How do advertisers in the printed media seek to influence us?

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How do advertisers in the printed media seek to influence us?

When advertisers are making adverts they have to try and make their advert stand out and make people look at it or read it with the key aim of selling their product in mind. Advertisers have to look at three main parts to an advert, the layout and colours being used, which graphics to use and how to make them look good and the copy content.

 

Many techniques are used by advertisers trying to influence us to be interested in, and to hopefully buy, the product they are marketing.  In order to create a demand for their product advertisers not only use the straightforward selling points of showing the  features and benefits of their product, they also use imagery and suggestion  to link their product to an ideal that others want to be a part of.

Different methods are used to try and draw us in to an advert and to then make us want to buy the product.  I will look at these different methods and techniques used in a range of advertisements and show how advertisers seek to influence us in these.  All of the adverts that I am going to look at are of the same product, cars, but are not all aimed at the same target audience.  One of the reasons for choosing adverts on cars is that car companies are very rich so should spend a fair amount of money on making adverts and employing top people to make them.  Because of this I think that my selected adverts will be of high quality and are probably some of the best examples of how advertisers seek to influence us in different ways.  

MG

I think this is a very clever advert.  This advert could just show its own product and say how it is better than the BMW but it shows the BMW as well.  The BMW is placed to the left of the MG so naturally you will see that first.  Seeing a BMW on a MG advert causes confusion to anyone who knows anything about cars and draws you into the advert to see what is going on.  This is also partly because of the bold statement “so much for the ultimate driving machine” which is placed above the BMW and where your eye will be drawn to it.  The advert is quite daring challenging ‘the ultimate driving machine’ because that is the slogan which BMW uses in its adverts.  The two cars are also on a race-track and the MG is positioned ahead of the BMW.  The MG is also shown on a more exciting angle and is well lit making the car look better and making it stand out more. The BMW is made to look dull and boring in comparison.  

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This advert is very confident  about its product especially as it is taking on the BMW which is known as a good, expensive car and also, being German, it is renowned for its quality.  What also shows their confidence is that they have a website, mgbeatsbmw.co.uk.  In the copy at the bottom of the advert it tells you that it was an independent research company who carried the survey which would suggest that it was fair.  They are also being quite cocky in what they say especially “Presumably, this now makes a certain other car ‘the penultimate driving machine’.” ...

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