- Mark Dolliver

NEW YORK The ad industry fares poorly in surveys that ask people whether they think well or ill of various professions. But such polling overstates public aversion to the ad business for the simple reason that many people don't really have a strong opinion about it.

In an AdweekMedia/Harris Poll last month, respondents were given a chance to say they don't feel strongly about the industry one way or another, and nearly half of them took it. Asked to characterize their overall impression of "the advertising industry in general," 47 percent said it's "neither negative nor positive." Predictably, those with a negative view of the business (9 percent "very," 28 percent "somewhat") outnumbered those with a positive view (2 percent "very," 15 percent "somewhat"). (The total exceeds 100 percent due to rounding.)

If such numbers count as not-so-bad news for the ad business, responses were less positive on the question of whether consumers find advertising relevant to their lives. ("By relevant," Harris told respondents, "we mean how it connects to things that are ongoing in your daily life.") Given the effort put into aiming the right ad at the right target, the numbers here were pretty lackluster. Eight percent of respondents said advertising is "very relevant" to their lives, and 42 percent said it's "somewhat relevant." Thirty-two percent termed it "not that relevant" and 14 percent "not at all relevant," with the rest unsure.

Do people at least believe advertising is essential to the economy? Not to judge by respondents' answers when asked how big a role they think it will play "in helping to stimulate the economy." Fewer than one-third think it will have a "very significant role" (8 percent) or a "large role" (23 percent). Forty percent think it'll have "a small role," and 16 percent think it'll have "no role at all." The rest were unsure.