There is one thing about advertising that annoys me - why is it that many of the display stands we see misleads us into actually taking money out of our pockets into buying something that we clearly do not need? Sometimes they are elaborately designed that often the product has nothing to do with the image on the poster. That is the power of advertising.

The worst cases are that from parents and their children. Though I do not have children myself, I do have nieces and nephews, and know firsthand the difficulties parents face when taking their child out shopping. When a young child passed the age of two, sees a poster or display of a toy they like the look of, they will kick and scream just to have a 'look at it'. Before you know it, you have spent almost fifty pounds on a bit of colourful plastic that may light up, but ultimately will be left on the shelf in a month's time to gather dust, by which time your child has moved onto a bigger more expensive toy!

I find display stands can either work positively in attracting your attention, or annoy you so much that if you see the same image over and over again you are completely put off from the very thing that is being advertised. This is true to some popular songs that are made number one in the charts and are played continuously over the radio that you are forced to switch it off immediately. Television adverts have also become more and more vague in their selling techniques - it is not necessarily about selling the product but more about creating a certain kind of image for the brand name.

However, some display stands can be most entertaining especially when travelling on the London underground tube. My favourite are large oversized posters of films that are destined to be a blockbuster smash. The intricate detailing of the image, colours and graphics are eye catching enough that one must consider why such an expensive display is left to stand at normal height level when it will surely be vandalised and destroyed!

Such is the life span of many posters and displays of advertisement; they are often subjected to spray paints, marker pens and derogatory graffiti imagery. Yet the advertisers will always have the last laugh, because no matter how much individuals like to destroy perfectly well-made commercial art work, these advertisements are displayed in more than one location and are brightly coloured for that very reason - that no matter how much damage it takes the message of the advert still stands out!

There is no hiding from the world of advertising and their subliminal messaging. Furthermore, without it, we would most certainly find it more difficult to make good choices in our purchases. Sometimes when things are advertised on television, people are more convinced in buying the product that is being sold because somehow seeing it publicised on television makes it all the more legitimate. Sometimes the best products are those that have had the least amount of publicity and have had more good reviews from happy customers.