Transcript Advertising - Mrfarshtey.net

Advertising
Be Media Literate:
The Purpose of Advertising:
• The ultimate purpose of all commercial advertising is to
persuade people to buy. To be effective good ads must have:
• the ability to get our attention. Hundreds of ads are seen/heard
each day. Therefore, an effective ad must stand out from the
competition and grab the consumer's attention.
• the ability to sustain our attention. It is important that the
potential consumer learn something about the product. An
effective ad involves the reader in the details of the ad and
carries the reader's attention through the ad.
• the ability to transmit the message. Clarity is important if the
consumer is to understand the message given the limited ad
space available.
• the ability to convince the potential consumers to accept the
message of the ad and the ad brand. Thus, the ability of the ad
to persuade you to accept the product, the brand, and to buy.
Types of Advertising
vertising
•
•
•
•
•
commercial
political
public service announcements (PSAs)
advocacy (Don't Drink and Drive)
image-building (the gas company's
concern for the environment).
Forms of Advertising:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Forms of Advertising
television commercials
print ads
radio spots
banners
posters
billboards
videos
clothing
Labels, slogans, design elements
Advertising Images
• Advertisers realize the power of the visual and have
used the image as a powerful marketing tool. Often,
consumers know very little information about a
particular product, but they are influenced to
purchase by the persuasion of the visual image
associated with the product.
*****
The History of Advertising:
• Before 1900, ads were mostly
informational. They described products and
appealed to consumers logic and
judgement. The text (ad copy) was the
selling feature of the ad.
• During the 1920s, advertising started putting
more emphasis on emotion and image. The
ads emphasized the life of the consumer
more than the merits of the product.
• With the growing industrial economy,
markets for the goods being produced
need to be produced. To create this
consumer group, advertising began to
promote a sense of anxiety, fear, and
inadequacy among the
population. Advertisers realized the
power in appealing to people on a
subconscious level based on image and
non-rational thought.
Positioning and Brand Image:
• In the process of marketing a product,
two fundamental aspects must be
considered. These are positioning
and brand image.
Positioning:
• Advertisers must consider how they will position the
product.
• Positioning is "what the product does, and who it is
for".
• The same product could be positioned several
ways. For example, consider the positioning of a
new cereal called "Start". Depending on the merits of
the product, I could position this cereal to senior
citizens because it contains high energy compounds
that could allow seniors to partake in more
activities. I could also position this same cereal as a
children's breakfast cereal because the name is
synonymous with the high energy level of
children. The positioning of any product will
determine your target audience.
Brand Images:
• A second consideration is the brand
image of the product. Image means
"personality" and every product has a
personality. Many things go into
developing a brand image including the
name of the product, the packaging, the
price and the style of its advertising .
• Consider cigarettes. Every smoker prefers a
particular brand of cigarette. Has the consumer tried
every brand of cigarette before choosing a particular
brand? Not likely! Each brand of cigarettes has a
different image which appeals to different
people. Marlboro's image appeals particularly to men
who identify with adventure and thrill
seeking. Marlboro sponsors many car races which
promote the image of the brand through
association. Virginia Slims is positioned as a product
used by independent, successful young women and
Camel cigarettes, with the Joe Camel cartoon
character, presents a brand image of perhaps slight
rebellion or naughtiness, yet "coolness" and is a
favourite brand among young smokers.
Target Audiences:
• Every medium markets to a particular
target audience. This is true of
advertising. It is particularly important
when advertising parity products. If
the product is essentially the same as
the competition's, the product cannot be
sold on its own merits. Therefore, the
marketers focus on the audience. They
need to make their product appeal to a
particular sector of people.
Advertising Claims: Techniques of Language
The "claim" is the verbal or print part of an ad
that makes some claim of superiority for the
product. After studying claims, students
should be able to recognize those that are
misleading and accept as useful information
those that are true. Note that:
• Some claims are downright lies.
• Some are honest statements about a truly superior
product.
• Most fit into the category of neither bold lies or helpful
information.
• They balance on the narrow line between truth and
falsehood by a careful choice of words.
Parity Products
• The reason so many ad claims fall into the
category of pseudo-information is that they
are applied to Parity Products. Parity
products are those in which all or most of the
brands available are nearly identical. Since
not one superior product exists, advertising is
used to create the ILLUSION of
superiority. The largest advertising budgets
are devoted to parity products such as
gasoline, cigarettes, beer and soft drinks,
soaps, and various headache and cold
remedies.
• The first rule of parity claims involves the use of the words
"better" and "best." In parity claims, "better" means "best" and
"best" means "equal to." Get it?
• Best: If all the brands are identical, they must all be equally
good (the legal minds have decided). So "best" means that the
product is as good as the other superior products in its
category. When a celebrity (who is paid to be in the
commercial) declares Minute Maid Orange Juice "the best there
is," he means it is as good as the other orange juices.
• Better: "Better" has been legally interpreted to be a
comparative and therefore becomes a clear claim of
superiority. "Better" can only be used when a product does
indeed have superiority over other products in its category or
when used to compare the product with something other than a
competing brand. For example, the spokesperson could not
have said that Minute Maid is "better than any other orange
juice," because that is a claim to superiority. An orange juice
could claim to be "better than a vitamin pill" or even "the better
breakfast drink."
• The second rule of parity is that if any
product is truly superior, the ad will say so
very clearly and will offer convincing evidence
of the superiority. If an ad hedges at all about
a product’s advantage over the competition it
is likely not superior - maybe equal but not
better. For instance, you will never hear a
gasoline company say "we will give you four
miles per gallon more in your car than any
other brand." They would love to make such
a claim, but it would not be true. Gasoline is
a parity product and no one has yet claimed
one brand better than any other brand.
Types of Advertising Claims:
• 1. The Weasel Claim
A weasel word is a modifier that practically
negates the claim that follows. It is named
after the egg-eating habits of weasels, who
will suck out the inside of an egg, leaving it
appear intact to the casual observer. Upon
closer examination, the egg is discovered to
be hollow. Words or claims that appear
substantial upon first look but disintegrate into
hollow meaninglessness on analysis are
weasels.
Weasel Claim cont.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Some commonly used weasel words include:
"helps" (the champion weasel)
"like" (used in a comparative sense)
"virtual" or "virtually"
"acts" or "works"
"can be,"
"up to,"
e.g. 'Helps control dandruff symptoms with
regular use."
• Weasels include "helps control," and possibly even
"symptoms" and "regular use." The claim is not
"stops dandruff."
The Unfinished Claim:
• The Ad claims the product is better, or
has more of something but does not
finish the comparison.
• e.g. "Magnavox gives you more."
• More what?
“We’re Different and Unique” Claim:
• This claim states simply that there is
nothing else quite like the product
advertised. For example, if Schlitz
would add pink food colouring to its
beer, they could say "there’s nothing
like new pink Schlitz". The uniqueness
claim is supposed to be interpreted as a
claim to superiority.
• e.g. "There’s no other mascara like it."
“The Water is Wet” Claim:
• This technique claims something about
the product that is true for any brand in
that product category, for
example, “Nestle’s water is really
wet." This is usually a statement of fact,
but not a real advantage over the
competition.
• e.g. "Mobil: the detergent gasoline"
• Any gasoline acts as a cleaning agent.
The “So What” Claim:
• This is a claim which is true, but which gives
no real advantage to the product. It is similar
to the "water is wet" claim, except it claims an
advantage which is not shared by most of the
other brands in the product category.
• e.g. "Geritol has more than twice the iron of
ordinary supplements."
But is twice as much beneficial to the body?
The Vague Claim:
• The vague claim is simply not clear. It uses
words that are colourful but meaningless and
subjective and emotional opinions that defy
verification. It often overlaps with other
claims.
• e.g. "Lips have never looked so luscious."
How could you prove or disprove such a
claim?
The Endorsement or Testimonial:
• With this technique, a celebrity or
authority appears in an ad to lend his or
her stellar qualities to the
product. Sometimes the people will
actually claim to use the product, but
very often they don’t.
The Scientific or Statistical Claim:
• This method uses some sort of scientific proof
or experiment, very specific numbers, or an
impressive mystery ingredient.
• e.g. "Wonderbread helps to build strong
bodies 12 ways."
Even the weasel "helps" did not prevent the
FTC from demanding this claim be
withdrawn. Note that the use of the number
12 makes the claim far more believable than
if it were taken out.
The “Compliment the Consumer” Claim:
• This claim butters up the consumer with
some form of flattery.
• e.g. "We think a cigar smoker is
someone special."
• e.g. "The Lady has taste."
The Rhetorical Question:
• The rhetorical question demands a
response from the audience. A question
is asked and the consumer is supposed
to answer in such a way as to affirm the
product’s goodness.
• e.g. "Plymouth - isn’t that the kind of car
America wants?"
• e.g. "Shouldn’t your family be drinking
Hawaiian Punch?"
Special Offer:
• Buy the product and get something free.
Advertising Methods: Techniques of Presentation
• 1. Appeals to Emotion
When advertisers use this technique, they
attempt to appeal to those emotional needs
experienced by all humans. The text will be
worded to emphasize those needs. Some of
the common appeals to emotion include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
the need to be accepted by others
the need to have membership in an elite group
the need for self-acceptance
the need for security
the need for family
the need for change
the need for excitement
the need to attract sex, be sexy , and/or have sex.
• 2. Associations
• When advertisers use association, they attempt to
associate their product with the people, values and
lifestyles depicted in the ads. Associations are
positive and rely heavily on the visual image created
in the ad, but the text enforces the association.
Products are commonly associated to:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
wealth / luxury
fame / prestige
happiness
success
youthfulness / health
excitement / adventure / risk
patriotism
independence / individuality / non-conformity
love / romance / sex
• 3. Fear Tactics
• When advertisers use fear tactics, they
attempt to sell their product by playing on our
fears. The reasoning is that if consumers buy
the product the fear is abolished. Ads that use
fear tactics rely heavily on the text. Some
common fear tactics are:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
fear of death / aging / sickness
fear of failure
fear of poverty
fear of violence
fear of bodily embarrassments
fear of sexual failure
Fear of failing to provide
Fear of aging / sickness