Persuasive Appeals in Advertising

The persuasive strategies used by advertisers who want you to buy their product can be divided into three categories: ethos, logos, and pathos.

Ethos Ways to develop ethos: Giving the author’s profession/background The appeal to character and ethics Moral arguments, appealing to principles and values. Demonstrating good and common character. How the author builds credibility and trustworthiness. Ways to develop ethos: Giving the author’s profession/background Appearing sincere, fair-minded, and knowledgeable Appropriate language for audience and topic Correct grammar/Professionalism Acknowledging opposing viewpoints Cite an expert

Ethos An advertisement using ethos will try to convince you that the company is more reliable, honest, and credible; therefore, you should buy its product. Ethos often involves statistics from reliable experts, such as nine out of ten dentists agree that Crest is the better than any other brand. Often, a celebrity endorses a product to lend it more credibility.

Example of Ethos "I have pledged myself and my colleagues in the cabinet to a continuous encouragement of initiative, responsibility and energy in serving the public interest. Let every public servant know, whether his post is high or low, that a man's rank and reputation in this Administration will be determined by the size of the job he does, and not by the size of his staff, his office or his budget. Let it be clear that this Administration recognizes the value of dissent and daring -- that we greet healthy controversy as the hallmark of healthy change. Let the public service be a proud and lively career. And let every man and woman who works in any area of our national government, in any branch, at any level, be able to say with pride and with honor in future years: 'I served the United States Government in that hour of our nation's need.'" John F. Kennedy State of the Union Message, January 30, 1961 He is building credibility by using audience appropriate language and appearing sincere and fair-minded.

Ethos Commercial Example

Logos– Do not confuse with logos of brands The appeal to logic. Using evidence and reasoning to make an argument. Often times evidence will be through the use of statistics. Ways to develop logos: Straight Facts and Statistics Definitions Quotations Real life examples If you want ______, you got to _______

Logos An advertisement using logos will give you the evidence and statistics you need to fully understand what the product does. The logos of an advertisement will be the "straight facts" about the product: One glass of Florida orange juice contains 75% of your daily Vitamin C needs.

Example of Logos Crest Pro-Health mouthwash was launched in 2005, and by 2008 52 million bottles of the rinse had been sold. Unlike other mouthwash, Crest Pro-Health does not contain alcohol, making it a seemingly-perfect choice for people who cannot used alcohol-based products, including pregnant women, the elderly and diabetics. (Villianueva, “Maker of Crest…”) This is using straight facts about the product, which makes it Logos.

Commercial example of Logos

Pathos Ways to develop pathos: Emotionally loaded language The appeal to emotions. Emotional arguments, appealing to pity and outrage mostly. Words the author uses to activate emotions. Ways to develop pathos: Emotionally loaded language Vivid descriptions Emotional examples Anecdotes, testimonies, or narratives about emotional experiences or events Figurative language

Pathos An advertisement using pathos will attempt to evoke an emotional response in the consumer. Sometimes, it is a positive emotion such as happiness: an image of people enjoying themselves while drinking Pepsi. Other times, advertisers will use negative emotions such as pain: a person having back problems after buying the “wrong” mattress. Pathos can also include emotions such as fear and guilt: images of a starving child persuade you to send money.

Example of Pathos "I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed." I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr. August 28th, 1963. He is using emotionally loaded language and emotional examples in this speech.

Commercial example of pathos

Let’s say you need to email why you are late to class, how could you use the appeals to explain or persuade your instructor: Logos? Reasoning: x happened, so it was impossible to be in class Doctor’s note / death certificate Letter from coach Ethos? Apologize / take responsibility Greet professor professionally / “speak” respectfully Assure your proactive, hardworking, willing to do what it takes Pathos? Tell a sad story of what happened Tell a sad story of what will happen if you fail Plead for forgiveness

Practice labeling pathos, logos, and ethos by placing a P, L, or E in the blank : _____ A child is shown covered in bug bites after using an inferior bug spray. _____ Tiger Woods endorses Nike. _____ Sprite Zero is 100% sugar-free. _____ A 32-oz. bottle of Tide holds enough to wash 32 loads. _____ A commercial shows an image of a happy couple riding in a Corvette.

____ Cardiologists recommend Ecotrin more than any other brand of aspirin. ____ Advil Liqui-Gels provide up to 8 hours of continuous pain relief. ____ Miley Cyrus appears in Oreo advertisements. ____ People who need more energy drink Red Bull Energy Drink. ____ A magazine ad shows people smiling while smoking cigarettes.

Types of Advertising Techniques Avante Garde: The suggestion that using this product puts the user ahead of the times. A toy manufacturer encourages kids to be the first on their block to have a new toy. Weasel Words: used to suggest a positive meaning without actually really making any guarantee. A scientist says that a diet product might help you to lose weight the way it helped him to lose weight. A dish soap leaves dishes virtually spotless.

Magic Ingredients: The suggestion that some almost miraculous discovery makes the product exceptionally effective. A pharmaceutical manufacturer describes a special coating that makes their pain reliever less irritating to the stomach than a competitor’s. Patriotism: The suggestion that purchasing this product shows your love of your country. A company brags about its product being made in America. Transfer: Positive words, images, and ideas are used to suggest that the product being sold is also positive. A textile manufacturer wanting people to wear their product to stay cool during the summer shows people wearing fashions made from their cloth at a sunny seaside setting where there is a cool breeze.

Bribery: offers you something “extra.” Plain Folks: The suggestion that the product is a practical product of good value for ordinary people. A cereal manufacturer shows an ordinary family sitting down to breakfast and enjoying their product. Snob Appeal: The suggestion that the use of the product makes the customer part of an elite group with a luxurious and glamorous lifestyle. A coffee manufacturer shows people dressed in formal gowns and tuxedos drinking their brand at an art gallery. Bribery: offers you something “extra.” Buy a burger; get free fries. Bandwagon: The suggestion that you should join the crowd or be on the winning side by using a product— you don’t want to be the only person without it!