Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Monday, April 8, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013
Thanks to the Rise in Digital Media, It Takes More Than a Pleasant Photo Ad to Persuade the Masses
Since the turn of the century, media has been considered to be one of the most powerful tools in the world of communication. Specifically, media has been a key factor to the advancement and increase in effectiveness of persuasion in advertising.
As media forms develop over time, so do the various forms of advertising.
Mass product advertising has been around since the late 19th century, and never has it seen such exponential growth as it has with the rapid development in media forms. During its heyday, newspapers and magazines owned the advertising world, yet advertising saw a major growth spurt with the creation and development of the television. With the simple creation of this one new form of media, a various number of new forms of advertising was created. Picture ads turned into video ads, and that is not where TV advertising ends; with TV came product placement in TV shows, advertising in annual, primetime events like the Super Bowl (as seen right), and corporate sponsorship of the production of general TV programs to name a few. The same notion goes for the creation and development of the Internet and the World Wide Web. These have allowed for hundreds upon hundreds of forms of advertising to be created, such as Facebook ads, email ads, pre-video ads, and so on and so forth.
Simple exposure to a product or issue is not enough to convince consumers.
While advertisers can pour millions upon millions of dollars into TV commercials, they won't all necessarily have a positive overall return on their investment. It takes true creative ingenuity to persuade the masses to buy your product or support your cause. There are various tactics that can be used in order to convince the most potential consumers that Product X or Issue Y deserves their attention and money. One possible tactic is taking a comedic approach. Companies like Geico and Doritos have a rich history in airing funny commercials to convince people to purchase their services and products. In addition, another tactic is to have a celebrity endorse the product or service that the company is offering. Rivals Nike and Adidas each have what can be considered a "team" of superstar athletes that endorse their brand, allowing the consumers to connect to their favorite athletes through the products they are endorsing.
Emotional connections in advertisements are the most powerful devices in persuading a mass audience.
While comedy and the use of celebrities are possible ways for advertisers to persuade viewers to buy their product or support their cause, I feel that the most powerful of all tactics is the emotionally connecting commercial. Commercials can cause an emotional effect in various different ways. Proctor and Gamble's Tide brand uses commercials that are most emotionally appealing to women, more specifically mothers, because this is the target audience that the company feels is buying most of their product stock. Therefore, the company runs commercials that often includes a mother having an emotionally touching moment with her son or daughter. Moreover, mothers that view this commercial will have an emotional connection, thinking about loving memories of their children and will connect those loving memories to the Tide brand. Another instance of emotional connection is an NBA commercial that features various fans from around the world playing basketball while sporting the uniforms of different NBA players. The advertiser blatantly chose to use international talents in the commercial in order to inspire an emotional connection from other foreigners living in the United States.
One particular example that I'd like to touch on for a bit is brought to us by the emotional geniuses at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or the ASPCA. The ASPCA is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to helping the fight against animal cruelty all over the country. One of the ways the organization is able to fund such operations is through donations from external parties. Donations are especially harder for advertisers considering that there is no fair exchange of goods as there is with the general purchase of a product or service; in this instance, the consumer is actually just giving away money for the cause, an act that is much tougher for an advertiser to persuade a mass audience to do. Therefore, a commercial ad must elicit a life-changing emotional connection to the viewer if the advertiser has any hopes of receiving a donation. Above is an example of one of the ASPCA's television commercials. As any sane reader can see, the objective is to show the view pictures and videos of the most injured, deprived and depressed animals on the planet, and hope that his or her sympathy for these 10 or 12 animals is enough to persuade him or her to make a donation to the organization.
I feel that it takes a real marketing and sociological acumen to be able to determine the best possible way to reach an audience for a specific product, service or cause. A complex scenario like persuading viewers to donate is something that requires a very complex strategy and thus a complex advertisement; this is not something can be just thrown into a newspaper or onto a billboard and have the same rate of persuasion. Moreover, it should be incredibly clear that without the use of newly developed digital media, the complexities of today's advertising world could not be fulfilled.
As media forms develop over time, so do the various forms of advertising.
Mass product advertising has been around since the late 19th century, and never has it seen such exponential growth as it has with the rapid development in media forms. During its heyday, newspapers and magazines owned the advertising world, yet advertising saw a major growth spurt with the creation and development of the television. With the simple creation of this one new form of media, a various number of new forms of advertising was created. Picture ads turned into video ads, and that is not where TV advertising ends; with TV came product placement in TV shows, advertising in annual, primetime events like the Super Bowl (as seen right), and corporate sponsorship of the production of general TV programs to name a few. The same notion goes for the creation and development of the Internet and the World Wide Web. These have allowed for hundreds upon hundreds of forms of advertising to be created, such as Facebook ads, email ads, pre-video ads, and so on and so forth.Simple exposure to a product or issue is not enough to convince consumers.
While advertisers can pour millions upon millions of dollars into TV commercials, they won't all necessarily have a positive overall return on their investment. It takes true creative ingenuity to persuade the masses to buy your product or support your cause. There are various tactics that can be used in order to convince the most potential consumers that Product X or Issue Y deserves their attention and money. One possible tactic is taking a comedic approach. Companies like Geico and Doritos have a rich history in airing funny commercials to convince people to purchase their services and products. In addition, another tactic is to have a celebrity endorse the product or service that the company is offering. Rivals Nike and Adidas each have what can be considered a "team" of superstar athletes that endorse their brand, allowing the consumers to connect to their favorite athletes through the products they are endorsing.
Emotional connections in advertisements are the most powerful devices in persuading a mass audience.
While comedy and the use of celebrities are possible ways for advertisers to persuade viewers to buy their product or support their cause, I feel that the most powerful of all tactics is the emotionally connecting commercial. Commercials can cause an emotional effect in various different ways. Proctor and Gamble's Tide brand uses commercials that are most emotionally appealing to women, more specifically mothers, because this is the target audience that the company feels is buying most of their product stock. Therefore, the company runs commercials that often includes a mother having an emotionally touching moment with her son or daughter. Moreover, mothers that view this commercial will have an emotional connection, thinking about loving memories of their children and will connect those loving memories to the Tide brand. Another instance of emotional connection is an NBA commercial that features various fans from around the world playing basketball while sporting the uniforms of different NBA players. The advertiser blatantly chose to use international talents in the commercial in order to inspire an emotional connection from other foreigners living in the United States.
One particular example that I'd like to touch on for a bit is brought to us by the emotional geniuses at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or the ASPCA. The ASPCA is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to helping the fight against animal cruelty all over the country. One of the ways the organization is able to fund such operations is through donations from external parties. Donations are especially harder for advertisers considering that there is no fair exchange of goods as there is with the general purchase of a product or service; in this instance, the consumer is actually just giving away money for the cause, an act that is much tougher for an advertiser to persuade a mass audience to do. Therefore, a commercial ad must elicit a life-changing emotional connection to the viewer if the advertiser has any hopes of receiving a donation. Above is an example of one of the ASPCA's television commercials. As any sane reader can see, the objective is to show the view pictures and videos of the most injured, deprived and depressed animals on the planet, and hope that his or her sympathy for these 10 or 12 animals is enough to persuade him or her to make a donation to the organization.
I feel that it takes a real marketing and sociological acumen to be able to determine the best possible way to reach an audience for a specific product, service or cause. A complex scenario like persuading viewers to donate is something that requires a very complex strategy and thus a complex advertisement; this is not something can be just thrown into a newspaper or onto a billboard and have the same rate of persuasion. Moreover, it should be incredibly clear that without the use of newly developed digital media, the complexities of today's advertising world could not be fulfilled.
Friday, February 22, 2013
The Relevance of Still Photography is Endangered, Not Extinct Thanks to Video
As the common expression goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. That expression has been around since being used as a newspaper headline in 1911, and is still going strong today. However, I'm sure if the editor of that newspaper were around today, he'd have a different headline in mind: A video is worth a thousand pictures. Over the years, I feel that the relevance and usefulness of still photos have regressed in a major way, mainly due to the progression and rapid evolution of films, TV and other animated mediums. The reason I feel this way is because there is no element of a still photo that is not either duplicated or enhanced by a video of the same scene.A photo allows you to relive a moment. A video allows you to relive an experience.
This does not only hold true for personal memories, such as visiting beautiful beaches or climbing to the top of a mountain, as seen above, but does so for news, entertainment and other societal experiences as well. For example, if there was an article regarding the highlights of a recent sporting event, I would be shocked if the reader would be satisfied with only photographs of their favorite players and teams. As a big sports fan, I would much prefer to watch a video of the highlights of the game so I can relive the experience as if I were there.
In addition, many feel that photography is a form of art that will always be looked at in a different light by art enthusiasts. However, art enthusiasts need to step into the 21st century and realize that film and television are starting to become recognized as their own form of art. For example, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a prestigious organization that is solely dedicated to the appreciation and analysis of film as an art form.
The same ideal goes for you, reading this right now. Would you like to see a picture in this article? No, because you would prefer to see something with explanation, something with audio, and most importantly, something with action. Here, the video creator explains that video is a way for people to express their opinions and outlook on life, and without it, these people would be limited in the ways they could do so. Simply put, this man's expressions could not possibly be conveyed through a still photograph.
Emotionally, videos are more powerful than still photography.
These are all powerful arguments that suggest that photography is not as relevant as it was during the era before TV and film. Don't get me wrong; photography still has its relevance in today's society. I have an old photo of my recently passed grandfather. This photo has great meaning to me and it is something that I will always cherish. Nevertheless, the point I am trying to make is that I will cherish even more the home movies and quick video clips of my grandfather. The photo will forever let me see his face. The videos will let me see his grandfatherly mannerisms, hear his hilarious, yet outdated jokes, and truly remember and enjoy the experiences I had with him. This is something a photo could never do.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Introduction
My name is Cory and I am a junior in the Robert H. Smith School of Business here at UMD. My major is Accounting and I also have a minor in Rhetoric (Communications). I am from East Brunswick, NJ and I lived the first half of my life in Brooklyn, NY. In addition to my interest in accounting and general business, I have a strong interest in corporate and tax law, and hope to attend law school after graduation from UMD. Being from the NY/NJ area, I'm an avid NY sports fan, heavily supporting the Yankees, Knicks, Jets and Islanders. I believe media and new technology both have benefits to society as a whole that heavily outweigh any of its deficits. The biggest benefit in my opinion would be the ability to communicate on a greater number of platforms with the internet providing so many new options like Twitter, Blogger, Facebook, etc.
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