Lessons from Merchants of Cool

After watching the Merchants of Cool in class i now realize how much us teens are targeted, and for the different reasons. Maybe the ad companies think that us teens are easier to attract than regular adults because we are more susceptible to influence. Or maybe because teens know what trends are popular and whats in style, but whatever the reason is, us teens are targeted more heavily than other groups such as little kids and adults. I think another reason for teenagers being targeted more is that we generally are more exposed to other things like the Internet and social Media which makes it easier more brands and companies to showcase themselves. We are more exposed to ads than little kids and adults so it makes sense for companies to aim their advertisements towards us since we are the most likely to actually see it.Whatever the case may be for targeting teens, we are seeing more and more companies do this. They are using various things such as music, celebrities, food, and aesthetic sensations to attract us. Whether it is affective or not is still in question. After learning about this in the Merchants of Cool movie, I am beginning to question who has the bigger influence; Teens on ad companies or ad companies on teens? The Merchants of Cool certainly makes you think and there is no question that ads target certain groups of people to appeal to and it just so happens that teenagers are one of the biggest groups.

Although this image may show a kid, this is meant to showcase the ads we see and its influence on teenagers