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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.
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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 • Email • 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
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
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
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 Example Cont. • Sometimes the commercials reach out and touch your heart. Zillow Commercial
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?
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.
Controversial? This Cheerios advertisement stirred up a lot of controversy, can you figure out why?