5 ms·

Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? Are you going to search all the buildings in your neighborhood to try and figure out which one

Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? Are you going to search all the buildings in your neighborhood to try and figure out which one sells food? Signage is advertising. Every way for you to find out about anything to buy is advertising. You can have an opinion that some forms of advertising you would like to curtail but a blanket statement is nonsensical.

lm28469 5y ago
> Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? If I don't know I have a problem to solve I probably don't have a problem to solve, or at least not a problem big enough that it requires me to be forced to consume hours of advertisement per year
- libertine 5y ago
  But that's the same as saying ignorance is a bliss. You might have problems but you haven't thought about them, or in some case you can't even verbalize them. Other times problems just become background noise, and they're there in plain sight but you're used to them - and they can have negative impact on your life. We're not machines, problems aren't binary. Now if you say that we as a society, sometimes, value the "wrong things" (which is subjective) and see problems that aren't a big deal, it's true. But you can't pin that on advertising - those are symptoms of poor education systems, poor health, and I'd go as far as poor value systems.
- elvis10ten 5y ago
  Well a problem could be averted before you have it. There are lots of examples: Like buying a kinesis keyboard before you actually get RSI. Or an ergonomic chair. You were heading towards a problem, but might not know without an “ad”.
amelius 5y ago
Information can spread without advertising being involved.
- otabdeveloper4 5y ago
  Advertising is just information with a price tag, so no.
benlivengood 5y ago
Basically search is the answer. Search on Amazon, search on the Internet and find the manufacturer's web site, etc. Google convinced manufacturers that they should also advertise but it was working just fine without the advertisements.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- operator-name 5y ago
  Search and advertisements go hand in hand - they both short circuit foraging.
xigoi 5y ago
Right now, you're using a site that allows you to discover IT-related products without advertizing.
- jefftk 5y ago
  And it is funded through paid placement for job ads for YC companies.
- dtjb 5y ago
  I think a large number of HN posts can be grouped under the term advertising. Spreading awareness of a product, company, or service is probably the number one motivator for posting things here.
  - xigoi 5y ago
    But people actively go here to look for new products. It's not like if you want to watch a video and you get an ad in your face.
jefftk 5y ago
> Every way for you to find out about anything to buy is advertising. I don't think that's right. If I use a product, like it, and tell my friends about it, that isn't advertising because it isn't funded by anyone who gains from the purchase of the product. Similarly, Consumer Reports isn't advertising, because they are funded by their members. General review orgs like The Wirecutter may or may not be advertising, depending on how successful they are at preventing manufacturers from influencing their reviews.
alpaca128 5y ago
> Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? From friends, online communities, search, ... In some places it's illegal to publicly advertise alcohol or indicate where it's sold. People still manage to get drunk without a problem.

lm28469 5y ago

> Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? If I don't know I have a problem to solve I probably don't have a problem to solve, or at least not a problem big enough that it requires me to be forced to consume hours of advertisement per year

libertine 5y ago
But that's the same as saying ignorance is a bliss. You might have problems but you haven't thought about them, or in some case you can't even verbalize them. Other times problems just become background noise, and they're there in plain sight but you're used to them - and they can have negative impact on your life. We're not machines, problems aren't binary. Now if you say that we as a society, sometimes, value the "wrong things" (which is subjective) and see problems that aren't a big deal, it's true. But you can't pin that on advertising - those are symptoms of poor education systems, poor health, and I'd go as far as poor value systems.
elvis10ten 5y ago
Well a problem could be averted before you have it. There are lots of examples: Like buying a kinesis keyboard before you actually get RSI. Or an ergonomic chair. You were heading towards a problem, but might not know without an “ad”.

amelius 5y ago

Information can spread without advertising being involved.

otabdeveloper4 5y ago
Advertising is just information with a price tag, so no.

benlivengood 5y ago

Basically search is the answer. Search on Amazon, search on the Internet and find the manufacturer's web site, etc. Google convinced manufacturers that they should also advertise but it was working just fine without the advertisements.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
operator-name 5y ago
Search and advertisements go hand in hand - they both short circuit foraging.

xigoi 5y ago

Right now, you're using a site that allows you to discover IT-related products without advertizing.

jefftk 5y ago
And it is funded through paid placement for job ads for YC companies.
dtjb 5y ago
I think a large number of HN posts can be grouped under the term advertising. Spreading awareness of a product, company, or service is probably the number one motivator for posting things here.
- xigoi 5y ago
  But people actively go here to look for new products. It's not like if you want to watch a video and you get an ad in your face.

jefftk 5y ago

> Every way for you to find out about anything to buy is advertising. I don't think that's right. If I use a product, like it, and tell my friends about it, that isn't advertising because it isn't funded by anyone who gains from the purchase of the product. Similarly, Consumer Reports isn't advertising, because they are funded by their members. General review orgs like The Wirecutter may or may not be advertising, depending on how successful they are at preventing manufacturers from influencing their reviews.

alpaca128 5y ago

> Without advertising how are you going to find out about anything? From friends, online communities, search, ... In some places it's illegal to publicly advertise alcohol or indicate where it's sold. People still manage to get drunk without a problem.