Why watches show 10 10 in ads?

Question

I started noticing in watch and clock advertisements, whether they were printed or on TV, that the hands of the clock almost always point to the time 10:10. This seems like such a weird detail that is common in so many advertisements. Is there a special meaning? Why watches show 10 10 in ads?

Answer 1

The faces on watches usually have a logo positioned under the 12 or the other perpendicular numbers, and so watches in ads show the time 10:10 because the details aren’t shadowed by the hands. When the hands are in this position, there’s the least amount of interference usually with any of the other special details that the watchmakers want to show off. If the logo does happen to be under the 12, the hands cradle it pretty nicely and make some nice symmetry. So it’s definitely helpful for marketing and branding.

Answer 2

There are actually some interesting conspiracies why watches show 10 10 in ads that involve historical moments. Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr. were all said to have been shot or died at the time 10:10. It seems like an interesting theory, but there is a lot of controversy about the exact times of all these incidents that don’t line up with this idea. It’s not really clear what the point of this connection would be other than a general remembrance, but nothing about clocks really has anything to do with any of these figures.

Answer 3

When the hands of the watch are at 10:10, it kind of looks like the watch is smiling! It has a cheery look, which is much better than the position at 8:20 that makes it look like a frowning face. So watches in ads show the time 10:10 because it has a nice smiling and positive look, at least subconsciously even if we don’t think of the clock as smiling when we see it. The marketing strategy is that it will make people have positive feelings towards the ad.