Session Three Wording Characteristics of English Advertising Texts

1. Session Three Wording Characteristics of English Advertising Texts An advertiser’s main purpose The advertisier’s main purpose is to present and exhibit products or services, and to spread Their influence to the extent that the potential purchasing population become real and actual. Generally, advertisers try various means at their disposal to get people to buy the product or ser- vice advertised. They attempt to construct an ad- vertisement that will fully involve the attention of the potential purchaser and which will have

2. a persuasive effect. So they will make full use of every word to attract readers’ attention. English advertising texts display many unique diction features, such as frequent use of monosyllabic verbs, personal pronouns, and compounds, as well as clever use of coinages, etc. which will be discussed briefly and separately in this chapter.

3. Proper Names Are Frequently Seen • The extreme frequency of references to • the advertised products and to their compo- • nent parts or elements or ingredients provides • good reasons for the constant presence of • proper names. Products may be referred to • quite simply by the mention of brand names, • such as Motorola , Marlboro, Coca-Cola , Nokia. • Besides product names, proper names of • places, countries, services and people are • often seen in English advertising texts. This

4. is especially true of advertisements for tourists. Let us look at the following advertisements: (1) Just once in a lifetime The World’s Fair and New Orleans. It’s a magical combination that can only happen once. So come on down the river, join Ameri- ca and other great nations in a celebration the likes of which the world has never seen. Sense firsthand the wonders of Egypt. Walk from the French Quarter into a part of China’s mysterious past. Stroll through an Italian village. Tip a stein at a German beer garden. Travel to Japan, Mexico---22 different countries in all. Italian village. Travel to Japan, Mexico---22 different countries in all.

5. See every kind of show---from a nonstop jazz and gospel tent to a lavish Broadway- style aquacade. See every kind of entertain- ment from Bob Hope to Oak Ridge Boys. Taste every kind of food in over 70 restaurants from around the world. See the Space Shuttle Enterprise. But first you have to get there. We have 25, 000 hotel rooms waiting. Just tell your travel agent or tour operator that you want to go to Louisiana --- to the biggest celebration ever --- the “Great Celebration”. For more information call (504)525-fair.

6. The World’s Fair In New Orleans THE GREAT CELEBRATION! The italicized nouns or noun phrases are the names of places, cities or services. Such proper names arouse interest and create desire, which are very important to prospective tourists.

7. Monosyllabic Verbs Are • Frequently Used • Verbs used in English advertising are most- • ly short and simple. Typical ones are: be, do, • get, buy, make, give, have, see, come, go, • call, try, know, keep, look, need, love, use, • show, help, prove, mean, meet, suit, save, • feel, like, take, choose, select, start, taste, • build, grow, offer, provide, enjoy, savor, etc. • Any advertisements in English you come ac- • ross may contain a few or some of these verbs, • no matter what products or services are ad- • vertised. All these verbs are common and • simple, and most of them are monosyllabic.

8. A number of the above-mentioned verbs have varying grammatical functions and meanings that vary accordingly. The linking verb be is usually used to express the advertised product or service. The word do, which has many diffe- rent meanings, can refer to the practical func- tions or applications of the advertised product or service. Get, buy, have, give, take, and keep are related to the possession of the advertised product or service; have and have got convey the idea of neutral possession; keep transmits the idea ofcontinuing possession; buy, get and

9. take express acquisition and give denotes the conferring of possession on somebody else. Ano- ther group of verbs concern consumption: take (in one of its uses) and have (in one of its meanings). Meet and suit are associated with the practical func- tions of the advertised product or service. Like, love and need denote mental disposition towards the product. Choose/select and taste indicate some links between product and consumer. Look, feel and taste can be descriptive of the consumer’s

10. sensation or feelings; with an inanimate subject, they can describe the sensible properties of the commodity being advertised. The verbs make, build and grow tell about producer and product, or about the origin of the product. Offer, provide, present, and enjoy are favorite items in estate and travel adver- tisements, where they are normally preceded by impersonal subjects. At least one or two of these four verbs often appear in an estate or travel advertisements.

11. A number of the above-mentioned verbs are frequently used in the imperative clauses which encourage the audience to buy the product. In imperative clauses the word ‘buy’ is rarely used. The tendency to avoid “buy” might be put down to the unpleasant conno- tations of this verb. It is of course of vital impor- tance to the adman that he should not appear to be imposing himself on his audience, for if the reader feels the advert to be too obtrusive, he/she is likely to react negatively to its message,

12. or simply forget about it altogether. The adman is therefore confronted with a problem: on the one hand his advert should make people buy the product; on the other hand he must not say this in so many words lest they should take offence (Vestergaard, T. and Schroder, K. 1985: 67). Leech (1966:154) points out that in advertising language the most frequent word for ‘acquisition of product ’ is ‘get’ instead of ‘buy’. The reason for this is undoubtedly that ‘buy’ has some unpleasant connotations (money

13. and the parting with it) which ‘get ’ lacks. Advertisers usually make very careful efforts not to use the word ‘buy’. Instead they often use such synonyms as: ‘try’, ‘ask for’, ‘get’, ‘take’, ‘send for’, ‘use’, ‘choose’, ‘look for’. Please examine the following ad of Microsoft. (2) Come and learn how to leverage Micro- soft’s family of adaptable, scalable embedded platforms to enable you to quickly develop your 32-bit connected Windows powered solutions. This is the only event that will up-date you on all the latest developments in today’s supercharged

14. connected device industry. We’ll deliver hard- core information for developers with both beginner and advanced tracks. Get an early preview of the Microsoft roadmap and direction in embedded and appliance technologies. Master the latest customizable embedded platforms for building smarter devices---from simple data-collection tools to the full-featured. Hear direct from the product team including the program managers, developers and archi- tects who are building these technologies.

15. Learn all about the tools and business mo- dels that this new market place is demanding. Register now! In the above-mentioned example, the action verbs show the advertisement’s endeavor to persuade readers that needs can be fulfilled and problems can be solved through consum- ption. The following sentences are frequently seen or heard in advertisements: “Make X your toothpaste.” “Give him / her an X.” “Discover the smoothness, etc. of X.” “Introduce your family to X.” “Serve X.” “Let X solve your problems.” In these imperative sentences X stands for

16. the product with a certain brand name. In other cases, however, advertisers don’t ask their customers to buy the product or service, but try to make sure that their names will be pre- sent in their mind in a buying situation. They usually employ such imperative sentences as: “Look for X at your dealer’s.” “Remember there’s only one X.” This latter group requests the customers to contact the dealer/agent with greater or lesser urgency.

17. “Call /See your X agent.” “Come to our show- room.” “Come on / hurry, book now.” These sentences are particularly frequent in adver- tisements for services such as insurance, tra- vel, and provision of luxurious accommoda- tion or for products in the more expensive range, such as cars. In advertisements using more cautious, indirect ways of calling to ac- tion, a variety of methods are employed. e.g.: (3) You can use it at the table as well as in your cooking. (4) You’ll find 〔X〕 on all good cosmetic counters.

18. In the two examples mentioned above, indirect ways of persuasion are resorted to. Obviously, different ways call for different verbs, but which way and which verb to use depend on the context and the advertiser. Frequent use of monosyllabic verbs can help kill two birds with one stone: on the one hand, it makes the language of English advertising more concise and lively, and on the other hand, it saves space , time and money.

19. 3. Adjectives are frequently used G.N. Leech，a well-known linguist in Bri- tain, lists in his Language in Advertising (19 66: 152) the following most frequently used adjectives: (1) new (2) crisp (3) good/better/ best (4) fine (5) free (6) big (7) fresh (8) great (9) delicious (10) real (11) full, sure (12) easy, bright (13) clean (14) extra, safe (15) special (16) rich. The first item on the list, new, which implies the latest fashion or style or quality or type, or unique feature of a product or service, and connotes progress and development, is a word applied everywhere, because it can

20. almost describe all aspects of products, such as size , shape , look, brilliance, color, formu- la, also it can collocate with abstract nouns : contest, fashion, competition, ideas, trend, tide, wave, etc. It is frequently seen that new collo- cates with common nouns, such as booklet, bottle, car, fish, steak, newspapers, shampoo, soap, toothbrush, tyre, weed-killer, tool, TV, cosmetics, and many more. e.g. : (5) Introducing Renurit Freshell. The new wave in air fresheners. Renurit Freshell. It’s a beautiful shell on

21. the outside. And inside it is a long-lasting air freshener…that freshens all day, all week, all month. The new wave in air fresheners… new Renurit Freshell. In your choice of 4 delightfully fresh scents. (6) Maybe you should come for this: New Le Menu Light Style entrees. Healthy…and delicious. However, new cannot be used too freely, and it must be used to the point. Although it is a very positive word, yet new can not convey an exact degree of the state of being new. For example, when we encounter “new packing”, we cannot imagine how new the packing is.

22. ‘Good/better/best might appear to be ano- ther all-purpose epithet, particularly in its com- parative and superlative forms’ (Leech, 1966: 152). Admen often use good/better/best collo- cating with two kinds of products: food and to- bacco. Good also collocates with many nouns which don’t denote concrete products, such as flavor, gravy, sandwich, breakfast. The use of good with cigarettes and tobacco probably reflects the difficulty of finding more suitable adjectives. e.g.: (7) What a good time for a good taste of a Kent?

23. (8)In just a few drops , this man’s skin is • going to feel better. • (9) This claims it’s good for arthritis pain. • This guarantees, it’s better. • Two Medipren relieve minor arthritis pain • better than two regular aspirin. We guarantee • it – or your money back. • What’s on the best-seller list in IBM Per- • sonal Computer software? • People prefer IBM Personal Computer soft- • ware for a variety. • Because, for just about anything you want • the IBM Personal Computer to help you do, • there’s software to help you do it. Software • to help improve productivity, efficiency and

24. planning. To help teachers teach and students learn. Or help you become an even more astute games player. Every program in our software library makes the IBM Personal Computer a truly useful tool for modern times. That’s why a lot of buyers like you have made them best sellers. And the library is still growing. So the best may well be yet to come. ---- IBM Personal Computer software Good and new are much more frequently used than any other adjectives; wonderful, fine and great are adjectives of commendation

25. in most cases; delicious, crisp , fresh and rich are key words in food advertising; fresh and clean are often used in the advertisements of toothpaste; of course, clean can collocate with cleaning products, too , such as :detergent, shampoo and soap; sure is only used in those products which have something to do with human beings; safe and sure are inevitably used in connection with products related to hygiene, such as deodorants and germicides. E.g. (11) This baby’s nappy is Lux-safe. Safe with the safety that you get with pure soap.

26. (12) You’re sure of personal freshness---lasting day and night freshness---and sure of a lovely, lingering perfume. This winter be sure. Use double-sure Body Mist, the perfumed deodorant.1 Extra and special have a function similar to that of new, but they express the differences of products. There are other words frequently used relative to new products, such as now, suddenly, announcing, introducing, improved, revolutionary, just arrived, important development, miracle, surprising, challenge. Free, obviously cannot collocate with nouns denoting products or brand names. It is often used with an added attraction to consumers.

27. Delicious, good and fresh are used as adjectives to recommend food products. Sometimes, they are found with other ad- jectives, such as chunky, crunchy, crisp, flaky, juicy, homemade and light. In English advertisements, good and wonderful are more frequently used than nice and marvelous. The other adjectives mentioned above are associated with products, showing their qualities and properties.

28. 4. Compounds In English advertisements, you can see compoundseverywhere. Some compounds are written as single words and some with a hyphen, but others appear as two separate words. Because lexical restraints on com- pounds are few, the advertisers are relatively free to create English compounds which are appropriate to the copy text. As a result, English compounds become a conspicuous characteristic of English advertisements.

29. As we know, compound nouns are coined in many different ways. In the following exam- ples, we can see structural types of the most common compound nouns. (a) adjective + noun: high-fashion knitwear, top-quality bulbs; (b) noun + noun: color freshness, economy- size shredded wheat; (c) adverb + noun: the any-time cereal, up-to-the-minute cycling; (d) present participle + noun: arriving time, chew- ing gum; (e) past participle + noun: purified salt, married couple.

30. Compound adjectives are often used to describe products or services. Leech (1966: 135) pointed out: “ perhaps the most conspi- cuous characteristic of advertising language to a casual reader or listener is an abundance and variety of adjectival compounds.” The fre- quently used compound adjectives types are as follows: (1) Noun + adjective: world-famous wine, feather-light flakes; (2) Adjective + adjec- tive: light-blue “T” shirt, dark-red skirts; (3) pre- sent participle + adjective: shining-clean, piping- hot coffee; (4) noun + adjective: brand-new, feather-light; (5) Adjective + present participle:

31. fresh-tasting milk, innocent-looking; (6) Ad- verb + present participle: the best-selling toilet tissue, fast-foaming new S.P.; (7) Noun + past participle: honey-coated sugar puffs, home- made; (8) Adjective (adverb) + past participle: perfect-textured cakes, quick-frozen food. Compound verbs are rarely used, but since the 19 century, some compound verbs are seen in English advertisements quite often, such as: mass-produce, window-dress, air- condition, blue-print, cold rinse, warm iron, line dry, etc.

32. Of particular interest are compounds which themselves contain a compound as one of their elements: coffee-pot-fresh, brand-new- clean, the so-many-ways cheese. In addition, there are a few compounds which are created innovatively by the copy writers, such as better- than leather-miracle-covering, look at the oh- so-comfortable size, give that oh-so-good-to- be alive feeling. All these compounds make advertisements more humorous, varied and original, thus impressing people much.

33. The utility of compound pre-modifiers in Eng- lish advertisements is very difficult to explain. Leech pointed out (1966:139)， “ Compound pre-modifiers, like noun and adjective pre-mo- difiers, can be used either attributively or desig- natively: they can add emotively slanted des- cription, or merely specify more exactly the referential domain of the accompanying noun. Like noun pre-modifiers, their semantic relation to the head is often not explicitly signaled, as it would be in post-modification.” Usually, the

34. meaning of a compound pre-modifier becomes quite clear when it is logically paraphrased by means of putting it as post-modifier. Here are some examples: feather-light flakes = flakes which are as light as a feather; chocolate- flavored cereal = cereal flavored with chocolate; stiff-tufted mud remover = mud remover with stiff tufts; economy-size shredded wheat = wheat shredded in economic size; honey-coa- ted sugar puffs = sugar puffs coated with honey. Obviously, compound pre-modifiers contribute to rendering the text much more concise and to saving space and money for advertisers.