companies play up this the product itself. I very rarely see a commercial for Canada Dry or Sprite that contains a lot of information about the product. Usually, these ads just highlight the physical features of the product, and sometimes but not frequently, include a slogan or sentence at most on the product. I think this is smart. The less text the better. I'm not saying people are stupid or can't handle a lot of information, but when it comes to a TV ad, less is more. When you only have 15 to 30 seconds to display your product, simplicity and boldness will stand out, especially since it is one of many ads that will be shot at us throughout our TV viewing period.
My one question is, is this always an appropriate method of advertising? Considering these ads are also being shown to impressionable young kids, and we're living in a time where childhood obesity and health issues are always at the front of every conversation, probably not. At least not for food products anyway.
The National Center for Biotechnology Information did a very thorough study on the effects of priming in TV ads, and how it affected eating behaviour. The study was very conclusive, the food advertising increased food consumption during and after viewing of the ad, for both adults and kids. The kids of the study actually ate up to 45% more! A study like this pretty much proves how effective subliminal advertising really is. Beneficial to the company, but not so beneficial to the consumer.
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