Lesson 13 ā€” Activity 2: Advertising Techniques



We know that advertising is a billion dollar business, but what do advertisers spend their money on? Compare these two sets of statements about a dirt bike:

  • The bike is used by a rider who won an important race.
  • The bike is available in three colour combinations.
  • The bike costs $6000.

OR

  • The bike is better than bikes made by another company.
  • The bike is more exciting to ride than any other bike.
  • The bike handles better than any other bike.


The difference between the two sets of statements is fairly clear: the first set of statements combine facts while the second set of statements contain opinions. That is, we can find out whether the bike was ridden to win a championship race, we can find out what colour combinations the bike comes in, and we can check the price of the bike. However, we cannot know for sure that the bike is the best or the most exciting, that would depend on what we like and don't like about dirt bikes.



ā€œCoke Zero Adā€, byPeepo Tolentino, is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Some advertisements are based entirely on facts, but in most cases, ads are created to influence our opinions or feelings. The purpose of an ad is to persuade us to buy a certain product, so advertisers have to come up with ways to make people think they need to buy that product. That can sometimes be done by appealing to what we think about things ā€” our values, beliefs, and opinions ā€” rather than by what we know about things.