Methods of Appeal in Advertisement

Methods of appeal are concerned with how the advertisement is presented. They are advertising techniques designed to associate a product or service with something that the consumer can relate to and make an impact on the consumer. They may be concerned with the content of the advertisement, the tone of the advertisement or the sound effects used in presenting the advertisement.  Many advertising devices appeal to people's emotions and play on their fears.  Professionals in the advertising industry believe that human beings are emotional creature’s first and rational creatures later. If you engage the emotions of the consumer, you will attract the attention of the consumer. The combination of the product to be advertised and the market to which the campaign is directed may determine the method of appeal used. Advertisements are often repeated to reinforce the message. They may be changed slightly to gain attention but the message in still the same.

Examples of Emotional Methods of Appeal in advertising

Affluence - some advertisements use the devices of extravagance, luxury and wealth - exotic locations, expensive jeweler, and very large houses - to persuade people to buy holidays, expensive cars and handmade fitted kitchens as well as banking and investment services.

Nostalgia - old fashioned or comfortable, warm surroundings, with a look of days gone by are sometimes used as the scene for an advertisement to sell holidays in luxury hotels, cheeses and soft furnishings.

Sexual attraction - this device is often used to advertise cosmetics, perfumes and cars. By owning the particular car or using the particular perfume, the user will be attractive to the opposite sex.

Masculine or feminine appeal - male characteristics such as a powerful body or strength are used to sell male cosmetic products and sports cars. Female characteristics such as softness, prettiness, gentleness are used to advertise chocolates, nightwear and cosmetics.

Romance - success with the opposite sex and the product advertised are put together in the consumer's mind. This is a widely used advertising device often aimed at younger age groups. Chocolates, soap and cosmetics are often advertised in this way.

Fear of being alone/need for social acceptance - advertisements implying that potential customers can join particular groups ('Join the Jet Set') if they buy a particular product are popular with manufacturers of soaps and deodorants. These advertisements play on people's fear of being alone and not being part of the crowd.

Love of children and babies - toddlers, babies and small children are often used in advertisements. They may suggest softness and protectiveness. Natural parental feelings and the desire for a happy family life may be used to boost sales of baby food, toys and games and breakfast cereals.

Fondness for animals - certain types of animals portray certain images. Puppies suggest playfulness and gentleness. This method of appeal has been used for toilet paper. Tigers exhibit strength and power. This image has been used to advertise petrol.

Fear of being ill - advertisers of medicines, cold remedies, slimming programs and health products sometimes use pictures or descriptions of people who are not well and who will be helped by using the products advertised. 'Healthy eating means a healthy family means eating Happy Henry Cornflakes'.

Cleanliness and hygiene - advertisements for domestic appliances, cleaning materials floor polishes and detergents often use sparkling rooms and very clean clothes as a way of showing what these products can achieve. The implication is that the consumer will not have such a clean house unless she buys these products.

Desire for an easy life (convenience) - advertisers of washing machines, dishwashers and other household appliances often show pictures of life made simpler and easier by the use of labor-saving machines. 'Use the new Wonder Cleaner from XYZ Ltd and sit down all morning'. This method of appeal may also be true for advertisers of convenience and ready-made meals who show how much time is saved by using a ready-made pizza or pie.

Love of a bargain - many people likes to feel that they are buying something at a cheap price. Slogans such as 'buy while stocks last' and 'bargain of the week' are likely to attract the attention of many consumers looking for value for money.

Hero worship - advertisers often pay famous personalities such as actors, pop stars or sports people to use a specific company's equipment or wear clothing showing a particular logo or brand or praise and recommend a product. Consumers who 'worship' the celebrity featured in the advertisement will want to use the same products. If you wear a certain type of sports shirt you might be able to play football like David Beckham.

Ambition and status - many advertisers appeal to people's desire to succeed in their jobs. The successful person in the advertisement uses the product, perhaps a particular model of a computer. If other people use it too, they will also be successful.

Other Methods of Appeal

Music - makes a television or radio advertisement more interesting. Lively music may make an advertisement exciting. Classical music may be seen as relaxing and be used for products such as designer clothes.

Movement - many television advertisements show people moving about and doing something to catch the audience's attention, e.g. having breakfast to advertise cornflakes, driving a car to demonstrate what it can do.

Humor - people like to laugh. Advertisers as often introduce humor into the situations shown in advertisements. They may make use of jokes, cartoons or amusing situations. Some of the most successful advertisements and most remembered are those that make people laugh.

Color - an advertisement in color appeals far more than one in black and white. Color used in newsprint (although not high quality reproduction) makes advertisements stand out from the newsprint. The use of color in glossy magazines adds to the appeal of the magazine for some readers. Advertisements for foods are made more appealing by the use of highly colored presentations. Color can convey all kinds of messages subconsciously about a product or service to the reader.

Color in advertising
Examples:	Possible Massage	Examples of products advertised
Red or gold	Richness, romance, luxury	Chocolates
Black or purple	Drama, mystery, luxury	Chocolates
Blue	Coolness	Soft drinks
White	Cleanliness	Household cleaners
Yellow	Sunshine and brightness	Breakfast cereal
Green	Nature and freshness	Foods

Durability - advertisers of cars, furniture and carpets sometimes stress the quality and reliability of their products saying that they will last for years. The most successful advertisements are those that people remember. They are usually remembered for their method of appeal or for the slogan used like “Beanz means Heinz”; “Go to work on an egg”; and “A Mars a Day helps you work, rest and play” etc

In Australia in early 2007, a poll was held to find out the advertisements that Australians loved the most and hated the most. Telstra's Big Pond Rabbits commercial showing a father telling his son that the Great Wall of China was built to keep out the rabbits was voted top television advertisement. Animal advertisements and those showing Australian past-times such as sailing and enjoying the beach also did well in the poll. The most hated advertisements were those that disfigured the human body in some way such as a tongue jumping out of its owner's mouth to advertise a brand of beer.

Advertisements need to be liked. If people like them, they will remember them. They will talk about them to friends and family and even switch from another brand to buy the advertised brand. It is not just the choice of media that is important but also the method of appeal or device used.