Persuasion On Tv

Question 1

Techniques used to persuade

Answer 1

Pleasant associations - products being sold are often teamed with things the audience will automatically feel positive about, such as humour, success, sex and celebrities. Through classical conditioning the product may become associated with these things (peripheral route)

Making the message bizzare - many adverts are totally unconnected to the protect they’re advertising. This encourages deep processing of the persuasion message and access the central route of persuasion

Question 2

Hard and soft sell + STUDY

Answer 2

Hard sell - factual information
Soft sell - use subtle techniques to persuade

Okazaki found that hard sell techniques are more believable but may also irritate viewers and soft sell techniques generated more positive attitudes towards a product

Question 3

Does advertising always work?

Answer 3

It is estimated that TV advertising fails from 90-99% of the time

The most important point is that for an advertisement to be considered effective people must buy the product

Question 4

Product endorsement

Answer 4

Fowles estimated that in 1990, 20% of TV commercials used celebrity product endorsement. Suggests that we trust celebrities because they are impartial

Question 5

Criticisms of product endorsement

Answer 5

Hume concluded that celebrity endorsement did not increase the effectiveness of the message

Question 6

Children + pester power

Answer 6

Do children understand that adverts are used to convince us to buy?
Martin found a positive correlation between age and understanding intent

Question 7

Support for children and advertising AND EVALUATION

Answer 7

Pine and Nash compared children’s Christmas lists in the US and Sweden and found that there were fewer requests among Swedish children (in Sweden aiming advertising at under 12’s is banned)
HOWEVER
- cultural bias
- correlation

Question 8

Health campaigns

Answer 8

Alcohol - knowledge of units went up 300%
People who use sunscreen 7% increase
HIV - thinking individual is to blame 21% decrease

Question 9

Evaluation of effectiveness of TV

Answer 9

• audience has to take notice
• short term?
• other factors influence buyers not TV - packaging/prize when purchase