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¶ … room, I came up with a list of some random things that I am not using anymore. At the top of my list are Christmas Cards that I have bought by bulk two Christmases ago, with the intention of using and giving these cards to all my friends last Christmas of 2008. Obviously, I was not able to do this last Christmas as well, so the cards are now piled with my books, unwrapped, ready to be written and given, but unfortunately are collecting dust along with my book collection.

Apart from the Christmas cards, I also keep, in a small binder, copies of artistic/artful documents I came across magazines years ago. Two items that I noticed the most are the following: a postcard-cum-invite from a local bar using the Uncle Sam cartoon theme; a set of postcards from Nike showing its new collection of yoga lifestyle / athletic apparel; and a Levi's Red Tab special ad in brochure format, which I kept because of its artistic rendition of urban hip-hop life, as depicted in cartoon pictures of men and women in Levi's tab jeans, used a la hip-hop style.

Lastly, I have collected, between 2001 and 2004, copies of TIME magazine, which I have faithfully collected through the years and have never gotten around to moving out of my room to bind them, or to give them out to the local library or to someone else. I have been a collector of TIME magazine ever since the 9/11 attacks/bombings. I felt that I had to know more about this event and follow-ups on it, thus I started subscribing to Time for two years, and bought regularly to occasionally on 2004. Thus, TIME magazines have taken up a significantly large space in my bookshelf, and have been untouched and not read in the past four years.

These things that I have bought, kept, and hoped to use over time reflect my tendency to keep things, particularly documents, that I believe would be useful to me eventually. Take, as an example, the collection of artful documents I kept in my small binder. The Levi's Red Tab brochure, Nike postcards, and local bar postcard/invite showed my appreciation for art in cartoon format (as shown in the Levi's ad and local bar postcard/invite) and photography of different body forms in aesthetically fashionable yoga gear (as illustrated in the Nike postcards). I realized that, I never had the opportunity to use these special finds, despite my appreciation of their art. In fact, I doubt if I will have any use for these keepsakes ever. The only function that I can think of for these works of art is that I could give them to my sister, who is an artist, and provide inspiration to her artworks and improve her artistic style. I likened these artistic/artful keepsakes to paintings hung on the wall, having no function at all but to be appreciated.

If the artful keepsakes reflect my penchant for collecting artful things that do not have any function in my life, then my Christmas cards demonstrate how I always have the best intentions in mind, but have not committed to action these 'best intentions.' Interestingly, in the past two Christmases (2007-2008), I bought similar sets of Christmas cards because I thought the designs were simple yet fun. I have tried working on my project (i.e., to give out cards to all my friends) every Christmas, and the unsent cards illustrated my intent to send these out to my friends, but somehow, I was not able to give these cards to their recipients. Along with the 'clean' Christmas cards, the unsent cards has become my funny way of reminding myself how I often take up projects that I cannot follow through.

I believe that I am not the only individual who likes working on projects enthusiastically at first, but fall out of it at the last minute, leaving marks of lack of follow-through at their rooms, closets, or garages. Interestingly, my 'collection' of Christmas cards is a manifestation of the kind of society I live in today: there is abundance of things we need, ready for use or disuse by the consumers. Unfortunately, my cards are in a state of disuse, and it is ready to be discarded or be given to someone else. I felt, though, that I need to hold on to these cards since I know they will be useful on Christmas this year. I am just not sure, however, if I will be able to finish what I started two Christmases ago. Maybe I will, after this reflection. But most likely I will not.

I admit that I just seek comfort in the idea that I have something to give out to my friends during an emergency card- or gift-giving, but I know that this emergency will not come, and I know that the time will come wherein eventually, I will discard these cards and shelf this card-giving project if I am able to think of another, better project to work on. Unfortunately for me and for people who have worked on 'no follow-through projects,' the availability of things that we need and want in life has made it easier for us to address and solve our needs. But abundance of things we need has changed the way we define 'need,' and we have therefore consumed more than what we really need. As a result, more things are discarded than used, contributing to waste and influencing overproduction of these things, a vicious cycle that in the end, would only do more harm than help not only to our attitudes and behavior as consumers, but also to the physical environment that we live in, making this environment no longer sustainable and livable for us.

The TIME magazine collection is the one thing that I do not use anymore, but I cannot make up my mind whether to give this out or to just keep it for reference purposes. If I am going to give this magazine collection to others, I do not know where or to whom I will give this collection. At the top of my mind, I could give it at the local library, where I know it would be more useful; however, I know that the Internet has made it possible for researchers and information-seekers to access magazines online, without having its hard copy. Browsing through magazines have become easier, too, since researchers could then look for specific articles already just by typing in the correct search keywords. At most, hard copies of magazines will only be useful to researchers who are not proficient in the use of computer and Internet technologies, and/or those who do not have sufficient funds or budget to sustain research or information-seeking through Internet technology.

Among the things that I have listed as not useful anymore (at least to me at the moment), I believe that my TIME magazine collection is my way of maintaining my awareness, and in effect, becoming proactive on the state of affairs affecting not only my local community, but also to the country on a larger scale. By keeping myself updated, I am making myself more involved with the social issues considered to be significant to the interests of the general public. And by keeping myself informed, I am able to competently think about ways by which I can do something about the issue at hand, if it is within my capacity to do something to alleviate this social problem or issue in my community or society. Thus, my TIME magazine collection was my way of assuming responsibility to my community and country, the best way I can think of to become at least a conscientious member of the society. Looking at my magazine collection from the other side of the coin, my need for more information can be likened to the issue of information overloading, resulting from the free, accessible information on the Internet. Only, in my case, I consider my magazine collection as a combination of my aspiration to become socially responsible, while at the same time, not neglecting the fact that ultimately, I am a consumer first more than a socially responsible individual in my community. Thus, my magazine collection symbolized two separate aspects of my life: one that feeds my need for individualism (i.e., need for information therefore subscribing to TIME) and at the same time, be more responsible as a member of the American society (thus keeping myself aware and informed by reading the magazines).

Q2

During my regular trips to and from work, the ads I usually encounter are billboards and digital signages. In my routine trip, I usually notice these billboards and digital signage. I could recall billboards showcasing car, car insurance, and telecommunication ads. For the car ads, I have seen ads for Toyota, Dodge, Honda, and Mercedes; from what I can recall on these ads, Toyota, Dodge, and Honda featured "family" cars such SUVs and wagons. Mercedes advertised a modern and stylish model sedan addressing the single, working professional.

In conjunction with these car ads, car insurance companies took advantage of this by advertising their services as well. Car insurance companies that I noticed advertising through billboards were Safeco, Progressive, and All State. Progressive provided a catchy and positive note to its ad by having the slogan, "Happy drivers make good drivers." From what I can recall in the All State ad, it mentioned something about safe driving, again with a catchy phrase: "Safe driving bonus for not driving like a paparazzi." These car insurance ads, particularly for Progressive and All State, tackle issues relevant to motorists, their target market: both chose to discuss driving behavior, using different ad 'treatments.' Progressive addressed reckless/irresponsible driving by focusing on the ideal driving behavior and its positive outcome, that is, drivers must have a happy temperament in order to be a good driver. All State, meanwhile, chose to go the opposite route from Progressive by determining the positive outcome immediately, which is safety in driving, by not imitating a bad example (the paparazzi). Personally, as a driver, Progressive succeeded more in convincing me to drive safely. Apart from its simple ad strapline, its positively-stated reminder to drivers is consistent in its desired outcome: to make drivers behave positively (being happy) for them to become good drivers.

All State, while it effectively used exemplification in its ad, failed in terms of message retention with its somewhat forgettable strapline, and does not promote good driving behavior by terming it as a "bonus" just because a driver did not behave like the paparazzi. Moreover, the lack of relevance of motorists to the example cited, paparazzi, contributed to the lack of connection between All State, the ad, and the target market (motorists). As a motorist, I did not feel a connection to the All State ad at all, as I do not see myself as having extreme driving behavior such as those among the paparazzi. Thus, because of the negatively-stated All state ad, in addition to the lack of relevance of its ad message to the motorists, All State failed to effectively communicate its services and intentions to its primary consumer group, the motorists.

Among the telecommunication ads I saw while on the road, most salient in my mind were ads for AT&T and Verizon. For AT&T, with its strong brand presence, brand recognition, and its long heritage as a telecommunications service provider, banked on its strong brand imagery by just displaying their logo in the ad. Verizon, meanwhile, competes against other telecommunications companies by putting leverage on its strong network coverage, as reflected in its slogan, "There's no dead zone."

Apart from billboards, digital signages are slowly making its way as a popular form of outdoor advertising. Digital signs are usually used for traffic ads, providing useful information for motorists, indicating basic rules while driving, such as informing drivers about their speed limit, among other things. Unlike billboards, digital signages are more straightforward in its messages, and does not promote heavily on brands, products and/or services.

The presence of billboards and digital signages in my everyday routine, I believe, is one of the best ways to communicate with a specific target market. Through familiarity and repetition, which can be expected from everyday exposure to ads on the same route people take each day, these brands can increase their chances of becoming salient in the minds of the consumers. Just a few seconds of exposure to each ad everyday is enough to achieve brand saliency; all the more if consumers will encounter numerous ads of the same brand along the same route everyday. The increasing number of billboards advertising major logos and brands along major roads and highways reflect that advertising is able to penetrate every aspect of the consumer's life, going beyond the usual tri-media approach (TV, radio, and newspaper), accessing consumers through channels where they can be tapped most effectively. In the case of motorists like me, billboards are very effective since roads are part of our daily routine as we drive to and from work and other important places we need to reach, and these billboards serve as "large TV screens" while motorists are away from the audio-visual messages/ads coming from TVs.

Even digital signages, as limited in appeal as they seemed to me, is another way and in fact, an opportunity, to increase consumers' awareness of a brand, product, or service while on the road. As a motorist, I am reminded everyday of the critical information I should be remembering while on the road and driving. Both billboards and digital signages are extensions of the tri-media channels, making us realize how ads have managed to extend beyond TV, radio, and newspaper and continue to penetrate consumers' psyche through new advertising media (i.e., billboards and digital signages).

Q3

At the mall, I am constantly bombarded with numerous brands and logos, more than those I know and am aware of. I am a practical buyer, and brands usually catch my attention if they have ongoing promos, such as buy one, take one offers and/or 50% discount from merchandise prices. The brands I usually or regularly buy are casual clothing brands such as the Gap, Guess, Tommy Hilfiger, Anne Klein, Old Navy, Disney, Skechers, and Nike. Outside of these brands, other brands or logos will only be able to catch my attention if they have irresistible promos, discounts, or sales. Apart from promos, brands must have clothes that are in style and in keeping with the season.

Apart from sales and promos, the number of people inside the store also influences my choice of a brand when shopping at the mall. Usually, stores that have 'heavy traffic' or many people in it are actually brands having a sale or special promos, which, again, entices me to buy the brand (with consideration of course, as to whether I like the brand's merchandise or not).

While promos and type of merchandise are my main sources of attraction to a brand at the mall, print ads and coupons sent directly to me primarily influences my choice of purchase in my next visit to the mall. In fact, if I go visit the mall, I have already planned my purchases, and I only deviate from it when I see new promos or sales on a brand that has merchandise that I like. With the help of the coupons, I get to buy clothes from my favorite stores/brands at a discounted price.

Print ads and house-to-house mailing or giving out of coupons is another manifestation of the expanding modes of channel by which brands can advertise and increasing consumers' awareness of them. In fact, coupons go beyond increasing awareness of the brands advertised; these coupons actually increase the possibility that a consumer is going to buy the brand at a discounted price. In effect, print ads increase awareness of the brand, and coupons reinforce buying the brand by introducing the consumer to it at a lower/discounted price. For me, coupons have been effective channels through which brands can be promoted. I have been more receptive to specific brands and actually bought ones that are not part of the usual brands I buy, and have actually included these new brands as part of my regular purchases at the mall.

Even though my purchases are usually planned, I have observed at the mall that stores and brands entice consumers to buy from them through different promos and offers. The most common is the scheduled sales, in the form of end-of-season sales, midnight sales, and mall-wide sales, among others. I noticed that lately, brands are not only advertising through their stores and paper bags, but have been supporting malls by printing their brand logos and names on the plastic bags of department stores. For example, someone buying clothes at Sears would notice that the Sears bag would include other brands on it, as part of the brands' promotions. In effect, Sears is supporting these brands, and this partnership between Sears and clothing brands is a reciprocal relationship: Sears would help increase awareness of the brands by letting these brands be promoted along with the Sears brand, while Sears benefits from these promotions when the consumers buy these brands from Sears, which the department store is actually carrying.

In addition to sales, discounts, coupons, and brand partnerships, malls make it easier for consumers to patronize brands through debit and credit cards. Credit cards and even banks that offer debit cards partner with different merchants and brands as part of their promotion, to entice customers to apply and subscribe to their services. Through these partnerships, the brands, credit card companies, and malls/department stores benefit from each other. Noticeably, these partnerships make the consumerism cycle revolve around a network of merchants, companies, and stores that ultimately centers on the brands and the consumers that buy these brands.

Q4

Being exposed to different ads most of the time everyday, I could think of numerous slogans that is the most compelling and attention-getting for me:

Burger King- Have it you way.

KFC- Finger lickin' good.

McDonald's- I'm loving it.

M&M's- Melts in your mouth, not in your hand.

Oreo- Only Oreo

Coke- It's the real thing

Sprite- Obey your thirst

Gatorade- The thirst quencher

Polo- The mint with the hole

California Milk Processor Board- Got Milk?

Johnnie Walker- Keep walking.

Budweiser- This Bud's for you.

Nike- Just do it.

Adidas- Impossible is nothing.

HSBC- The world's local bank

Citibank- Citi never sleeps

Visa- For everything else, there's Visa.

Intel- Intel inside

Nokia- Connecting People

Sony- like.no.other

Philips- Let's make things better

LG- Life's good

Majority of the brands in the list above are traditional brands, particularly for food and drinks. Some, however, illustrate the evolving nature of consumerism in American society today: ads for financial services and credit card companies (HSBC, Citibank and Visa), for computer technologies (Intel), electronic appliances (Sony, Philips and LG), and mobile phones and services (Nokia and Sony Ericsson).

This variable list of brands offering specific products and services demonstrate the rigor and creativity required to make an idea work, promote a brand, and ultimately make it salient in the minds of the consumers, and make these slogans and ideas compelling enough for consumers to buy the product or subsist to the service being advertised.

Take the cases of Coke, Burger King, Sprite, KFC, and Nike. These brands have a rich heritage of delivering quality products through the years, and with the aid of each brand's catchy slogans that have been used for many years as well, each brand has maintained their stronghold in their respective market or industry. Through the slogans, brands are able to develop their distinct images and positioning, making a clear definition of the brand, allowing companies to market brands more clearly and targeting specific consumer groups more specifically.

Apart from products and services, advocacy campaigns for specific causes and objectives also require branding, therefore necessitating the development of slogans, jingles, and themes to reinforce the brand identity of the cause or issue advocated. One of the most famous campaigns last year was now U.S. President Barack Obama's election campaign, culminating it with the popular line, "Change we can" during his inauguration speech, after taking oath as the new President of the United States of America. "Change we can" has become a hot button and buzz line among Obama supporters, not to mention the media and political groups, be they supporters or detractors of Pres. Obama. Evidently, Obama's "Change we can" campaign worked for him and his political machinery, and is now the guiding philosophy of the Obama administration.

Advocacy organizations like the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or PETA have been actively seeking the support of well-known celebrities to serve as endorsers in PETA's controversial, popular, and effective ad campaigns. To make their cause more popular and noticeable to the general public, they used celebrities and well-known public personalities to pose for PETA ads, which usually showed them 'wearing' just their skin or wearing dresses or covering themselves with vegetables. These celebrities include Charlize Theron, Pamela Anderson, Anna Nicole Smith, Ellen DeGeneres, Simon Cowell, Eva Mendes, and Dennis Rodman, all of whom represent specific groups to make each PETA ad appealing to a particular demographic -- that is, targeting women, men, athletes, and any group best represented by a specific celebrity endorser.