Year 9 Advanced English Advertisement week 3, term 3

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1 E9F3 e9f3 Year 9 Advanced English Advertisement first name last name e9f3

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3 3 Print media Advertisements are the most common form of the language of persuasion. They are designed to sell a product or service. Print advertisements in magazines and newspapers are the major type of advertising in Western economies. About 50 per cent of advertising revenue is spent on this form of advertising. Other forms of print advertisements include billboards, signs, posters, handbills, catalogues, direct mailing and display stands. All magazine and newspaper advertisements are clearly designed for a target audience; for instance, female teenagers aged fifteen to nineteen. This audience is carefully researched. Researchers conduct interviews and design questionnaires asking members of the target audience to respond to samples of the product and state their secret fears and/or wishes in association with it. They also want to establish what types of packaging and promotion devices produce the best response. Advertising agencies then design an appropriate advertisement using their copywriters, artists, photographers and designers. The advertisement is designed to fit into the consumer's world. To do this the advertiser must understand the consumer's self-image. Some common examples of self-image include: health conscious fun-loving popular impressed by scientific research desire to be an individual maternal/paternal feminine/masculine athletic desire to associate with famous people adventurous. The advertisement will then display an image of what the members of the target audience like and want. Each advertisement is therefore designed to emotionally and psychologically manipulate its target audience.

4 4 AIDA A common approach to the development of advertisements is known as AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. First, advertisers aim to attract the attention of their target audience, then to hold their interest, stimulate a desire for the product and try to provoke the consumer into the action of either purchasing the product or seeking the services being advertised.' To do this, some, most or all of the following techniques are used: Attention catchy headlines striking graphics of the product striking graphics with good story appeal to support the product interesting layout colour. Interest attractive images to make the product fit into the consumer's world emotive language appeal to the consumer's self-image. Desire language with persuasive power emphasising the advantages to be gained from purchasing the product. Action limited offer promise of a benefit: - discount - free gift - special deal (e.g. trade-in, delayed no-interest payment) aid for action - coupon to fill in - phone number to ring.

5 5 Structure Most print advertisements in newspapers and magazines follow a certain format or structure. This includes a headline and body copy, or main part, of the advertisement. Headlines are designed to capture the target audience's attention by: promising a benefit breaking some news offering helpful information indicating the target audience making statements about the product working well with graphics varying the print size attempting either 'hard' (aggressive) or 'soft' (subtle) sell. The focus of the body copy is on creating a memorable image of the product and its desirability. This is achieved by: striking graphics to complement the headlines. These should instantly communicate information and create an emotional reaction. (Common emotional states are joy, pleasure, anticipation, fear, anxiety and monotony.) information about the product, including statistics, with hidden messages to enhance the value of the product in the eyes of the audience so as to convince them that it answers their problems and can fulfil their desires appeal to authority through association with a famous person or group of important people emotive language, including adjectives with connotations of desirability and approval (e.g. a neologism or new word: 'temptational'; a compound word: 'smooth-handling') pleasant rhymes created by sound words using alliteration and assonance repetition of the product name and some of its desirable features imperatives (e.g. try, hurry on to...) truncated sentences, or words left out, to create -a sense of immediacy and ensure that the focus remains on the desirability of the product company logo course of action.

6 6 Radio Advertisement First, we will look at a radio advertisement. When studying radio advertisements, we usually look at the script and consider the language features and structure it uses. As a class, carefully read the radio script and discuss its features. Then, answer the questions that follow. SPAKLE Laundry Detergent SFX Jean Sally Jean Sally Jean Sally Male voice over (MVO) Jingle Children playing in the background Hey Sally, why so down? Oh Jean, it's my washing. It's so grey and drab and I'm using a good detergent. I spend so long washing, hanging it out, bringing it in, sorting... but it looks terrible. Obviously you're not using SPARKLE. SPARKLE is the most amazing washing detergent you can buy. The whites are crisp and the coloureds stay vibrant longer. SPARKLE means all that effort is worthwhile! SPARKLE makes washing just a dream! Really? Is it expensive? No way! SPARKLE is more reasonable than the leading brand and because it's concentrated you'll use 20% less. SPARKLE has been saving me money for years! Oh wow! I can't wait to try SPARKLE. Something has to make this washing easier! (laughs Happily) That's right! SPARKLE will make your family's clothes really shine clean. Try some today. At all leading supermarkets. SPARKLE makes washing just a dream! SPARKLE adds drat zest and shine to your washing all the time the whites are crisp and die coloureds gleam SPARKLE makes washing just a dream!

7 7 Multiple questions 1. What is the main purpose of this text? (A) (B) (C) (D) To inform To describe To persuade To entertain 2. Who is the target audience for the advertisement? (A) (B) (C) (D) young women mothers families adults generally 3. What does the phrase "coloureds stay vibrant longer" mean? (A) (B) (C) (D) the clothes stay cleaner for an extended period light coloured clothes will look whiter for longer coloured clothes will not quickly lose their brightness clothes will not quickly become limp and threadbare 4. What is the slogan for Sparkle laundry detergent? (A) (B) (C) (D) Sparkle means all that effort is worthwhile! Sparkle makes washing just a dream! Sparkle is the most amazing washing detergent you can buy. Sparkle will make your family's clothes shine clean. 5. What is the tone of Jean's comments? (A) (B) (C) (D) disinterested interested cheerful enthusiastic 6. What is the language level of the voice over? (A) (B) (C) (D) colloquial slang formal none of the above

8 8 Short answer questions 1. SFX means sound effect. Why do you think the advertisement began with a sound effect of children playing? What effect does it create? 2. List all the positive features mentioned about the product and what ideas they convey towards the target audience. 3. Remember that emotive terms are those that have feelings attached. a) List all the positive emotive terms associated with the product. b) How do these emotive terms help sell the product? 4. This advertisement presents women in a stereotyped way. Explain how the women presented are stereotyped. In your answer use quotations to refer to specific comments the characters make. 5. a) What do you notice about how often the slogan and the product name are mentioned? b) Remembering this is a radio advertisement, explain why this repetition is used.

9 9 6. Why do you think the advertising company chose to have a male voice-over? (think about the effect) 7. a) Remembering the target audience, of the radio stations you know, which would be likely to play this advertisement? b) Explain why you have chosen these radio stations. 8. Explain the type of melody you would expect for the jingle.

10 10 Travel Advertisement The following text is a travel advertisement. Discuss its visual features, layout and also the written text and how they are used to persuade the audience. Then, answer the questions that follow.

11 11 Questions 1. Who is the intended audience for this advertisement? 2. What is the advertiser s purpose? 3. Where is the reader of this advertisement positioned in relation to the people in the photo? Why? 4. What feeling do you experience as you look at the scene in the photograph? How is this emotion reflected through the text? 5. What is the message to the audience in the hand-printed words under the photograph? 6. What comments would you make about the language used in the text? What is the effect of this? 7. What persuasive techniques has the advertiser used in the advertisement to convince readers to take a holiday in Maui? What ideas and impressions do they convey?

12 12 How do I analyse the complex qualities of texts? To analyse a complex text, you must ask yourself: What other messages are in this text? What does it say about the things portrayed in it? What does it show about its context? What does it say about the composer and responders? You can then use your knowledge of how texts work to explain its complex qualities. You can comment on, for example, how language techniques, conventions, layout and colour answer these complex questions. Examine the advertisement on the following page. The immediate response a composer wants from an advertisement is that the responder wants to buy the product or service advertised. Complex questions that responders can ask about advertisements include: at What values does this text show? In what way is this a typical text of consumerism? Who is advantaged if women are portrayed in advertising this way? In what ways has history caused this type of text to be acceptable? How does the appearance of the model match with the social power given to women in modern society?

13 13 You are expected to be able to recognise when a text is a complex one. This is not always immediately obvious some texts have deeper meanings that you can only see when you begin to ask questions about them and analyse them. You will need to be able to explain some of the reasons why you consider a particular text to be complex. These could include, for example: Complicated or unusual vocabulary, or vocabulary that is symbolic Complicated or confusing viewpoints and opinions The text creates a variety of responses The text causes responders to ask themselves or other people difficult questions, perhaps about the text or its context or purpose, or the responses the text will get Unfamiliar features, forms or structures Complicated grammar, punctuation or sentence structures Long texts

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15 15 Once you have discussed the previous advertisement in depth, answer the following questions. Questions 1. What is the purpose of this advertisement and who is the target audience? How do you know? 2. How are visual techniques used to create attractiveness and how are they effective? 3. Discuss the layout of the advertisement and what is its effect? 4. How is language used to persuade the target audience? How is it effect? Discuss the techniques.

16 16 More on Visual Advertisements Advertisements are usually visual, graphical and creative in order to persuade their audience by grabbing their attention. The visual language and verbal language features of advertisements often include several aspects. The previous advertisement you have studied evoked a celebrity endorsement that link the product with the desirable ideal. Other aspects include: language that will appeal to a particular target audience appeals to a particular sense or emotions, which encourage a must-have mentality bias or subjectivity that is designed to portray the products in a flattering light.

17 17 Questions about advertisements will often ask how the advertisement has been designed to appeal to a particular audience, and how the verbal language and visual language features work together in the advertisement. When deeply analysing advertisements, you should consider: language and word choice layout visual features, devices and graphics slogans and logos persuasive language and emotive language pronouns factual information ACTIVITY Look at the advertisement on the previous page. With your knowledge of advertisements, answer the questions below. 1. What is the subject of the advertisement? 2. Describe the way lighting and colour has been used to draw the audience s attention to the subject. 3. Who is the target audience?

18 18 4. Discuss the composition and layout of the advertisement and its effects. 5. What language features are used to persuade the audience? What effects do they create? 6. Do you think this visual text is effective? Give reasons for your answer.

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