To get themselves noticed, companies often use shocking images that have nothing to do with their product. A good example of this is the ‘United Colours of Benetton’ adverting scheme which showed some very graphic images, such as new born babies with blood on them.
These adverts were brought to attention to the ASA and they were removed from circulation. The reason for this as some members of the public found them to graphic for everyday ads.
There are many different ways a product can be noticed, they range from Bill Boards to Pop-Up adverts on a website. All different companies will use the web to advertise, and better known brands such as Coca-Cola will advertise on popular television stations that will be viewed thousands of times.
There is one main body that controls advertising; this is called the ASA (Advertising Standards Agency). The ASA is the independent, self-regulatory body for non-broadcast advertisements, sales promotions and direct marketing in the UK. They administer the British code of Advertising, sales promotions and direct marketing to ensure that advertisements are legal, decent, honest and truthful. As example of the ASA enforcing these laws is with ‘24/7 Locksmiths’. They advertised with the headline
“Call and we are there…” and stated
“Free call out 24 hours, 7 days a-week, 365 days a year.”
However the complainer had paid a £50 deposit and was then told by them that they could not replace his locks and his deposit was non-refundable. Due to this the ASA removed the Ad.
All adverts have their own way of attracting the viewers attention, however they usually appeal to out basic instincts or needs. To do this adverting agencies reflect them in the advert. There are other techniques that are often used, such as using well known people in their adverts to get people to watch them. It is also good to emphasise the selling points, such as it is ‘great value for money’. This method is used quite often, however on the other hand more expensive brands use elegance or more classy adverts to sell their product. They do this by using a lot of rich colours such as reds and gold.
Other ways a filmed advert can get noticed is by having a well known jingle, or a slogan such as the Budweiser advert, which became well known with the ‘Wasssssup’ marketing scheme.
Advertising is a very big business, from small advertising agencies to Multi million pound fees that are charged by some adverting agencies across the world. The reason for the huge amounts of money is the amount of inspiration and imagination it takes to get a product globally known, including all the different factors that need to be thought about.
