In the end, the only advertisement that managed to tempt me in my month long US vacation was the one for curly fries at Arby’s. And restraint like that is quite an achievement, trust me.
 
The US defines consumerism.  From the time I stepped out of the airport, the ads invaded my space. The huge billboards on the roads, the endless TV and radio ads, the handouts on the streets; all of them travelled with me as I crossed the country to visit four major cities.
 
From the new spicy chicken in Wendy’s and the succulent steak at the local steakhouse, to the strawberry strudgel from Pillsbury and Domino’s pizza wars, food occupies a pretty (un)healthy portion of the ad space. “Eat, eat, eat,” they seem to say, and looking at people in the US, one can safely assume that the ads have fallen on willing ears (or more accurately, stomachs).
 
Obesity is rampant in the country, and according to a recent study by RTI International, an agency dealing with healthcare research, the prevalence of obesity in the US increased by 37 percent between 1998 and 2006.
 
Having succeeding in making people fat, marketers are now also earning their crust by advertising ways to make them thin. Miraculous pills for weight-loss, diets that are “guaranteed” to work, and personal trainers all occupy another substantial portion of the US ad market (with pictures of successful smiling users, naturally).
 
And it’s not just medicines for obesity on the billboards; there are pills for depression, diabetes, and every other ailment under the sun, all accompanied by pictures of old people, children or dogs.
 
Advertising in the country may be dominated by campaigns for food and medicine, but other sectors manage to flex some marketing muscle as well. For instance, from now on whenever I hear the words “auto-insurance,” I will think of Justin Case. This charming young man can, apparently, answer all your auto-insurance queries and issues. He appears on every ad, promising he’ll be there 24/7 to do just that. Just incase, you understand.
 
There’s also a weird looking lady at another insurance company (I forget the name – the ads can’t have been too effective) who seems to be empowering her customers in what looks like a white lab from Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory.
 
While this spokesperson-based advertising favored in the US is notably different from the way things work in Dubai, another aspect that surprises me is that advertisers in the US are openly allowed to bash their competitors. A pill whose name starts with A apparently works several times more effectively than Tylenol. At least that’s what the ad seems to say. (However, the fact that I can’t remember the name of the pill, only the competitor, might suggest the tactic doesn’t work that well. On the other hand, maybe I’m just forgetful.)
 
One thing did remind me of home though. When I was riding on the subway in Washington DC – the one place that did not have too many ads – I saw an ad for Masdar City, the big green initiative in Abu Dhabi.
 
I’m not really sure how many people in the subway would actually take time out from sleeping, staring at each other, or texting on their mobiles to take a look at this message from a far away country, but there it was nonetheless: a tiny taste of the Middle East.
Perhaps a big bite might have been more appropriate?