How does advertising work?

So today I watched a 3 and a half hour long movie on IFC, and during every commercial break there’s a commercial with the cheetos guy/leopard thing playing piano in a fucking piano store or something. The commercial doesn’t make any sense, and it’s just downright annoying.

Do people really, the next time they’re in a grocery store or at a gas station, buy Cheetos because they saw that commercial so many times?

I’ll tell you, I hate Cheetos, and I’ll make sure to never buy them for the rest of my life. I actually make it a point to not buy products I see so heavily advertised, because if they have to be advertised so much, then are they really that good?

On the flip side of this argument though, a few days ago I was watching an anime, in which they had “Wacdonalds” as a red-and-white colored burger joint. It made my mouth water, and I wanted Macdonalds. Now, I didn’t go out and buy McDonalds, today or the next day, or ever since then, but I think it just happened ‘cause I was hungry.

Anybody have similar experiences?