Good Essay On What Is An Effective Print Advertisement

Advertisement has been a part of our daily lives, and like most things around us, it has also gone through a lot of changes as time passed by. From the first print advertisement, in the form of commercial messages and political campaign discovered in the ruins of Pompeii and ancient Arabia, print advertisement now takes different forms that include those which are printed on newspapers, magazines, flyers, booklets, and those special offers which are mailed directly to homes. With the huge amount of print advertisement people see everyday, distinguishing those which are effective from those which are not may cause confusion to the way consumers choose products, services and campaigns to support. As such, a definition of an effective print advertisement is necessary to guide consumers in choosing products, services and campaigns that will meet their needs.
In order to define what an effective print advertisement is, analyzing one is not only inevitable but beneficial as well. An advertising campaign aimed at bringing public awareness about the troubling increase of illiteracy rate in France contains an image of a beautiful young woman with her face fully made-up. A gold tube of mascara is shown opposite the woman’s face with the word “mascara” also written in gold. Its caption, all written in white with the word “unfortunately” as the largest, is found on the topmost part of the picture, dominating all the other words. Right below it on the right side is the phrase written in slightly smaller letters “3 million people.” Directly below this phrase in much smaller letters is the phrase “in France will keep on thinking,” followed by the phrases, in smaller letters than the last phrase “that this is” and “an advertisement.” The whole picture is bathed in brown tones, with gold lights highlighting the woman’s eyes. At the bottom is an instruction about what people who wants to support the advocacy to fight illiteracy should do. Below that is the contact number of the organization where they can be reached.
Advertising companies have varying definition of what an effective advertisement is. Accroding to Agama Advertising, an effective print advertisement is that which is composed of four elements: a provocative image, a strong headline, a paragraph or two of tight, well-written copy, and a logo and/or contact information.
Scholars have similar elements used in arguments but are termed differently. As advertisement is persuasive by nature, comparing the elements of effective advertising enumerated by Agama Advertising to the tools of persuasion presented by Aristotle will help validate and strengthen the claim of Agama Advertising. According to Aristotle, there are modes of persuasion that can be used in argumentation, and these are ethos, pathos and logos. Ethos, or ethical appeal, is a tool used in convincing the audience through the character of the author. Among the elements presented by Agama, ethos is the equivalent of provocative image, and/or the logo and/or contact information. Pathos, on the other hand, refers to the appeal to the audience’s emotions, which can be provided by a strong headline and the content of the paragraph. Logos is the use of reasoning, and among the elements, this can be equated to the paragraph or two of tight, well-written copy.
Using the elements and the tools of persuasion, the advertising campaign in France designed to fight illiteracy is an example of an effective print advertisement. For one, it contains a provocative image or an ethos which is exhibited by the face of a beautiful woman. Being the most dominant figure in the picture, it does not only easily attract the audience’s attention but is also a credible endorser of cosmetics. The contact number at the bottom of the page, as well as the phrase“3 million people” add credibility to the organization and its claim. Its headline “unfortunately”and the texts that follow it constitute the pathos, as they clarify to the audience the claim being communicated by the images. Similarly, the paragraph explaining the claim of the organization also serves as the logos as it presents the advertisement’s argument, which says that illiterate people will think of the picture as a cosmetic advertisement because of the images and that they won’t be able to read the texts that go with the picture.
Other advertising companies may question the validity of this claim as each company has their own definition of an effective print advertisement. Some companies may argue that effective print advertisement is that which is able to sell products and services and persuade people to support campaigns. However, the tools of persuasion that supported the elements presented by Agama Advertising help in strengthening the argument that an effective print advertisement is one that contains a provocative image, a strong headline, a paragraph or two of tight, well-written copy, and a logo and/or contact information. Furthermore, an advertisement established proven to be effective will more likely get the support of the consumers and translate it to higher sales and support.
A definition of an effective print advertisement plays an important role in helping consumers choose products, services and organizational campaigns to support that will match their needs and preferences. Even though the elements identified do not include increased sales, awareness and support from consumers, being an effective print advertisement guarantee those consequences.
Work Cited