Subliminal Messaging and Application in Sports: Moving Beyond the Conscious

Abstract

The brain has a very superior system, and there are some complex structures which are still undiscovered. The subconscious is one of these unclear features. The subconscious unconsciously places the stimuli in the environment into the mind with the help of sensory organs and processes these pieces of information accumulated there. It manages and directs behavior with images and messages. Although they are felt consciously, the center of emotions is actually subconscious. Thus, the individual involuntarily realizes her or his way of life, relationships with other people and many other factors thanks to her or his subconscious. Consumption behaviors are among these involuntary behaviors. Brand preference, brand loyalty, brand awareness, purchase intention and behavior are affected by these subliminal messages. Hence, companies have endeavored to place subliminal messages that are specially designed and coded below the perception limit into the subconscious of their targeted consumers by using five senses. They bring consumers together with the subliminal messages by preparing psychological, sociological and neurological sub-grounds that meet their needs, demands and expectations. With subliminal messages, the awareness level of the consumers is exceeded, and the codes related to the brand are created subconsciously. This enables consumers to choose the brand and develop their buying behavior. However, these messages, sent to the subconscious of consumers, also have things that do not overlap with ethical values. Individuals exposed to the messages of unacceptable products or services are adversely affected. The most important ethical problem is the role of subliminal messages. The ethical dimension has become controversial as it is possible to use the hidden fears and impulses that people have unconsciously by using them for different purposes from commercial areas, advertising and marketing. Therefore, the channels from which the subliminal messages come from and what techniques are used must be determined and precautions should be taken. One of the areas where subliminal messages are mostly used is the sports sector. Stadiums and crowded sport halls bring together millions of people and provide the appropriate ground for the companies to send real-time subliminal messages at the same time. Thus, sports have become a popular means of meeting companies’ subliminal messages with consumers. In this chapter; it is aimed to provide a theoretical contribution to the studies in this field by dealing with the subliminal messages sent to the subconscious of consumers, the methods and techniques used for this aim, the reasons why they are preferred by the companies, the ethical dimension of the subliminal messages and the effects of subliminal messages in the sports arena.