The Advertising Message Asia-Pacific Marketing Federation Certified Professional Marketer Copyright by Marketing Institute of Singapore

Organization 1. Message Determinants 2. Advertising Strategies 3. Comparative Advertising 4. Resisting Competitors’ Persuasion

The Brief Factors in message development n In developing a message, consider the 3 C’s: (a) Customer -- Target audience (b) Company -- Product (c) Competitive Positioning

Customer -- Target Audience Know their: n Demographic Characteristics (e.g., age, sex)  audience physical profile n Psychographic Characteristics (e.g., activities, interests, opinions)  how they live and reasons for their behavior n Decision Process  opportunities available to influence product choice

Nike in Asia (1/2) n Found that Asian kids are less sporty than American kids n Instead, Asian kids preferred studying & shopping

Nike in Asia (2/2) n “I Dream” ad campaign n Features shots of young Asians playing sports intercut with images of some of world’s top athletes n Images linked with emotional calls to action –“I dream of excellence” –“I dream of freedom” –“I dream of not being a doctor”

Company -- Product (a) Distinctiveness of Attributes n If not distinctive  audience not interested in product info  message should not stress on attributes (b) Product Involvement n If high involvement, product info critical  stress on product attributes.

Advertiser must know: (a) what the impt attributes are (b) what the product can and cannot do (c) how to tie in with benefits

n If low involvement, product info not critical  stress on mood & have repeated exposures Mood in ad  Generate interest in ad itself  liking of ad transferred to liking of brand thro’ repeated exposure

Competition n If intense competition, greater need for distinctive image n Distinctive image  Share of consumer’s mind  When choice arises, advertised brand is evoked

Product Positioning n The art and science of fitting the product or service to one or more segments of the broad market in such a way as to set it meaningfully apart from competition

Positioning Strategies 1. Attribute –Set apart by attribute or benefit offered 2. Image –Similarity among brands

3.Use or application –Dominate some aspect of usage 4.Product user –e.g., Johnson & Johnson shampoo repositioned toward adults

5.Product Class –Against another product class rather than another brand –e.g., Epismile vs Colgate 6.Competitor

1. Informative n Audience receives factual product info n No arguments; no evaluation n Suitable when: (a) audience actively seeks info (b) easy to assess the facts (c) judgment is favorable to advertiser (d) no significant competition Advertising Strategies

2. Argumentative n Presents facts and evaluation n Suitable when: (a) there is a differentiated product benefit (b) benefits of features not obvious (c) high-involvement decisions

3. Psychological Appeal n Enhances product appeal thro’ emotions n Primary emphasis: Emotions n Secondary Emphasis: Product Attributes/Benefits

Humor Appeal Positive mood  draws attention  product is used But, (a) Not sufficient to merely attract attention (b) Repetition reduces ability to hold attention (c) Humour is subjective

Humor in Asia n Asians laugh at their stereotypes n English not first language n Wrong words used –Used car ad n “Special Offer. ‘94 Honda Big Blue Convertible. Asking price: $78K. Owner living.”

Fear Appeal n Negative consequences of not using product  product is used n Threat, with implications of danger n Curvilinear relationship between fear and persuasion (see next figure)

Relationship between fear levels and message acceptance Facilitating effects Resultant nonmonotonic curve Inhibiting effects Acceptance of message recommendation High Level of fear

Conditions for effective fear appeals: (a) Appeals are quite strong (b) Audience believes negative consequences are likely to occur (c) Audience believes using product will avoid the negative consequences (coping behavior to remove threat)

Sexual Appeal Gains attention  brand name recall? (a) Nature of product –If product is not related to sex, brand name recall higher when illustration is non-sexual than sexual (b) Attitude toward sexual illustrations –Audience with fav. attitude recall brand name more than those with unfavorable attitude (c) Gender of audience –Men have more difficulty in recalling brand names

Sexual Advertising in Asia n Conservative society n Sexual ads not well received n Ad rules vary by country n Difficulty in using campaign throughout region

China n No well-defined guidelines n No superstition, no elements contrary to traditional Chinese custom or liable to affect stability of society

Hong Kong n Regular updates to Code of Practices to keep up with changing values n Liberal, creativity not restricted

Indonesia n Advertising codes prohibits use of obscenity and kissing scenes in locally produced ads n Ad can be sexual as long as it does not show sexual scenes

Philippines n Catholic country n Sexual imagery extensively used n Govt believes in self regulation

Thailand n Strict censorship rules n Kissing & romantic display of affection not allowed in ads

4. Repeat Assertion n Hard-sell approach n Same simple message repeated several times in words, graphics, or sound n Assumes: (a) audience have no intrinsic interest in message (b) positive relationship between repetition and message acceptance

5. Command n Orders audience to do something n Suitable when directed behavior is intuitively appealing and acceptable 6. Symbolic Association n Product is linked to a person, music, a word, an illustration, etc. n Trigger ideas thro’ symbols n Link between product and symbol must exist

7. Imitation Approach n Audience imitate people in the ad n Suitable when there is social influence n Indirectly informs audience what appropriate behavior is

n Two or more brands of the same product class are compared n Direct or indirect comparisons n Compare on a specific attribute quality or overall quality Comparative Advertising

Effects of Comparative Advertising n Increases awareness of competitors n Increases misidentification n Less credible n Decreases message acceptance n Encourages information processing n Increases similarity between brands n Increases purchase intention for low-share brands

Effectiveness of Various Appeals in Asia Reasoned Psych SymbolicInformativeness argument appeals associationVisualSound TaiwanKoreaJapan Hong Kong IndiaDrama-Lecture

Message Structure n Order of Presentation –Placement of information –Primacy Effect: Info learnt first will be remembered better –Recency Effect: Info learnt last will be remembered better –Thus, place strong points at beginning and end of ad

n Conclusion Drawing –Should message explicitly draw a firm conclusion or let audience draw their own conclusion? –Explicit conclusion -- more easily understood; enhances attitude –Effectiveness depends on: n Education of target audience n Complexity of issue/topic n Immediate action or L/T effect?

n Benefits of non-conclusion drawing –Reinforces message –More memorable

Two-sided ads n Good and bad points are presented n Highlight impt attributes strong in and not-so-impt attributes weak in n More credible & informative Most effective when: (a)Audience is intelligent (b)Initial opinion on the issue is negative Resisting Competitors’ Persuasion