Advertising – Definitions and Techniques

What is Advertising?  The act or practice of calling public attention to one's product, service, need, etc.  Advertising communication is one-way.  Not all advertising is “selling” something you can purchase – some ads sell ideas or viewpoints (political ads)

Where do you find advertising?  Mass Media – Tools that deliver messages to lots of people  TV  Radio  Magazines  Internet  Newspapers  Others?

Where do you find advertising?  Targeted media – Tools that reach certain specific people  Mailings   In-store announcements  Billboards  Buses  Others?

Where do you find advertising?  Product Placement – Products themselves can act as advertising  Products in movies  T-shirt logos  Vending machines  Video Games  Others?

How does advertising work?  Advertising works consciously  You already know you need something  Ads inform you of a product’s features, which you may find desirable  The next time you go to buy that item, you chose the brand you saw advertised

How does advertising work?  Advertising creates a new need  The ad starts by convincing you that you need something you didn’t know you needed before  Then the ad shows that their product will fill that need

How does advertising work?  Advertising works subconsciously  By creating a positive image or association in your brain, advertisers get you to “like” a product  The next time you shop, you unconsciously grab that product because of the positive association

Advertising Techniques  Advertising uses several different, distinct techniques to create that positive association  Most ads use several techniques at once  REMEMBER – These techniques work subconsciously. No one would ever say, “Brett Favre likes these jeans, so I will too.” It’s all about positive associations.

Advertising Techniques, cont.  Bandwagon –  Everyone is doing it  The ad creates a positive connection by showing that the product/service/idea is widely used and widely accepted  Why would everyone be using it if it wasn’t the best?  Bandwagon Example Bandwagon Example Bandwagon Example

Bandwagon Examples

Advertising Techniques, cont.  Plain Folks –  Speak to people in plain and simple terms  The ad uses simple, common language, images, and content to appeal to the average person  Let me explain this to you in terms you would understand. VWFE

Advertising Techniques, cont.  Testimonial –  Someone important or famous says you should buy our product  The ad uses a celebrity or expert that endorses the product or service, either directly or indirectly  You like or trust me, and I think the product is great.  Testimonial Example Testimonial Example Testimonial Example

Advertising Techniques, cont.  Science/Statistics – These numbers prove you need our product  The ad uses science, scientific language, or statistics to prove their product is good  Even if you don’t understand what we’re talking about, we sound really smart and credible.

Advertising Techniques, cont.  Transfer –  Associating products with something you like or value  The ad couples the product with something desirable – sex appeal, humor, patriotism, sports, video games, whatever – so a positive feeling is created for the product  You like this, right? Then you’ll like our product, too.

Transfer Examples

Transfer Example Cont.  Sometimes the commercials reach out and touch your heart. Zillow Zillow Commercial

Product Placement  S3HaLwEY (30 Rock) S3HaLwEY S3HaLwEY  jr1YL0zg (Derren Brown) jr1YL0zg jr1YL0zg  Businesses pay big money to have their products high lighted or even just seen in a movie or TV show.  What are some examples you can think of?

Product Placement Examples

What’s the big deal?  Advertising affects all of us, whether we realize it or not. It affects…  What we spend our money on  What we find to be “cool”  What we find attractive  How we view genders, races, and other groups  Our health, happiness, and well-being  How we think people should act  Our culture in general

So, How Should We Handle Advertising?  If you understand how an ad is supposed to work, you won’t be “tricked” into buying or believing things you don’t want to.  We will practice analyzing ads – we will try to figure out how they work and how they can affect you so you can make conscious choices.

Cell Phone Ads

Cell Phone Ads cont.

Make up Ads

Make up Ads cont.

Airbrush much?

Controversial Ads in 2012

Controversial Ads 2013

Teen Pregnancy Ads

Controversial?  This Cheerios advertisement stirred up a lot of controversy, can you figure out why? Cheerios