Transcript Persuasive Techniques Notes

Common Persuasive
Techniques
How does the media persuade you
to believe in or buy their product?
Advertising strategies
Advertising executives (those people
who create your favorite
advertisements) use a variety of
propaganda techniques.
 Propaganda: techniques used by
advertisers and politicians to influence
the way people think or act (voting,
buying, etc.)

Peer Pressure


Ordinary people or
celebrities are used to
tell you to buy this
product. Everybody’s
using it or it will make
you better is often the
reasoning for this
technique.
Closely related to
“bandwagon” and
“testimonial”
EXAMPLE:
 “Did you miss Jimmy’s
text message on Friday
night? You were left out
because you don’t have
an iPhone.”

Other products?
Bandwagon
“Everyone else is buying it.
So why aren’t you?”



You are urged to believe
something because
everyone else does.
This technique preys on
our need for acceptance
and conformity.
Ordinary people are
used the majority of the
time in this technique.
EXAMPLE:
 “Be where the action
is. Shop at Hangout mall!”

What products can
you think of?
Persuasive appeals



Appeals to logic (LOGOS): arguments
that emphasize reason and clear thinking.
Evidence such as statistics, examples, and
true stories is used.
Appeals to emotion (PATHOS):
arguments that stir the audience’s feelings
Appeals to credibility (ETHOS):
arguments that ask the audience to believe
in the person speaking and what he/she is
saying (ethics and credibility)
Transfer
“United we stand. Buy our cars.”
This technique uses a picture of
something positive (American flag,
eagle, walking on a beach, etc.) and
places it next to the product. Your
positive feelings become associated with
that product.
 Products?

Testimonial
“Mr. Big uses this product,
and just look where he is.”

Famous people and
experts are often
used, although some
products use an
“average” person
who “testifies” about
how great a product
is.
Products?
– Gatorade
– Nike
– Cover Girl
Loaded Words

This technique uses
words that are
emotionally charged
and make you want
to buy this product.

How do these words
work? Why do they
appeal to you as
consumers?

What words can you
think of?

Other products?
Repetition
This is the art of
repeating words
which focus on one
aspect of a product
to make it sound
more desirable.
 Cell phones and free
minutes…
 Others?

Repetition can also
be used with “loaded
words”
 Save, Save, Save
 Free! Free! Free!
 Others?

Random Vocab.
Slogans: catchy phrases that become
associated with certain products due to
exposure.
 Logo: a symbol that is associated with any
given product.
 Jingle: catchy tunes (songs with lyrics) that
are repeated over and over with the result of
becoming associated with a certain product.

Random vocab. (cont.)

Faulty reasoning: false assumptions or
generalizations based on too little evidence
 Relevance: is the information provided
relevant to the product? Does the
information provided have anything to do
with the product?
Reminders
#1 RULE: IDENTIFY YOUR AUDIENCE!
These techniques don’t occur in isolation;
many times the media uses a variety of
techniques in the same commercial.
 For example:
– Medicine: transfer and loaded words
– Gatorade: bandwagon and celebrity
endorsement
– Cover Girl: celebrity endorsement and peer
pressure

