Customer Reviews

Made You Look: How Advertising Works and Why You Should Know

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I thought that this book was very interesting when I picked it up, because I had never seen anything like it! Even the author states:
"Do you remember the day one of your parents sat you down to have a serious talk about advertising? Me neither."

Basically, no one really teaches you about this stuff. I remember that in seventh grade, one of my favorite subjects was called, "Propaganda." It taught you about how advertisers use good looking people to sell products, or how they compare against other products. It was interesting, but didn't last very long! You usually learn about it yourself and by that time, you are up to your eyeballs in debt!

The book looks at both sides of the story. It points out how advertisers try to get your attention and may do things that aren't always ethical, but it also points out the facts.

There are some sections called "Try this at home!" Basically, these are exercises to make people more aware of the advertising around them. One suggests to look around your environment and see if the melting pot of society exists on your TV or in commercials. Chances are, it doesn't. On another section similar to this, the book asks you to look at the ingredients on a "brand name" product and a "no name" product and see if the ingredients are the same. Usually, they have similiar contents but people are more familiar and feel more comfortable with the brand name. So, we are more likely to buy it.

Towards the end of the book, there is a section that gives you information on how to speak out about what you think may not be right. If you are offended by something that is advertised to you, it suggests that you write to the company, because writing is taken more seriously than a phone call. There are also resources in the back on how to get a hold of companies and organizations that can continue to help you in your quest!

Must read for pre teens and teenagers alike!

This is an excellent tool for teaching media literacy and critical thinking to school-age children, and even to adults! I appreciate the history, the presentation of multiple perspectives, and the education about consumer advocacy.

"Made You Look" is a wealth of information with outstanding illustrations to help young people understand advertising and how media impacts our lives and decisions. This title from the list, SC Reads 2005-2006: 100 Titles for High School Students, is one that older elementary, middle school and high school students can all enjoy. In a classroom or at home, this book provides great sparks for lively discussions!

Made You Look is about advertising and how it works. It is very informative. I didn't know advertisers had so many tricks. I like this book because it shows so many different perspectives of advertising and lots of opinions. Kids ten and up would like this book. It has some good quotes and facts. It's a very unique book because you won't find many books about advertising for kids and adults. Some of the lies advertisers have told are outrageous. Did you know that when Coke first came out it was advertised as a medicine? There are different rules about ads in each country. For example, Canada has a law that you can't target infomercials at kids under twelve. For me, this was a page turner because it was different than books I usually read.

"Made You Look" is about the advertising industry and how it became so powerful and influential. It explains the ways ads catch our attention, and how advertisers try to influence us. It also explores how advertisers who pay broadcast, print and other media outlets to feature their commercials can control the sorts of news and entertainment we will or won't see, read and hear.

Before you buy something based on an ad, "Made You Look" recommends that you ask yourself: Who wants me to believe what the ad says? How do the advertisers benefit if I buy this product? Aside from the product itself, what else does this ad sell? What information does this ad leave out?

"Made You Look" draws attention to the important things that money can't buy, and how time away from TV, radio, computers and billboards frees us to reach for the relationships and experiences that enrich us and make the world a happier, healthier place.

Advertising. We see it every day, ignoring it, thinking it can't affect us. In her book Made You Look, however, Shari Graydon reveals to us the subtle tricks advertisers use to lure us in unknowingly, as well as many other little known facts about this little known business.

Starting with a brief history of the business, going back to the ads of ancient Greece for escaped slaves, the book moves on to describe the basics of advertising today. This overview includes such information as the differences between how advertisers and consumers see advertising, and how we ourselves can be walking advertisements by wearing clothes with company logos.

From chapter 2 to chapter 5, the book shifts to a warning about how advertising affects us. The author describes many of advertiser's methods in detail, such as the "don't be a geek" strategy and the phenomenon of infomercials. I was especially intrigued by the section on public relations, an easy way to disguise ads under news stories and interviews.

In the last chapter, the author discusses how to fight back against advertisers using the power of the "three C's": consumer power, companion power, and complaint power. Consumer power is boycotting a product, companion power is getting your friends and family to join you in boycotting it, and complaint power is communicating with the company through a phone call, e-mail, or letter, and telling them exactly what they did that you don't like. By demonstrating how to use this power, readers can learn that they can make a difference.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as it explained the business of advertising in detail, and also showed how to fight back. Complemented by the delightful illustrations of Warren Clark, this book is an excellent read for young and old alike, and I would highly recommend it.