In: Root » » Advertising and Media » Advertising and product differentiation
TALKING ABOUT A DIFFERENCEA further vital element in an advertising concept is its ability to separate the product out from the competition. Most products or services do face or encounter competition of one kind or another. Markets are increasingly competitive and few products are safe. In addition, many markets are crowded or cluttered and customers may have difficulty in identifying or understanding all the competitors. Within a crowded and competitive market, the customer again will ask an unspoken question: why should I consider your product? What do you have to offer in particular? What have you got that the others have not got?Advertisers will fail to answer that at their peril. Advertising in consequence increasingly becomes an instrument of product differentiation, of separating the product out, of giving it a different value, of finding for it a product plus. Concepts sell benefits. And they also sell differences. Some differences may again be physical. Products can be longer, heavier, quicker, cheaper, better serviced, better engineered, more reliable. But, equally, differences may be emotional. Products can confer status, or provide satisfaction, or social acceptability, or be an expression of motherhood, or of self-confidence. Differences underlie many advertising campaigns, but they must be: - relevant to the customer and not just artificial - realistic, and borne out by experience: if you overpromise a difference and fail to deliver, you may be in terrible trouble - understandable, and not so complicated to express that the audience stops paying attention after five seconds - helpful: the difference must be one that does something for the customer; Volvo seeming to be built stronger clearly does – it is both helpful and true to the image of Volvo as it is. In essence, therefore, an advertising concept: - must make a promise or a proposition - must offer a benefit - should add a value to the product - should show a product difference or a product plus. And it should all be in the language and the mode of behaviour of the market, not the advertiser. Additionally, the concept should enhance the value of the brand. It should speak for what the brand means or represents. Often it works within the framework of an already established set of brand values, which it must strengthen and extend. THE FINISHED ADVERTISEMENTThe concept now moves on to a finished advertisement, into words and pictures. Making both these requires creative skill and professional disciplines. A finished advertisement has a number of basic elements: - a headline: the main announcement - possibly a subhead or series of subheads, heading separate sections - body-copy, or the main text - a base line, commonly used to carry a slogan - a logotype, or company or product name - illustration or illustrations: often a main illustration with secondary illustrations in support - product or pack shot, showing the product appearance and then perhaps - a coupon, to be filled in, for fuller information - a telephone number, to be used to call for information, or a Web site number - an address: how to contact the company - a price: many advertisements, however, avoid this, and do not quote price. Often, it is not needed. Poster design is usually much simpler, with a short headline, a bold illustration and little else. TV commercials contain movement and sound. In particular they have: - live action or animation, for the visual sequences - dialogue, either spoken to camera or a voice-over - demonstration, showing the product in action - music and/or sound effects, sometimes a jingle - an end title: a final summation in words - an end shot: often a product shot - a follow-up contact, either a Web address or telephone number. A strong concept has to be carried through in strong and competent execution. The golden rules for this are a matter of commonsense and practicality. |
legal disclaimer
Our website is not responsible for the information contained by this article. Web-articles is a free articles resource.
Suggestion: If you need fresh, daily updated content for your website, feel free to use our service. Click here for more information.
related articles
THE CENTRAL CONCEPT Advertisements have to work fast, they have to work quickly and they have to work simply. There may be two situations in which an advertising campaign is placed, in relation to the audience. Firstly, there is the situation where the audience is looking for this kind of message, wants to find it, will think it helpful and may act upon it. They may well search it out. This is the situation for many kinds of advertising. When interest rates change, people may want to see what rates ban...
Advertisers may develop communications messages in a variety of ways. But there are four basic ways usually adopted. In-house The advertiser may quite simply do it all himself. Where a message is brief or resources are limited, the advertiser may just quickly think of the words, produce an illustration, and get these set up by the newspaper providing the media space. This saves bother, argument and time. A local retailer may decide on a sales advertisement, draft out the wording, find a photogra...
3. Advertising message sets out to inform
Developing the advertising Message IT IS THE MESSAGE THAT COUNTS Advertising sets out to inform and persuade. The content of advertising communications is at the core of what advertising does. This aspect is often called ‘creative’, as in the creative department of an advertising agency, and the message or advertisement content is called ‘the creative work’. Some advertisements are more creative than others, and the phrase may seem somewhat pretentious. But it is...
4. Online advertising opportunities and limitations
ONLINE ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES AND LIMITATIONS We have tried to distinguish between two things: - electronic media as a means of communication and of knowledge management - and as an outlet for advertising as such, a much more limited role. There is a range of values which online advertising presents: - a selective and targeted audience which will look for the item that interests them - little waste, as with many other media - generally the right kin...
5. Electronic activity and online advertising
TYPES OF ELECTRONIC ACTIVITY Assuming the use of the Web, what are its main usages? What are the main categories of activity on the Web? And for electronic media generally? Organisations can utilise electronic systems under a number of key activities: 1. E-markets. This is the use of the Web as a marketplace. Here buyers and sellers can come together under the auspices of a marketplace provider, as in a physical marketplace, and do business. Take warehouse space as an exampl...
6. The limitation of electronic communication
THE RANGE OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION The Web is not, of course, the only mode of electronic communication or of advertising. These electronic modes are extensive. Email. This is the electronic transfer of messages between individuals, either communication of one-to-one, or of one-to-many. Messages may be sent out simultaneously to many receivers. E-mails may be transmitted via computer or by phone including via WAP technology. There are three systems for sending e-mail: 1. On an i...
7. Electronic media and online advertising
Online Advertising One of the most significant developments of the recent past has been the growth and importance of IT – Information Technology – and the consequent growth of electronic means of communication. There has been a mass penetration of the means of sending and receiving messages electronically and a proliferation of methods: - computers, especially personal computers - laptop computers - hand held computers - fixed-line telephones - mobile/cell phon...
8. Advertising quality control stages
QUALITY CONTROL Many advertisers are disappointed with their results. The finished effect may be less than expected. Production standards will make or mar an advertising campaign. Quality guidelines are as vital as cost guidelines, if not more so. The advertiser/client must exercise control throughout. Concept stage The production implications need to be examined and fully agreed at the time when the advertising concept is formulated. This will avoid misunderstanding later. High-quality...
9. Cost control for promotion productivity
COST CONTROL Advertisement production can be the cause of much anxiety, and large amounts of money may be at risk. Cost-control guidelines therefore need to be firm and unmistakable. We will be examining methods of cost control in greater detail in the next article but at this point certain basic principles need to be emphasised. They are a matter of commonsense and sound practice. The content of the advertisement Usually, the simpler the content the less the cost. For TV in particular, if budg...
10. How to create a poster for advertising
POSTER PRODUCTION Posters contractors only supply space on their hoardings. So here again the agency or advertiser must supply final printed posters, to size. This goes through two processes: 1. production of the original artwork 2. poster printing. There are various methods of simulating a colour proof. From a small-scale printed version, to projection on to a screen, to use of a light-box. But there is no substitute for seeing a full-scale version, pasted up in situ on to a poster site...