Advertising – Definitions and Techniques

1. Advertising – Definitions and Techniques

2. 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)

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

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

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

6. 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

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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.

10. 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

11. Bandwagon Examples

12. 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. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhEkVakVWFE

13. 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

14. 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.

15. 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.

16. Transfer Examples

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

18. Product Placement • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aniS3HaLwEY (30 Rock) • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyQjr1YL0zg (Derren Brown) • 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?

19. Product Placement Examples

20. 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

21. 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.

22. Cell Phone Ads

23. Cell Phone Ads cont.

24. Make up Ads

25. Make up Ads cont.

26. Airbrush much?

31. Controversial Ads in 2012

34. Controversial Ads 2013

36. Teen Pregnancy Ads

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