Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!unix.cis.pitt.edu!dsinc!casbah.acns.nwu.edu!accuvax.nwu.edu!nucsrl!telecom-request From: scott@blueeyes.kines.uiuc.edu (scott) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Stupid AT&T Advertisements Message-ID: <15488@accuvax.nwu.edu> Date: 11 Dec 90 19:02:44 GMT Sender: news@accuvax.nwu.edu Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Lines: 40 Approved: Telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@eecs.nwu.edu X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 888, Message 8 of 13 In article <15367@accuvax.nwu.edu> John Higdon writes: >Steve Thornton writes: >> I specifically changed service *from* AT&T because of their stupid, >> insulting ads. >I agree that some of AT&T's advertisements (as well as many others, >including other LD companies) are stupid and somewhat insulting. >I can accept that. But you don't really believe that your reaction to >these spots make AT&T's service bad and wrong do you? >Also it is discovered in a good many cases that people hold prejudices >for or against a particular company's goods or services. When they see >advertisements for those goods or services, the reaction that ensues >becomes justification for those preconceived notions. >Someone please tell me that readers of the Digest base purchasing >decisions on price, service, quality, suitability for intended use, >and value and not on what some ad agency produces to brainwash the How about this: In the minds of many people, AT&T provides service which is essentially equivalent to MCI and/or Sprint. AT&T costs more than either. AT&T has to resort to insulting advertising to woo customers. Perhaps it's little things like this which "break the camel's back," and provide just enough weight on AT&T's "disadvantages" column to cause people to switch to another LD carrier. As you point out, it would be stupid to base a purchasing decision solely upon the advertising. However, I strongly suspect that nobody intelligent enough to subscribe to this digest would ever do such a thing! ;-) Scott Coleman tmkk@uiuc.edu University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign