Consumer Insight, Essay Example

Abstract

This paper is a consumer insight of the commercial on drug driving. Particularly, this paper discusses the effects of drug driving, the efficiency and the success of the commercial in informing the public of the dangers, laws and penalties concerning drug driving, and the impact it has to the consumers’ emotions and intellect. This paper also discusses what needs to be improved and done in order to successfully convey the message of “if you drive on drugs, you are not thinking straight”.

Consumer Insight

It is a known fact that the society is all too familiar with the issues of drunk driving including all the tensions and consequences surrounding it. This is because of all the billboards, television, print, radio and online commercials advising people of the harmful effects of drunk driving such as the number of deaths that are attributed to it. However, it cannot be denied as well that drug driving is slowly creeping in and overtaking drunk driving (Bramness, 2002). Nevertheless, it can be seen that there is not enough drug driving commercials that are out there for people to see. Not everyone is aware that there is a rising problem and concern surrounding drug driving. Undeniably, drug and alcohol consumption while driving is both considered driving under the influence.

Double Bus: The Commercial

It is illegal to be behind the wheels while under the influence of drugs. True but not everyone knows the extent of the consequences while drug driving. Most of the people think that it is safe to be drug driving with claims of being under the influence of drugs makes someone more focused and attentive. However, that is not the case. The effects of drugs are not the same for everybody (Dalgarno, 1996). Consider a scenario wherein a new driver has tried a certain drugs for the first time and the body could not handle its effects. Is it really safe? Would a parent put their child’s life on the hands of a person under the influence of drugs? The answer would be no. However, not everyone is going to agree that driving under the influence of drugs is harmful, until another death will be added to its record.

Laws on Drug Driving

The primary message of the commercial is that the laws are getting stricter when it comes to drug driving. This is actually what the society needs. This is due to the fact that since people are aware of the laws pertaining to drunk driving, they are now trying a new trend- drug driving (Bond, 1982). This commercial is really good in reminding the people that at any given time- when they do not expect it, police officers can do a bust and catch them driving under the influence of drugs. As mentioned, laws are getting stricter when it comes to drug driving. Statistics have revealed that the laws, prosecutions and penalties are contributing to the decline in drunk driving incidence. The same thing should be done with drug driving before it gets to a point where the numbers of incidence are about the same.

On another note, the commercial is not just about “we are taking you to jail and charge you with driving under the influence” type of deal. Rather, it educates the people of their rights and the rightful procedures that should be followed before an arrest is warranted. It also contains information on the extent that the law will be applied such as getting citations or notices or being taken to court as well as the penalties. Moreover, this commercial is a reminder that like drunk driving, drug driving can also cause harm to other people (Cone, 1989). Also, it poses as a reminder that like drunk driving, drug driving is illegal and should not be tolerated and violators should be dealt with in accordance to what the law has imposed against it as it clearly impairs thinking necessary for driving.

Impact to the Consumers

The double bus is a compelling commercial affecting not just to the emotions but as well to the intellect of the consumers. Some consumers are just too focused on the issues of drunk driving but not on drug driving. It greatly reminds people that the drunk driving coupled with drug driving is a lethal weapon that can harm and kill people. It makes people think of the consequences and compare the two issues. They are no different from each other (Barret, 2000). The effects are just the same.

However, it can be seen that the laws pertaining to drug driving is not clear. There are questions that need to be answered such as: 1) What are the drugs considered to be illegal to take while driving (ie. prescription drugs and over-the-counter pain medications); and 2) Will the drug test detect abuse of over-the-counter drugs? The public needs to know the answers to these questions in order to avoid confusion of the law (Abraham, 1980). The only thing that is clear right now is that drug driving is illegal and if someone is detected to be positive, that person will be punished in accordance to the law.

In conclusion, there is a need for more drug driving commercials to increase public awareness. Without which, the society will remain ignorant of the laws and consequences of driving under the influence of both alcohol and drug consumption (Chesher, 1985). There should also be a clear distinction to be made regarding illegal and legal drug driving to ensure better public awareness and education (Ashton, 2005). All in all, advertisements like the double bus serve its purpose of keeping the public informed and educated of a cause as great as saving lives.

References

Abraham, H. (1980). A chronic impairment of colour vision in users of LSD. Journal of Psychiatry, 140(5): 518-520.

Ashton, H. (2005). The diagnosis and management of benzodiazepine dependence. Curr Opin Psychiatry, 18(3): 249-255.

Barret, S. (2000). Hallucinogenic drugs attenuate the subjective response to alcohol in humans. Human Psychopharmacology, 15(7): 559-565.

Bond, A. (1982). A comparison of the psychotic profiles of tofisopan and diazepam. European Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, 22(2): 137-142.

Bramness, J. (2002). Clinical impairment of benzodiazepines relation between benzodiazepine concentrarions and impairment in apprehended drivers. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 68(2): 131-141.

Chesher, G. (1985). The influence of analgesic drugs in road crashes. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 17(4): 303-309.

Cone, E. (1989). Prolonged occurrence of cocaine in human saliva and urine after chronic use. Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 13(2): 65-68.

Dalgarno, P. (1996). Illicit use of ketamine in Scotland. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 28(2): 191-199.