After beginning its founding year Tuesday Oct. 5, the Altruistic Advertising Club is attempting to give the ethical concerns of advertising and marketing a place in the business discussions on campus.
UW senior and founder Zac Miller said he thought of the club last year and decided to form the group after talking with professors who were supportive of the idea.
“There’s no club that deals with socially-consciousness of advertising,” Zac Miller said. “The thing is that if you read marketing news, you’ll see how… relevant this issue is becoming in the advertising industry.”
With brother and UW sophomore Justin Miller, Zac Miller designed the club to be primarily based on discussion and analysis of the ethical concerns of advertisements rather than lectures, Zac Miller said.
For example, he said the group plans to discuss advertisements on television that are aimed for a general audience but may be inappropriate for children. These commercials, many for alcoholic beverages, are designed to capture the attention of younger audiences who are not as focused on advertisements.
Both brothers said there is a growing movement in business and marketing spheres directing attention toward the ethical concerns of these types of advertisements.
“People are starting to speak out,” Zac Miller said. “People are starting to say this is not alright that my children are watching these commercials and being influenced by them, and that they’re inappropriate.”
They added occasional discussions will feature a guest speaker, such as marketing professors within the business school.
“We’re not claiming to be experts,” Vice President Justin Miller said. “It’s just promoting discussion in a movement and marketing industry that is more and more prevalent.”
There is a $30 member fee for the club to cover costs of socials and events, according to Justin Miller. Although planning is still underway for the group’s schedule for the year, he said activities include working with the Milwaukee Bucks’ advertising team.
Zac Miller added the club encourages members to propose ideas for discussion and suggestions for the group, as he is learning just as much as other members.
“We want to think more like marketing executives and less like consumers,” Zac Miller said. “So if we design an advertising campaign, we can design ads that are ethical but also capture goals of the campaign.”
According to Professor Douglas McLeod, two other student organizations focus on strategic communications: the Ad Club and PRSSA. Both are based in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
“I am not aware of any clubs that are organized around an issue like this,” McLeod said in an e-mail to The Badger Herald. “But it is very interesting.”
Justin Miller added he thinks the club can be an educational tool to help students be more conscious of the ethical concerns within the advertising industry today.
“We just want people to be aware of some of the advertising industry’s tactics,” he said. “We’re not trying to start a revolution, but I think being more knowledgeable in any topic is important and especially this one.”
