ADVERTISEMENT
Definition
- A commercial solicitation in a publication designed to sell some commodity, service or similar.
- A publication produced in order to sell some commodity, service or similar.
http://dictionary.bnet.com/definition/advertisement.html
Purpose
- to persuade the audience to buy a product, use a service of attend an event
- change public behaviour, e.g. “Don’t drive if you drink”
http://www.wsd1.org/PC_EnglishLA/Writing%20Folders2.pdf
Intended audience
Features
- uses brevity, such as short phrases, keywords
- bold text
- images
- big headings
- colourful
- if spoken, keywords are usually stressed to attract audience
Where to find them
- magazines
- newspapers
- on television
- radio
- the Internet
What makes a successful advertisement
Successful advertisements follow the AIDA Theory:
Attention – catch public attention, e.g. catchy slogans
Interest – appeal to public’s emotions, weaknesses, problems in order to sustain their interest
Desire – stimulate public’s wants
Attraction – inviting public to take action, e.g. contact numbers, internet address of advertising company
http://www.wettropics.gov.au/st/rainforest_explorer/Resources/Documents/8to9/HowTo/Advertisement.pdf
Creating a good advertisement
Besides applying the AIDA Theory, some other things that make a good advertisement are:
- using present tense to create a sense of urgency/immediate action required
- using emotive language
- using imperative verbs, such as “hurry”, “act now”
- using images
http://www.wettropics.gov.au/st/rainforest_explorer/Resources/Documents/8to9/HowTo/Advertisement.pdf
Questions to consider when creating an advertisement:
- How important is the headline?
- What kinds of rewards do good headlines promise?
- How many words should a headline contain?
- What do people want?
- How do you select your copy appeal?
- What is the missing ingredient in many an otherwise good ad?
- How do you present your facts?
- How do you persuade people to grasp the advantages?
- How do you ask for action?
- How long should copy be?
- What factors influence the effectiveness of an ad?
- How do you get more inquiries?
http://www.twipress.com/productpages/HowToWriteGood.htm
Example
An advocacy ad on “Save the Internet”
Link: http://www.dontregulate.org/
Why it is a good one:
Attention
- Main idea brought out in the beginning “Save the Internet”
- Key phrases “SAVE the Internet!” “Keep the Internet FREE!” let audience know what the advertisement is about
- Simple images of how the Internet has developed “dialupàbroadbandàwifiàoptic fibres” = attractive, makes it easy for public to remember
Interest
- The narrative voice in the advertisement states the current situation of the Internet, thus developing a close relationship with the audience. It leaves audience the impression that the advertisers are concerned about the welfare of the public.
- Appeals to public’s emotions because the public will not want to be the victims of “net neutrality”, e.g “they’re (big corporations) gonna make billions, but they don’t wanna pay anything. Instead they wanna stick consumers with the whole bill”
- There are pauses in between to show different sections of the advertisement and allows time for audience to think about what they just saw, e.g. just before “Is the Internet in danger?”
- Even though cartoons used are simple and the advertisement does not use much colour, but the action involved is entertaining enough to make up for the loss. The grey colours suggest an unbiased nature of the advertisement, therefore is easier to persuade audience.
Desire
- It talks about how building a more sophisticated network in the future will be a tough job and cost a lot of money, but big companies are not willing to pay for the bills and want the consumers to do it instead. This creates the desire of the audience to oppose to the idea of “net neutrality” and to reject the development of the network.
e.g. “They’re (big corporations) gonna make billions, but they don’t wanna pay anything. Instead they wanna stick consumers with the whole bill. And they call their plan ‘net neutrality’? ”
Attraction
- States what the congress will be about to do at the end of the advertisement and tells audience to make up their own mind. The advertisement also leaves a link for audience to follow up if interested:
e.g. "Congress is about to vote/Make up your own mind/ It’s about the freedom of the Internet/ www.handsoff.org”
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