5 ms·

I'm a young millennial and I'm sure that I'm suffering from a bias here* -- but I'm actually surprised they would need to take out ads in the NYT, given what th

I'm a young millennial and I'm sure that I'm suffering from a bias here* -- but I'm actually surprised they would need to take out ads in the NYT, given what their product is. I just find it so hard to believe that a significant number of people in the US haven't heard of Facebook or haven't any close friends who use Facebook. If the number wasn't significant, then I don't know why they would need to take out ads. Unless you've been living under a rock, if you're my age, then you have had more than enough time to figure out whether Facebook is your cup of tea. *I am probably underestimating how many older folks are completely out-of-the-loop with Facebook.

aggie 8y ago
Many universally-recognized brands still advertise, because advertising isn't just about mere awareness of a product. It brings the product to mind and can continue to shape perception. The returns on advertising certainly diminish as you saturate awareness, but some level of maintenance is still worth doing.
orbifold 8y ago
They ran a full page ad this week in the FAZ the German equivalent of the NYT basically apologizing and promising to follow a new set of values.
- anonytrary 8y ago
  This week!? I thought they did that a few weeks ago because of Cambridge Analytica? What did they do this time?
mcbits 8y ago
It does make some sense considering the ideal user for an ad-supported business: Has money and either isn't savvy enough to block ads or, even better, ethically opposes blocking ads. No offense intended to the previous commenter in particular, but statistically speaking, someone who reads stodgy news without an ad blocker in a subscription app on an expensive phone probably fits the profile. They may have heard of the company but haven't tried it, or they tried it in the past and just need the brand occasionally refreshed in their mind until they try it again.
- varjag 8y ago
  There's probably zero people in the world who ethically oppose ad blockers and haven't heard about Facebook yet.
  - fastball 8y ago
    I know a couple people that are ethically opposed to ad-blocking and have never bothered to sign up for Facebook.
    - varjag 8y ago
      Huge difference between "never heard of" and "never bothered to subscribe". An ad in NYT is unlikely to win their minds.
      - fastball 8y ago
        The comment you replied to had the phrasing: They may have heard of the company but haven't tried it, or they tried it in the past and just need the brand occasionally refreshed in their mind until they try it again. Nobody but you claimed that these people "haven't heard of" Facebook. You seem to be under the false impression that ads are only for people that have never heard of something. That is almost the opposite of the truth.
- anonytrary 8y ago
  > It does make some sense considering the ideal user for an ad-supported business: Has money and either isn't savvy enough to block ads or, even better, ethically opposes blocking ads. It is concerning that a business model can be dependent on necessary ignorance of the users. Sounds like a bubble waiting to pop.
- ardy42 8y ago
  > No offense intended to the previous commenter in particular, but statistically speaking, someone who reads stodgy news without an ad blocker in a subscription app on an expensive phone probably fits the profile. I don't think that's quite a fair characterization. Apps that block in-app ads are against the major app store polices, so one would have to be far more technically adept than average to have a working ad blocker in a news app: https://9to5mac.com/2017/07/15/apple-reportedly-shifts-app-store-policy-to-stop-adblockers-outside-of-safari/ https://9to5mac.com/2017/07/15/apple-reportedly-shifts-app-s... https://www.androidpolice.com/2016/03/01/google-explicitly-bans-ad-blockers-from-the-play-store-except-all-those-ad-blocking-web-browsers-apparently/ https://www.androidpolice.com/2016/03/01/google-explicitly-b... Browsers are a different story.

aggie 8y ago

Many universally-recognized brands still advertise, because advertising isn't just about mere awareness of a product. It brings the product to mind and can continue to shape perception. The returns on advertising certainly diminish as you saturate awareness, but some level of maintenance is still worth doing.

orbifold 8y ago

They ran a full page ad this week in the FAZ the German equivalent of the NYT basically apologizing and promising to follow a new set of values.

anonytrary 8y ago
This week!? I thought they did that a few weeks ago because of Cambridge Analytica? What did they do this time?

mcbits 8y ago

It does make some sense considering the ideal user for an ad-supported business: Has money and either isn't savvy enough to block ads or, even better, ethically opposes blocking ads. No offense intended to the previous commenter in particular, but statistically speaking, someone who reads stodgy news without an ad blocker in a subscription app on an expensive phone probably fits the profile. They may have heard of the company but haven't tried it, or they tried it in the past and just need the brand occasionally refreshed in their mind until they try it again.

varjag 8y ago
There's probably zero people in the world who ethically oppose ad blockers and haven't heard about Facebook yet.
- fastball 8y ago
  I know a couple people that are ethically opposed to ad-blocking and have never bothered to sign up for Facebook.
  - varjag 8y ago
    Huge difference between "never heard of" and "never bothered to subscribe". An ad in NYT is unlikely to win their minds.
    - fastball 8y ago
      The comment you replied to had the phrasing: They may have heard of the company but haven't tried it, or they tried it in the past and just need the brand occasionally refreshed in their mind until they try it again. Nobody but you claimed that these people "haven't heard of" Facebook. You seem to be under the false impression that ads are only for people that have never heard of something. That is almost the opposite of the truth.
anonytrary 8y ago
> It does make some sense considering the ideal user for an ad-supported business: Has money and either isn't savvy enough to block ads or, even better, ethically opposes blocking ads. It is concerning that a business model can be dependent on necessary ignorance of the users. Sounds like a bubble waiting to pop.
ardy42 8y ago
> No offense intended to the previous commenter in particular, but statistically speaking, someone who reads stodgy news without an ad blocker in a subscription app on an expensive phone probably fits the profile. I don't think that's quite a fair characterization. Apps that block in-app ads are against the major app store polices, so one would have to be far more technically adept than average to have a working ad blocker in a news app: https://9to5mac.com/2017/07/15/apple-reportedly-shifts-app-store-policy-to-stop-adblockers-outside-of-safari/ https://9to5mac.com/2017/07/15/apple-reportedly-shifts-app-s... https://www.androidpolice.com/2016/03/01/google-explicitly-bans-ad-blockers-from-the-play-store-except-all-those-ad-blocking-web-browsers-apparently/ https://www.androidpolice.com/2016/03/01/google-explicitly-b... Browsers are a different story.