Article Read. You Can Find All Kind of Articles

Home | Search Article

Search

-- All Categories --Auto and TrucksEducationFamilyFood and DrinkGadgets and GizmosHealthHobbiesHome ImprovementKids and TeensLegal MattersParentingPets and AnimalsRecreation and SportsSite PromotionTravel and LeisureWeb DevelopmentWomenWriting
Advanced Search

• Auto and Trucks
• Education
• Family
• Food and Drink
• Gadgets and Gizmos
• Health
• Hobbies
• Home Improvement
• Kids and Teens
• Legal Matters
• Parenting
• Pets and Animals
• Recreation and Sports
• Site Promotion
• Travel and Leisure
• Web Development
• Women
• Writing

---

I may be missing something, here, but it seems to me that, inadvertising terms, the loonies have taken over the asylum. Whatis getting me all lathered up is the preponderance of TVcommercials that go out of their way, not only to confuse theirtarget audience, but also to project an alarming image of theirproduct. Ill elaborate. The first example is the sad, but fortunatelyshort story of a current tv spot for a company called Debenhams.Now, Debenhams is a large UK department store which has branchesin many major cities throughout the country. As such, it has anexcellent reputation and an enviable turnover.Well, this outfit is running a commercial which has two distinctscenes. The first shows a man sitting in a room at a table, andbeside him is a back-projection of a pond. As he sweeps an objectoff the table and into the pond, we see ripples in the water. Thesecond scene is of a young girl in a room and the back projectionis of some trees, each carrying a profusion of autumn leaves. Asthe girl moves around the room, the leaves begin to fall.So far so good; and as an exercise in special effects this spotis exemplary, because the last thing youd expect to see in yourliving room is a pond or a stand of trees.Anyway, we are now treated to a voice-over which says, to theeffect, that if you drop into Debenhams youll find lots more ofthe same. My question is: the same what? Throughout thiscommercial, we are not actually told what it is we are beingoffered.I assume it is wallpaper, but I could be wrong - it might bepersonal back projection.The second example concerns a new computer from Apple-Mac. Thespot opens with an explosion and a man being thrown against atree. The camera then tracks towards a house, in the side ofwhich is a gaping hole. The camera continues through into thehouse, showing us debris falling all around and large holes inthe walls of successive rooms. We finally track towards acomputer, and the voice-over says something like: Introducing thefastest, most powerful computer in the Mac stable.The message I interpret from this is that the new Apple-Mac is sopowerful it explodes. Not only that, it will probably reduce yourhome to rubble.Oh, yeah, I must rush out and buy one of those.Am I alone in thinking that these two commercials, despite theirhuge production values, are less than clever? On the one hand,the advertiser neglects to tell us what it is that hes trying tosell. On the other, we have a product that is reminiscent ofMission Impossible and self-destructs when you switch it on.Given all of this, Id like to pose a question. When therespective ad agencies presented the storyboards for thesecommercials to their clients, did nobody on the client side raisea query or two? Like: since were spending all this money,shouldnt we at least say what were offering? Or: is it really asensible idea to associate our computers with explosions?Of course, it could be that I am missing some wonderful newmarketing strategy that will shortly be revealed and will make melook extremely foolish. Though I doubt it. And I doubt it becauseI saw a beer commercial the other day (Stella Artois, I think),in which a man on a balcony actually spat on the people below.You have to be a very brave advertiser -or a very stupid one -toally your product to this kind of imagery. And this crudity seemsto be more and more prevalent.I leave you to ponder all of this. Meanwhile, youll do no betterthan visit www.wordpower3.com. There, youll find an e-book thatcould make your working life a whole lot easier. It containsclose to 200 ready-made headlines, taglines, copy openers andclinchers, plus a comprehensive theme-finder that will give youjust about every promotional word and phrase youll ever need.Its called Word Power III. Buy it and every word you write, willSell.

About the Author

Patrick Quinn is a copywriter, with 40 years experience of theadvertising business in London, Dublin, Edinburgh and Miami.Over the years, he has helped win for his clients just aboutevery advertising award worth winningHis published books, include:The Secrets of Successful Copywriting.The Secrets of Successful Low Budget Advertising.The Secrets of Successful Exhibitions.Word Power.