How effective is ad spending?

You probably do the same. You switch channels to zap TV ads, hit fast forward when you see a mere fraction of a DVD commercial, skip computer pop-ups or quickly hit "delete" to stem a tidal wave of spam that's flooding your inbox or mobile phone.

If there's a way to successfully avoid unwanted ads the way Neo in the Matrix dodges bullets, your problem would have been solved.

People are generally ambivalent towards advertising, and it seems that's always been the case.

According to market research firm YouGovSiraj, about 68 per cent of UAE residents believe the majority of ads do not make them feel good about the brand being advertised.

About 55 per cent of them also believe that advertisements are not original, while another 55 per cent say they do not even talk to their friends about the ads they see or hear.

The UAE's advertising industry is growing leaps and bounds. Analysts estimate that the ad expenditure in the UAE will rocket to $2.4 billion in 2009 from $195 million in 1999. Already, the UAE's ad spend last year topped a whopping $1.3 billion, the highest in the Middle East.

The growth is obviously fuelled by the economic boom. As more investors set up skyscrapers and businesses, the need to draw consumers' attention grows. This is always true: As the country's gross domestic product expands, so does the ad spend. The two have been and will always be tied to each other.

But while an amazingly high ad spend is in some way a positive sign, YouGov's chief executive officer warns that a significant portion of advertising money goes down the drain.

This is simply because, as shown in the study, some advertisements fail to establish a bond between brands and consumers.

Spending a lot of money on ads isn't a bad thing. It ensures all those efforts put together to produce a product have a decent chance of yielding hefty returns. A robust and highly-competitive advertising industry is also a boon to the economy. It helps generate jobs and keeps a lot of businesses running and growing.

That is why brand stakeholders need to test advertising concepts carefully before making them public. In a world where consumers are constantly bombarded with ads, it is only those that stand out who win the brand game.

The challenge is for the creative minds to look deeper and find out what really makes consumers tick.

After all, people don't really hate all ads. What gets into their nerves are the bad ones-- those that are intrusive, sneaky and unwanted. If consumers are constantly reminded that their bank, health club or auto dealer simply wants to wring every penny out of their pockets, they might just become more circumspect, not quite as intended.