Advertising Appeals

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 Advertising Appeals

• Fear
• Humor
• Sex
• Music
• Rational
• Emotions
• Scarcity
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 What is an Advertising Appeal?

• Refers to the approach used to attract the

attention of consumers and/or to influence their
feelings toward the product, service, or cause.
• Something that moves people, speaks to their
wants or need, and excites their interest.
• The underlying content of the advertisement
“movie script”.

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 Deciding on an Advertising Appeal

• Review Creative Brief (specifically objectives

section)
• The nature of the product
• The preferences of the client (very important)
• Common sense and gut feeling

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 Fear Appeal
• Increases viewer interest in the ad and the
persuasiveness of the ad.
• Used with health and beauty products, idea
marketing, insurance.
• Most experts believe that a moderate level of
fear is most effective.

Eg:United India insurance

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Fear Appeal

Print Ad Example

This ad reminds
people of the dangers
of overexposure to
the sun.

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 Humor Appeal

• Used in 30% of all advertisements.

• Excellent at capturing attention.
• Score high in recall tests.
• Should be related directly to customer benefit.
Or else, the joke can overpower the message.

Television Commercial Examples:

Krack Jack

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 Sex Appeal

• Subliminal techniques
• Sexual suggestiveness
• Overt sexuality

Axe -

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 Are Sex Appeals Effective?

Research Results
• Sex and nudity do increase attention.
• Rated as being more interesting.
• Often leads to strong feelings about the
advertisement.
• Brand recall is lower.
• Often interferes with message comprehension

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 Using Sex Appeals Effectively
• Be aware of differences in the international
arena.
• Should be an integral part of the product.
• Should utilize a variety of models in terms of
age, size, ethnicity and gender.
• Should consider using “regular person” models.
• Be careful sex does not overpower
advertisement.

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 Music Appeals
• Has intrusive value.
• Gains attention and increases the retention of
visual information.
• Can increase persuasiveness of an
advertisement.
• Design Questions
– What role will music play?
– Will a familiar song be used or new song created?
– What emotional feeling should song solicit?
– How does the music fit with the message of the ad?

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 Rational Appeals
• Based on ELM and Hierarchy of Effects model.
• Print media is well-suited for rational appeals.
• Used by business-to-business advertisers.
• Well-suited for complex and high involvement
products.

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 Emotional Appeals

• Based on three ideas:

– Consumers ignore most ads.
– Rational ads go unnoticed.
– Emotional ads can capture attention.
• Viewed by creatives as key to developing brand
loyalty.
• Uses peripheral processing route.
• B-to-B advertisements using more emotional
appeals.
• Works well when tied with other appeals.
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This ad for a nonprofit animal rights and rescue group draws
on viewers’ sympathies toward animals.

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 Emotions Used in Advertisements
• Trust • Protecting loved ones
• Reliability • Romance
• Friendship • Passion
• Happiness • Family Bonds
• Security – with parents
– with siblings
• Glamour/luxury
– with children
• Anger – with extended family
members

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 Scarcity Appeals
• Based on limited supply or
• Based on limited time to purchase.
• Often tied with promotion tools such as
contests, sweepstakes and coupons.
• Encourages customers to take action.

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 Hierarchy of Effects Model

Cognitive

Awareness
Affective

Knowledge
Conative
Liking

Preference

Conviction

Purchase
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