AS1:Task 3:Styles of TV Advertising

Humour 

The aim of a humour advertisement is to amuse the audience into remembering the company or product. This could be through using animation, a funny storyline or a drastic situation, for example the old spice deodorant adverts, in which we see Terry Crews in funny situations to prove the strength of the product. These adverts are exceptionally amusing due to their drastic content and memorable situations. 

Parody

In parody adverts, an important event, well known music video or a moment in history is usually mocked or recreated in an interesting and generally amusing way to grab the interest of the viewer. Usually these adverts go 'viral', which means they spread around social media quickly, therefore capturing a wider audience and increasing popularity for the product or company. An example is the advertisement for T Mobile which recreates the royal wedding using look a likes in a dance off.  

Shock

Shock advertisements display a complete contrast to the last two examples on this blog. Common concepts in shock advertisements are death, drastic realisations and the general idea of things going wrong. These adverts are usually shown after 9pm due to their explicit content and disturbing images, some even with viewer warnings at the start. An example of the is the MND awareness advert. By using the concept of a young woman slowly becoming more and more disabled, it would encourage awareness to the viewer and convince them to donate to help individuals like Sarah. Warning: this advert is graphic.  

Surrealism

Surrealism adverts are based around the idea of the unrealistic, the shocking and the out of this world concepts to advertise the product. These advertisements bend our reality to give the impression that the product is more than what it is, that it is greater than its contenders. The lynx chocolate body spray is an example of this, as the man in the advert turns into chocolate after using the product, making him 'irresistible' to women. This, of course, doesn't actually happen when you use it. 

Intertextuality 

In these advertisements, a popular character or famous face is incorporated into the advert as themselves using or representing the product. This is to show that the product is appreciated by a higher audience, therefor making it seem more superior and attracting a wider audience. Also, these adverts are memorable for example to Yoda VodaFone Advert. Yoda is used to present the strength of the provider and bring humour, which adds to memorability. 

Repetition 

The idea behind repetition advertisements is to assure the name of the product is stuck in the consumers mind so that when they are in a shop, the first thing they think about when they see something associating with the product is the products name. This can be achieved by showing the product multiple times on one advertisement, or repeating sections of the advert over the course of an ad break. Coca-Cola do this is a majority of their modern advertisements, which of course adds to it's already ridiculously high popularity. 

Sex

You know what they say, 'sex sells', and these advertisements take this concept very seriously. Of course, these adverts aren't allowed to use straight up sexual content, so instead they use the power of suggestion and at worst, subliminal messages. SpecSavers created a parody of a famous Lynx advert, which shows a flock of attractive women in bikinis running to a man who is dousing himself in body spray. By showing these women in skimpy bikinis, it would attract the attention of the intended audience, which is young people in need of glasses, as most people would watch the advert carefully for obvious reasons. 

AS1:Task 2: Forms of Advertisement

Advertisement unit 30 BTEC

Ipod Advert

The Ipod shuffle advert appears to be based around the idea of joy through music, as it shows people dancing and having fun whilst listening to an upbeat tune. My initial reaction to this was positive, as I too enjoy listening to music.
My favourite part of this advert is the idea of using silhouettes as it an original idea and also can be used to show more drastic dance moves, like the guy doing a flip. However, I’m not a fan of the song used in the advert, as I think it would’ve been better to use a more catchy and well-known song to make it memorable.

Realist Narrative

Realist Narrative adverts are created to show a realistic scene of the product being used and present the audience with a ‘realistic feel’.  An example of this is the vintage fairy liquid adverts, which show a mother and her daughter doing the washing up together in a fairly basic kitchen.

Anti-Realist Narrative

The aim of an anti-realist narrative advert is to present the audience with a situation that is clearly ‘made up’ or ‘unreal’.  This could be achieved by using animation, forced situations or set in a different time zone or universe.  An example of this is the Muller Rice advert, which shows a man sitting in his office chair typing when a talking bear appears at his side. The bear then begins to sing a song about the Muller rice pots, before giving the man one, which is clearly a made up situation. This advert is effective as it includes a memorable situation and a catchy slogan.

Animation Adverts

The term ‘animation’ can range from anything to 2D extras and CGI. Animation is widely used to show an impossible situation and to create an unbelievable scene to express the product or company.  The animation usually includes the product within in, for example the Kellogg’s Frosties advert, which features a tiger called Tony attempting to do a high dive. When he is pulled back by his tail and fails to complete the dive, he turns to his ‘emergency’ stash of cereal. Not only does this advertisement make the product seem great, but also it would appeal to mothers and children who eat the product, thus creating a better market.

Documentary Advert

Adverts that focus on more serious situations or a practical product usually use the style of documentary. Documentary is used to document reality, so for example a charity advert would show you the conditions that the sufferers are living in or a sad situation like an abandoned dog to convince viewers to donate. An example of this is the RSPCA advert, which shows a cat locked out of it’s home. The aim here is to pull on the audience’s heartstrings to make them donate to save a cat like the one shown.

Talking Heads 

In talking heads adverts, the person speaks directly to the camera. This is commonly used in charity adverts to make an impact and emphasise what the person is saying and to make them appear more genuine to encourage donations. Mostly, these adverts are widely used to raise awareness and encourage others. The advert below was created by The British Heart Foundation and uses animation and talking heads to create impact. 

Stand Alone

A stand alone advert is used to represent a product using a completely different concept each time. For example, companies use different concepts for every new Christmas advert in order to make it memorable and stand out from the rest. This to me is one of the strongest forms of advertisement as it shows individuality through fresh ideas and presents a concept in a fun way. 

Series

Some companies prefer to use a series of familiar characters and catchy slogans to advertise their product. This means that each new 'episode' presents the product in a unique way, but also can show progression in deals, such as a free teddy when you purchase the companies product.

The Compare the Market adverts are iconic as they have been active on television for over 2 years and are still progressing on, with new concepts each time.

After a few episodes with baby Oleg shown as the main character, the company then progressed on to new offers for a wider audience. 

AS1:Task 1: Introduction.

Hello! This blog is part of my first year of BTEC media and will discuss, explain and criticise adverts,  and help me to create an advertisement at the end of the second section. This is interesting as I will gain the skills needed to go into the advertising industry, which is my fall back if I decide not to become a director.