Advertising  

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communication whose purpose is to inform potential customers about products and services.

Benetton - commercial - consumerism - marketing - persuasion - propaganda - sex in advertising - women in advertising - fashion photography

Through advertising, marketing is also related to many of the creative arts.

"Just What Is It that Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing?", The Hidden Persuaders

Advertising techniques

Advertisers use several recognizable techniques in order to better convince the public to buy a product. These may include:

  • Repetition: Some advertisers concentrate on making sure their product is widely recognized. To that end, they simply attempt to make the name remembered through repetition.
  • Bandwagon: By implying that the product is widely used, advertisers hope to convince potential buyers to "get on the bandwagon."
  • Testimonials: Advertisers often attempt to promote the superior quality of their product through the testimony of ordinary users, experts, or both. "Three out of four dentists recommend..." This approach often involves an appeal to authority.
  • Pressure: By attempting to make people choose quickly and without long consideration, some advertisers hope to make rapid sales: "Buy now, before they're all gone!"
  • Association: Advertisers often attempt to associate their product with desirable imagery to make it seem equally desirable. The use of attractive models, picturesque landscapes and other alluring images is common. Also used are "buzzwords" with desired associations.
  • Subliminal messages: It was feared that some advertisements would present hidden messages, for example through brief flashed messages or the soundtrack, that would have a hypnotic effect on viewers ('Must buy car. Must buy car.') This is now generally discredited.

It is important to note: During the past decade, advertising has increasingly employed the device of irony. Aware that today's media-savvy viewers are familiar with -- and thus cynical about -- the traditional methods listed above, advertisers have turned to poking fun at those very methods. This "wink-wink" approach is intended to tell viewers, "We know that YOU know we're trying to sell you something, so bear with us and let's have fun." The ultimate goal of such advertising is to convey a sense of trust and confidence with viewers, by essentially saying, "We respect your intelligence, and you should respect us because we're not trying to fool you." Common television examples include most beer advertising and the commercials of the Geico insurance company.

See also




Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Advertising" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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