Three thousand. Studies report that’s how many advertising messages we see in a single day. From bus shelters to television commercials to sports uniforms, they’re everywhere – and designed to affect how we think and feel, whether subtly or overtly.
In her new nonfiction book
Mad for Ads: How Advertising Gets (and Stays) in Our Heads, Erica Fyvie, winner of the Green Earth Book Award for
Trash Revolution, introduces young readers to the incredibly complex business of advertising.
To paint a picture of how advertising works, Fyvie begins by inventing a product, Bubblarious! Bubble Gum, and takes readers behind the scenes to show them how every product gets an advertising plan with a goal, target audience, and focus, among other key factors. The audience for Bubblarious is “kids aged 8–12 with spending money.”