CREATIVE ADVERTISING – PART 1

Advertising has always been my favourite subject and when its “creative advertising” , it never fails to catch my attention and special interest. 
Advertising is a big business and ranks among the top industries of the world along with oil, auto, information technology and agriculture. In India, the last decade has witnessed a phenomenal growth in advertising business. Today I see a lot of creativity in advertisements, rather so much competition among brands and ads are no more “me too” type of messages. Today is the era of “BATTLE OF BRANDS” in every form of advertising – printed, non-printed and digital.
Through this post of mine, I would like to take you all through the types of  advertising and various message appeals used in advertising.

CONTEMPORARY ADVERTISING

It was during 1950’s that television emerged as one of the most spectacular development in the history of advertising. Creativity in advertising was almost non-existent till 1950’s and it was large corporations like coco-cola who introduced the unique type of intelligence and class to advertising. As  we can see in the above ad picture , how Hollywood personalities like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley are used to depict the classic taste of the drink.

COMPARATIVE  ADVERTISING :

 


Comparative advertising – the practice of naming, either directly or indirectly, the competitors in the ad and comparing one or more specific attributes.

VARIOUS TYPES OF APPEALS IN ADVERTISING:

1. REFUTATIONAL APPEAL

The advertiser first presents both strong and weak points about the product or service and then refutes the views concerning the weaknesses. The ads are aimed at building resistance in the consumers mind against competitor attacks or criticism; and against existing negative beliefs of consumers. 

2. EMOTIONAL APPEAL

Emotional /transformational appeals are used to evoke positive feelings that may get transferred to the brand. Research supports the belief that the commercials which generate a positive mood among the audience are better remembered.

3. RATIONAL APPEAL

Rational/informational appeals are usually informative and attempt to convince consumers about the suitability of the advertised product or service to satisfy their needs.

 Its sub-categories are as follows; 

• FEATURE APPEAL 

• FAVOURABLE PRICE APPEAL

• NEWS APPEAL

• POPULARITY APPEAL

4. SEX APPEAL

There are very few appeals in advertising that can probably equal the attention- arresting magic of sex appeals. Many psychologists are of the opinion that proper manipulation of sex appeals can trigger subconscious human desires that result in the purchase of products or services.

But the advertisers should remember that if the sex appeal has no relevance to the advertised product, it completely fails in creating any persuasive impression on the target audience.

The response  of men and women are totally different towards sex appeals in advertising. The perceptions of men, for example, about sexiness of an ad depend on the degree of nudity shown. However, the romantic content in the ad is the primary determinant of sexiness for women.

5. FEAR APPEAL

Advertisers use fear appeals to evoke desired response and motivate audience to take steps to remove the threat. Toothpaste, helmets, anti-dandruff shampoos, water filters, life insurance and a large number of other products use explicit or implicit fear appeals.

                                         


6. HUMOUR APPEAL
Humour attracts attention and can help increase ad message retention. Humour is always used to create pleasant mood and enhance audience attitude towards the brand.

7. EGO APPEAL

Advertising message addressing the ego needs.