CREATIVITY IN ADVERTISING – ILLUSTRATION-LAYOUTS:

 1.       ILLUSTRATION

An illustration is a picture, photograph or drawing that is used in the advertisement to convey visually the idea or message of the advertisement.

A good illustration must support and compliment the copy theme having harmony colour combination, simple to convey the ad message, suggestive in design and construction, creating a lasting impression, matching with the lifestyle of the target consumer, matching with the headline. A layout is a sketched plan of a proposed advertisement.

 Meaning :

An illustration is a picture, photograph or drawing that is used in the advertisement to convey visually the idea or message of the advertisement. An advertisement effectiveness and emphasis can determined by the presence or absence of a picture. We can overtake the  inadequacy of language by using  an illustration.

Essentials of a good illustration :

1.       It must support the copy theme .

2.       It must be “faithful reproduction” of the advertised product.

3.       The use of colour combination  influences the emotional behaviour of individuals.

4.       It must be simple enough to convey the ad message clearly, easily and quickly.

5.       It must match with the headline of an ad and convey the same message to the reader.

6.       It must be original, unusual, and unique in design and presentation in an ad.

7.       Multiple illustrations must be used with a purpose in an orderly manner.

8.       Finally, illustrations must occupy and enjoy a dominant place in outdoor ads like posters, or, billboards.

FUNCTIONS OF ILLUSTRATION :

1. Quick Attention : Illustration helps consumers to quickly understand the message and motivates them to buy the product. Therefore, illustration must capture the attention of the readers.

2. Demonstrate the Product : Illustration shows the product and its features at a glance. Illustration indicates use of the product and how it works.

3. Creates Right Atmosphere : Illustration creates the right atmosphere by using rainfall, river and forest with the picture of the product.

4. Communicate Message : Illustration can carry the advertising message quickly

5. Support to Copy : Illustration carry message instantly and support the message given in the copy.

6. Symbolize the Quality : The visuals used in the advertisement indicates power, speed, value, strength, etc. e.g. MRF Tyres.

 7. Dramatise the Advertisement : Illustration dramatizes - story of the product. Illustration supports the headline of the advertisement by pointing out the details of the product.

8. Provides Technical Details : Many consumers buying consumer durable products are interested to know the technical details of the product. Advertisements of computers, washing machines, refrigerators and cell phones gives many technical details of the product through picture of the product.

 9. Lasting Impact : Illustration can make lasting impact on the mind of the consumers. Seeing is more convincing than being told. Pictures represent reality.

10. Fights Illiteracy : In a country like our where a large number of people are illiterate, picture of a soap immediately communicates to all what the advertisement is about.

TYPES OF ILLUSTRATIONS

There are various methods by which an illustration can be prepared. They are :

1.       Product Alone : In this type, major portion of illustration is covered by the product for e.g. advertisement that show Colgate tooth paste. The purpose is to give more importance to the product and to create image in the minds of prospects.

2.       Product in a Setting : In this type, the product is presented along with a background which is  favourable to it .

3.        Product in Use or Action : In this type, model may  be shown using the product  e.g. A car company shows a person driving a car of a particular brand.

4.       Result of a Products Use : In this type, the after effect of the product may be shown. For e.g. an advertisement of a furniture. It will show the space available, various as shelves etc.

5.       Dramatisation of a Headline : In this type, the illustration supports the head line i.e. whatever is given in the headlines is shown in action in the illustrations are combined, the effect is that the interest and attention of the reader is attracted.

6.        Dramatisation of a Situation : In this type, the illustration presents a situation in which a customer will be if he uses the product or if he does not use a product.

7.       Magnifying Details : In this type, the important features or minute features are explained in details. It is used to embassies specific advantages.

8.       Symbolic Illustrations : This illustration shows a reorganised symbol along with an idea, and the advertiser using a symbol may hope to identify this product with what the symbol stands for in the mind of the reader.

 

2. LAYOUT Meaning :

A layout is a sketched plan of a proposed advertisement. It includes the headline, rough illustration and copy which serves as plan for the advertisement.

 Layout is a working sketched plan showing the size, positions and colour weight values of the different elements that make up the complete advertisement.

 Layout, thus refers to the total exposure of an advertisement. Layout is important in an advertising plan. It enables the advertiser to visualize how the complete advertisement will look when published. It also gives the printer the location of each unit in the advertisement.

Layout is usually prepared to seek approval of the client and to see approval of the client and to see the overall impact.

 

FEATURES OF A GOOD LAYOUT :

Main features of good layout are: Balance, Movement, Gaze motion, Structural motion, Proportion, Wide space, Unity, Clarity, Simplicity, Emphasis etc.

Following are the main features of good layout:

1. Balance : Balance in layout means achieving a proper distribution of weight through the arrangement of the elements. Balance should be maintained in size, colour shape and density of elements. There are two kinds of balance; formal and informal. Formal balancing means placing of identical or similar items on both the sides of optical centre. Informal balancing means spreading of elements at different places in the advertisement or have large illustration which cover a major portion from the optical centre.

 2. Movement : There should be mobility in the advertisement. It provides a visual type of flow and sequence. It is more used in case of items which are mobile in nature e.g. An advertisement of an automobile should have illustration which shows mobility in it. Movement guides the render‟s eye from one element to another and makes sure that he does not miss anything. Movement should start from the left hand top corner of the advertisement to the right hand bottom corner.

3. Gaze Motion : It is the direction of movements of the reader‟s eye. The element of advertisement should be placed in such a manner that there is an easy flow in the movement of eyes of the reader. An illustration showing a person walking in a particular direction on will cause the render to look in that direction.

4. Structural Motion : A good layout should. Utilize lines, arrows, signs which will indicate or point out to the important elements of the advertisement.

5. Proportion : It involves appropriate division of the space between the various elements like the headline, illustration, subheads, copy etc. In a headline oriented advertisement, headline should be given major space and in an illustration oriented advertisement, illustration will dominate the space.

6. Wide Space : Wide space is the area not occupied by copy. Effective use of wide space helps to establish a sense of proportion. Wide space helps in reducing a crowdy appearance and brings prestige and luxury in an advertisement.

7. Unity : There should be unity between the elements i.e. there should be proper correlation between the headline and copy or illustration and copy. Unity is also achieved when the elements appears as component part or a single unit.

 8. Clarity : It implies that the various elements should be arranged in such a manner that the message is understood clearly. The layout should not be too complicated and tricky but must be easy to read and understand. The type, size, design should be selected for easy reading.

 9. Simplicity : It implies that too many elements in an advertisement should be avoided. Those elements. Which can be dropped without destroying the message should be dropped. The simplier the Layout, the clearer the message.

10. Emphasis : It implies that the important elements should be given much emphasis. Emphasis must be brought about by placing the most important feature at or near the optical centre. There should be emphasis on the various selling points and the purpose of advertising depending upon the requirements. Layout should emphasis on education, information and persuasion.

 

TYPES OF  LAYOUTS:

1. Standard Layout : It consists of a dominant illustration, headline, body copy and signature, generally in that order. It is highly popular in the field of advertising.

 2. Editorial Layout : The advertisement resembles editorial matter or press reports in a publication. Main emphasis is on body copy. Words dominate the advertisement and illustration may be missing or given less importance.

3. Poster Layout : Total stress is on the visual. Copy is very short and illustration provides details e.g., advertisements of soft drinks and chocolates.

 4. Cartoon Layout : Cartoon type illustrations and matching copy is used to attract attention e.g., advertisement of Amul butter and Tortoise coil.

5. Comic-Strip Layout : The layout follows the pattern of the comic strip by telling a story with the use of sequence of drawings.

6. Picture Caption Layout : Pictures and captions are used to explain different aspects of the product or services e.g., advertisement of automobile .

7. Picture-Cluster Layout : The layout performs the same function as in the case of picture-caption layout. Captions are not used. Cluster of several vertical and horizontal rectangles are used.

PROCESS OF LAYOUT :

The final layout is the outcome of several stages. The various stages are as follows:

1. Thumbnail Sketch or Thought Sketch: The first stage is the thought sketch or thumbnail sketch. These sketches provide a quick and convenient way to get different design ideas. At first the headline and illustration are roughly prepared. The location of logo and body copy is indicated. The artist may prepare several thumbnail sketches before arriving at one that holds promise for further development.

2. Roughs Layout : The second stage is the rough layout, which is a refinement of the Thumbnail/ thought sketch. Some artists prefer the start with a rough layout, by passing the thumbnail sketch stage. One or more rough layouts may be prepared. In this case headlines, slogan and illustrations are roughly drawn.

3. Finished Layout : When a final rough layout is selected, then it is transformed into a finished layout. This layout is much more detailed and carefully drawn than the rough layout. The illustration is more or less finalised. Headlines are carefully executed, and body copy is neatly ruled in the lines and blocks of copy of varying lengths to indicate intention and paragraphs. This layout is normally shown to the client for approval.

 4. Comprehensive Layout : Sometimes, the artist may prepare a comprehensive layout. It is more complete in respect of art work, headline and slogan. Some times such layout look more beautiful than the final ad. Comprehensive layouts may be prepared to give the client a clear idea about the final ad.

5. Working or Mechanical Layout : Really speaking these are not actually layouts. These are blueprints for production. The working layouts indicate the exact placement of all the elements in the ad specifies typeface and size and includes relevant instruction for the typographer and engraver. The final ad is prepared from the working layout.

Read More

ADVERTISING COMMUNICATION PROCESS

 

ADVERTISING COMMUNICATION PROCESS

 Advertising as communication has often been studied from information processing view i.e. how audiences process information encoded in an advertising message. There are Various information processing models, that  have described the communication between the advertisers and audiences through mass media.

1.     St Elmo’s AIDA model.1. American advertising and sales pioneer Elias St. Elmo Lewis coined the phrase AIDA in1899. 

Attention – Interest – Desire – Action The model explains how the audience or recipient of advertising processes information and responds to the advertising product in his/ her decision making process.

American advertising and sales pioneer Elias St. Elmo Lewis created

THE PHRASE AIDA IN1899.

1.     The AIDA Model Lewis talked about “catching the eye of the reader to inform him.”

2.     The model explains how the audience or recipient of advertising processes information

3.     and responds to the advertising product in his/her decision making process.

4.     The advertisement is created with the intention to gain attention of the audience. After catching the eye, the advertisement through mascots(symbols), celebrities, stories aims to attract the interest of the audiences so that benefits, attributes of the product can be conveyed to build desire for the product in the advertised mind which will prompt an action.

 

 ADVERTISING COMMUNICATION PROCESS:

a.      Advertising suffices to inform, persuade and remind people about a good or a service. Through advertising, a sponsor (a manufacturer/producer) aims to communicate with large number of audiences,

b.     mass media serves as the channels of communication whereas for a niche group or set of audiences,

c.      interactive media acts as the channel.

 

Therefore, advertising is both mass communication and interactive communication depending upon the nature and extent of audience reach. Advertisers use channels of mass communication to diffuse deliberately constructed messages in order to persuade the audiences and gain AIDA from them.

 

ADVERTISING AS PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATION:

 

As opposed to all communication is persuasive, G.R. Miller recognized specific communicative acts that lead to a pre determined element in persuasion.

 

Advertising falls under the definition of persuasive communication as the ad messages intend to shape, reinforce or change the responses of others (Stiff & Mongeau, 2016).

 

Advertising as persuasive communication underlines the deliberate intention behind creation of message.

 

ADVERTISING AS SOCIAL COMMUNICATION:

Advertising is social communication as it recognises the interplay between society, audiences and ad messages.

 Advertising mirrors a society when it employs symbols, words and visuals to portray prevailing societal values and norms. The audiences are not an aggregate of individual consumers without any social context but are in fact immersed in their social setting

Read More

MEDIA PLANNING

Media planning is very essential for success of an advertisement.  Media planning is the series of decisions involved in delivering the promotional message to the prospective consumers. It is the process of directing the advertising message to the target audience by using the appropriate channel at the proper time and place. Media plan specifies media strategies.

Generally, the goal of the media plan is to find that combination of media that allows the marketer to communicate the message in the most effective manner to the largest number of potential customers at the lowest cost.

A focused advertisements come up with the Account planners, creative writers and researchers. Planning requires selecting the most cost-effective mix of media combination so that the marketing campaign objectives can be achieved.

A Media Plan explains the justification for using different types of media to be used. It defines the target audience and the priorities of weighing them, the specific reach, frequency and continuity goals. Therefore, a media plan is required for executing an advertising campaign.

Media planning assists in controlling wasteful advertising. It ensures die optimum-utilisation of resources spent on advertising. In media plan, media objectives are decided keeping in view the advertising objectives of the organisation. Media plan specifies media strategies. Media strategy means plans of action designed to attain media objectives.

The planning should concentrate on:

i. Whom to reach,

ii. When and where to reach,

iii. The total target group,

iv. The frequency of exposure,

v. The affordable cost involvement.

 

The basic goal of media planning is to find out that combination of media which enables the advertiser to communicate the ad-message in the most effective manner at lowest cost.

Media planning assists in controlling wasteful advertising. It ensures die optimum-utilisation of resources spent on advertising. In media plan, media objectives are decided keeping in view the advertising objectives of the organisation. Media plan specifies media strategies. Media strategy means plans of action designed to attain media objectives.

 FUNCTIONS OF MEDIA PLANNING

·        to enable the planners in determining the target audience.

·        to analyse and make selection of the right channels.

·        To make reach the advertising messages to the right people at the right time.

·        Media Planning ensures that communication messages are in sync with overall objectives

·        to make the client understand Media Planning how marketing objectives can be achieved through these investments.

·        It indicates the period or the season in which the advertiser needs to concentrate.

      IMPORTANCE OF A MEDIA PLAN

Media planning is a complex function, and it becomes all the more complicated because of the following reasons:

● Increasing Media Options: Today, we have a range of media products to choose from. For example, we have different digital platforms and TV is also getting more fragmented into network.

● Increasing Fragmentation of the Audience: The consumers have become very selective and they read, watch, and listen to programmes according to their own choice.

● Increasing Cost: Advertising is a costly affair so we need media planning to invest money at the right place.

 ● Increasing Competition: It has been observed that independent media buying services have grown in the past few years.

● Increasing Complexity in the Media Buying Process: Media companies offer value added packages and different schemes to choose from as these packages are designed towards integrating marketing communication efforts.

Read More

THE TARGET AUDIENCE IDENTIFICATION METHODS.

• Geographic Segmentation
•  Demographic Segmentation
• Geo -Demographic Segmentation
• Behavioral Segmentation
•  Psychographic Segmentation

  TYPES OF AUDIENCE SEGMENTATION

 A market segmentation strategy is aimed at dividing a mass heterogeneous market into different segments of buyers. Each segment has individuals who have similar interests. The interests of each segment may vary with regard to products.

Traditionally there were two approaches in market segmentation:

Product oriented and People oriented.

a)     Product oriented approach measures the product related aspects by segmenting the consumers to understand the market and
b)    People Oriented Approach measures the people and relates it to the product (Plummer,1974).

a.      For example, a cosmetic company can increase their customer base, by targeting audience of different age groups with products designed to meet their specific needs.

 GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION:

 Location plays a vital role in defining the needs of individual geographic areas. In geographic segmentation, the market is divided on the basis of geographic location of the consumers i.e. nations, states, regions, counties, cities or neighborhoods. It helps in localising the products, advertising and sales effort to geographic differences in needs and wants. Marketers also study the population density or regional climate as factors of geographic segmentation.

 

DEMOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION

Demographic segmentation means to segregate a market on the basis of population (socio-economic) based variables such as age, education, income, family size, race, gender, occupation, nationality etc..

 Demographic segmentation is one of the simplest and most commonly used forms of classifying audiences because the products and services we buy, how we use those products, and how much we are willing to spend on them are all measurable data and are can be gathered through Subsets of demographic segmentation are:

● Age: Classifying audiences on the basis of age is most profound. It is usually done by using age cohorts.

GEO-DEMOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION

 Geo-demographic segmentation means people from one area/location/ region will reflect similarities or likeness in age /income/education/gender/ family life cycles.

In Tamilnadu, the Tirunelveli community is targeted by the dine out eateries and restaurants because of their desire for eating out. By using the ZIP code and the postal address to classify all the households into 66 segments. There are four segments in this application

 ● Movers and Shakers: Who are adult primes and seniors in the age group of 35-64. They are around 10% of the total population. They are at least graduates and are professionals aspiring or have already set up their own business. Their median income is high. They are dual income executives or white-collar professionals with high salary.

 Understanding the Target Audience salaries. They reside in elite suburbs and are at the parenthood and post-parenthood stage in the family life cycle. They are often nuclear families, who travel, are technology lovers, heavy users of internet and own luxury products.

● generation S: They are generation S, or senior citizens in the age cohort (64 +). They are graduates, older but active. They are affluent. They have recently moved on from the post parenthood to the dissolution phase when the children have moved to their respective places of work. They are energetic and want to spend on travel and lifestyle.

 ● Boomtown singles: They are under 35 working class usually employed in service sector. They are not married and pursue upwardly mobile lifestyles. They are referred to as young achievers who consume media in print, TV and internet platforms.

● below poverty line: These are small job workers with low incomes. They are young and live in economy colonies. They are generally clustered in specific areas of the region. They are modestly educated and have no income for high end entertainment.

BEHAVIORAL SEGMENTATION

Behavioral segmentation organises the consumer market on purchase related factors. It involves dividing the market into  buying behavior, consumption and usage patterns. For instance younger buyers may tend to purchase body wash, while older consumer groups may lean towards soap bars. Segmenting markets based off purchase behaviors enables marketers to develop a more targeted approach.

a) Purchase Occasion: It entails determining the segments based on the usage situation. Buying prospects are classified upon why they buy or make purchase depending upon their likelihood of use. On this basis, they can be classified as regular buyers and special occasion buyers. Purchase occasion takes into account the seasonal concentration / density of use of a good or a service, frequency of use of a product and emergence of a new trend or fad. This segmentation allows the manufacturer/ wholesaler to develop seasonal consumer incentives aimed at a right target.

 b) Benefits Sought: It is also referred to as benefit segmentation by the marketers. It involves categorizing consumers on the basis of the advantage they seek from the product. Benefits include rational and Overview of Advertising emotions benefits like quality, durability, economy, prestige, fitness, status, sexual pleasure, sensory pleasure etc.

 five types of benefits:

 

1. Functional benefits

2. Value for Money

3. Social benefits

4. Positive emotional benefits

 5. Negative emotional benefits

 PSYCHOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION 

Conducting psychographic market segmentation is a critical task for business development and thus, needs special attention. Every individual has varied demands and opinions. Brands must focus not only on dividing the market based on psychographics but also to connect with their target market on the basis of psychographics.

There are five psychographic segmentation variables on the basis of which homogeneous segments can be prepared for proper research –  

1.     Personality,

2.     Lifestyle,

3.     Social Status,

4.     AIO (Activities, Interests, Opinions), and 

Read More

UNDERSTANDING THE TARGET AUDIENCE.

 

Defining Audiences as “a targeTarget audience refers to the specific group of consumers most likely to want our product or service, and therefore, the group of people who should see our ad campaigns.

Target audience may be dictated by age, gender, income, location, interests or a myriad of other factors. Target audiences center around a specific group or  segment of people

A target audience is a group of consumers within a predefined target market that has been identified as the best recipients for a particular marketing message.

Examples of a Target Audience

 When thinking about who might be in our audience, we must consider who are the people who identify with our brand.

They may be men, women, teenagers, or children.  For example, if need  running shoes advertisement better to publish through sports magazines. 

 

 

One way to find out is to monitor who follows, likes, shares, and comments on our posts on social sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram.

If someone is willing to engage with our product, then chances are they are our target.

A brand might also leverage business segmentation, taking into consideration things like industry, company size, or annual revenue.

Through market segmentation, brands get more specific about their target market. They can focus on a small group of customers who will be most likely to benefit from and enjoy their products.

For example, a brand that sells day planners may decide to focus on a smaller, specific target market. Instead of marketing to the masses, they may focus solely on selling planners to female business owners. Or they could choose to exclusively market to high school teachers. Both examples are smaller, more specific segments of the day planner’s potential market.

 

WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF TARGET AUDIENCES?

AUDIENCE AS A PRODUCT AND AUDIENCE AS A CONSUMER.

A target audience is the group or segment within that target market that is being served advertisements. This makes the target audience a more specific subset of a target market.

A target audience is the person or group of people a piece of writing is intended to reach. In other words, it is important for a writer to know who will be reading his or her writing. This audience is the person or group of people the writer is aiming for or trying to reach. When a writer knows the target audience, he or she will shape both the purpose and tone of the writing to match the audience's needs and, sometimes, expectations.

 In a business organization when a manufacturer produces a good or a service (product) for consumers who are likely to buy it, the audience means consumer who is a potential buyer. So, in this case audience is the consumer.

 Now consider the case of a TV channel, here the TV channel produces the audiences by using its programmes for the advertisers. The advertisers buy the audiences of the TV channel and the channel gets the revenue. The TV channel must satisfy its consumers i.e. the advertisers in this case.

 DEMOGRAPHICs: Demographics such as a film intended to appeal to a particular age group.

LOCATIONS: Locations such as information about a festival aimed at residents of a Tamilnadu

PURCHASE INTENTION: Define groups of people who are looking for a specific product, such as a new entertainment system or car.

NEEDS: Information that targets a set of needs such as a video channel that helps people with common do-it-yourself home improvement projects.

ATITUDES & OPINION: Target audiences based on how people feel about a particular topic. For example, a charity may seek communication channels that reach people who are concerned about an environmental problem.

PERSONALITY: Personality traits such as a movie for people with a certain sense of humor.

LIFESTYLE: A lifestyle is how people spend their time. For example, an audio book collection that targets people who have a long commute and would like to use the time to improve knowledge and skills.

FANS: Communications aimed at fans of a media or entertainment series.

Interest

SEPARATE GROUPS OUT BASED ON THEIR VARIOUS INTERESTS, including hobbies and entertainment preferences. This can help you make data-driven, highly personalized messaging that allows you to connect with your audience in meaningful ways that can help drive brand loyalty.

SUBCULTURES: Subcultures refer to groups of people who share a common experience, such as music genres or entertainment fandoms. By understanding some of your target audience’s motivations, you can better understand who you’re trying to connect with.

Subcultures are spontaneously formed groups that identify with a shared experience such as a music scene. In many cases, media and entertainment is targeted to a subculture.

SUPER CULTURES: Super cultures are large groups that share elements of culture that span multiple nations such as classical music fans or sailing enthusiasts.

 THE SUBSCRIBERS ARE THE AUDIENCE: Now consider an OTT platform (Netflix, Amazon prime etc.). It produces or distributes programming for the subscribers. The subscribers are the audience who watch these programmes and the OTT generates revenue. Schramm in his model of mass communication refers to mass audience as a composite of many receivers involved in the process of decoding, interpreting and encoding.

 

ROLE OF TARGET AUDIENCE

The Decision Maker: This is the person who ultimately makes the purchase decision. 

The Supporter: The supporter may will have a  heavy influence on whether or not an item gets bought. For example, a child may not directly make a purchase, but if they want something for Deepawali, they influence that decision. This is why it is important to develop messaging that speaks to consumers in both of these roles.

Read More