Monday, 5 October 2020

Advertising Message, Content advertising & Advertising Message Structure (A&BM 05Oct2020)

What is an advertising message?

An advertising message is the visual and /or auditory information prepared by an advertiser to inform and / or persuade an audience regarding a product, organization, or idea.

The message or point that the customer should get upon seeing the ad is called the advertising message.

Advertising messages tend to have the following common components:

 

The Appeal – It is the component that captures the attention of the consumer. It may be humorous like in Mentos ads, adventurous like in Thums-Up ads or emotional as in insurance ads etc.

 

The Value Proposition – This component includes the basic value proposition offered to the consumer. This forms the main part of the advertising message.

 

The Tagline / Catchphrase – Every good ad campaign has a tagline, slogan or catchphrase that is repeated across all the different media in order to place firmly the product in the consumer’s mind. E.g. Nike – “Just Do It”, DeBeers – “A Diamond is Forever”, Apple – “Think Different”, MeDonald’s – “I’m Lovin It”.

 

What does content mean in advertising?

Content advertising is the process of producing content with the intention of promoting that content through paid distribution channels. This can include PPC (Pay per Click) campaigns, paid social, sponsored placements, and any other type of paid promotional opportunities.

Any content format can be produced as part of a content advertising campaign. For example, you could create a whitepaper focusing on a problem common to customers in your industry, with the intention of promoting this whitepaper through paid social ads. As long as the content being produced is to be promoted via paid distribution, you’re using content advertising. E.g. International Water Day by Eureka Forbes.

 

Advertising Message Structure

Advertising communication effectiveness depends on the message content as well its structure.

The important aspects of message structure are:

1.Drawing conclusions

2.Repetition

3.One–versus–two–sided arguments

4. Comparative Advertising

5.The order of presentation

 

1. Drawing conclusions

There are two way to handle this:

A. Conclusions should be drawn for the audience in the ad for quick understanding

B. Conclusion should be left to the audience

In case of drawn conclusion, the consumer may think that the message is over-aggressive and an attempt at forcefully influencing their choice.

When the issue is highly personal, the audience may resent the communicator’s interference in drawing a conclusion. Example selling eggs under a new name “Veggs” in Gujarat.

Conclusion drawing is favored where the product is a complex or specialized one. In the ad of Farex a long body copy goes on to explain that Farex is ideal baby solid food.

The Farex baby food ad, starting with a headline: “Your baby is born with a 3- month gift of iron. After 3 months, milk alone cannot give him the iron he needs.” The ad closes with the conclusion: “Doctors recommend Farex. Baby’s ideal solid food for rapid all- round growth.”

 

2. Repetition

Repeating an ad creates a continuity of impression in the minds of the target audience. A repeated message increases awareness and knowledge on the part of the prospect. Audience retention improves with repetition.

 

3. One–versus–two–sided arguments

The most common approach in sales and advertising is a one-sided approach, that only admire the product.

A two-sided communication produces the greatest attitude change when people are opposed to the point of view presented.

 

4. Comparative Advertising

Here a product is directly or indirectly compared with a competitive product. Most prominent among these have been the Pepsi, Savlon, Captain Cook Salt, Pepsodent and Colgate campaigns.

 

5. Order of Presentation

Strongest argument can be put in first or in last. It is a part of copywriting strategy.

In a one-sided argument, it is advisable to present the strongest point first, as it will result in better attention and interest.

In a two-sided communication, it is better, to start with the other side’s argument and slowly conclude the message with the strongest argument.

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