SENIORS DOUBT ADS, SURVEY FINDS
By Adnews Staff
While older Americans believe companies are doing a fair job at advertising to people their age, only three in 10 people believe advertising messages, according to a survey done by the Consumer Electronics Manufacturers Association of Arlington, Virginia. Forty-six per cent of respondents, all of whom were 50-years-of-age or older, said they don't believe the ads they see. Forty-four per cent said that companies who make products specifically for older people do a good job of advertising those products. Almost 23% disagreed. TV ads got even lower marks, with 32% of respondents saying they find ads directed at seniors silly and offensive. A majority of respondents said the industry is doing a good job of portraying seniors in advertising, but having older people in ads only has a marginal impact on people. Seniors are a little less cyncial than the overall adult population about advertising. One recent survey done by the Cummings Centre for Advertising Studies at the University of Illinois found that 52% of respondents said they do not think ads can be generally trusted. In addition, this survey found that 47% of respondents believe most ads insult their intelligence. The CEMA study was conducted in December 1996. It was a nationwide telephone survey.