Advertising language - Research Paper Example

Language of Advertising: Advertising is a term used to refer to the non-personal communication that is always paid for. This non-personal communication is persuasive in nature, and it usually talks about services, products or ideas that the sponsors of the advertisement seek to promote. It is important to understand that advertisement will always take place through a media, which can either be a television, the internet, radios, or even word of mouth and flyers. It is important to understand that with advances in technology, and the diversity witnessed in the mass media, advertising has greatly influenced the daily lives of mankind. Baye (16) denotes that there are a variety of promotional, as well as strategies that advertiser usually use, however, the language that is used is of utmost importance. Scholar denotes that language is important because it is responsible for carrying and relaying the message to the target audience. Without proper use of language, then chances are high that the advertisement under consideration will fail. Kim (197) denotes that the aim of an advertisement is to persuade customers into buying the products of the company. Furthermore, Kim (197) denotes that another aim of an advertisement is to introduce a product into the market. Based on these two circumstances therefore, Baye (29) denotes that proper use of language is essential in achieving the objectives of an advertisement. An advertiser, on most occasions will try to develop an advertising message that has the capability of attracting the attention and interest of the target customer. One of the major characteristics of an advertising language is the use of simple words to pass the message. As noted earlier, one of the major functions of an advertisement is providing information for purposes of attracting customers, and exploiting the market under consideration (Lescano, 2930). On this basis, a simple type of advertisement is required for purposes of arousing the interest and attention of the audience under consideration. This simple advertisement will also make it possible for the target market to easily remember the message passed. On this note, the use of a simple language will achieve this objective. Lescano (2930) further goes on to denote that in developing a simple language, the first step an advertiser has to conduct is to use oral and popular language. The second step in this process is the use of few letters, as well as single syllable words to develop a message. The following is an example of a an advertisement for a microwave oven developed by use of simple English (Lescano, 2930), “It was impossible to believe it., Until I gave it a try., I am totally impressed., You gotta have to try it, You will love it” Looking at the words in this advertisement, we can denote that they are oral, and very simple. The use of the slang language gotta is able to create a real picture and impression. Another example of a simple word in advertisement is the advertisement of a mobile with the following words (Lescano, 2931), “Very affordable and easy to use” These are simple words that are memorable. They denote that the mobile handset under consideration has features that make it simple and easy to use, as well as the handset under consideration is affordable. These words are able to depict the sincerity of the advertiser, as well as having the customers to know that there exists a handset that is simple, easy to use, and very affordable. Coined words and misspelling are other words used in an advertisement language. The use of coined words and misspelling is effective in creating humor, as well as an interest in the advertisement message that is being passed (McFall, 38). Words such as eggsactly can be used to promote the sale of eggs. For instance, eggsactly contains two words, namely eggs, and sactly, which is a coined word of exactly. On this basis, advertisers can use this coined words to denote that they are selling high quality eggs. Butterfield (33) denotes that the use of these coined words will greatly arouse the interests of the target market, as well as creating humor in the process. Another characteristics of the language used is the use of loan words. Lescano (2933) denotes that advertisers usually use loan words when they are promoting products that are imported or foreign. Loan words that are frequently used are derived from the Spanish, as well as from the French. They are always used to advertise products such as wine, cosmetics, clothes and food. For instance, most perfume companies normally use French words like Vol de Nuit. This is for purposes of creating a romantic atmosphere of their advertisements. Advertisers also use verbs on a frequent basis. The use of verbs makes it easy for the target audience to understand the advertisement under consideration (McFall, 55). Some of the most frequently used verbs are, choose, try, ask, introduce, discover, give, hurry, etc. Butterfield (41) denotes that seldom do advertisers use the words buy when making an advertisement. On most occasions they would use the term get, have, and take in wanting to convince their target market to purchase their products. The following statements are frequently depicted in advertisements; make Y your favorite, Hurry, hurry and get Y before stocks are over, make Y your better choice (Sharma, 28). Y is a word that depicts a certain brand that is being advertised. It is important to understand that the frequent use of verbs is beneficial to the advertiser, and this is because it makes the English used to be simple and easy to understand, and at the same time it saves on money, time and space (McFall, 46). On this basis, the use of these verbs will make it easy for the target customers to identify with the advertisement. There is also the frequent use of compounds for purposes of making the advertisement easy to understand and remember. Compounds usually help an advertiser to express their thoughts about a product, and hence explain on their quality. For example, an advertisement such as this can be used to depict the quality of a milk product, “A fresh tasting milk substance.” In conclusion, advertising plays an important role in determining whether a company will achieve success in selling its products or not. However, for an advertisement to succeed, the language used must be simple, and appealing to the target market. On this basis, the characteristics identified in this paper are, the use of simple languages, the use of coined language, the use of verbs, and compounds, and finally the use of loan words. Effective use of these languages will make an advertiser be able to achieve his or her main objectives of advertisement. Works Cited: Baye, Michael R.. Advertising and differentiated products. Amsterdam: JAI, 2001. Print. Butterfield, Leslie. AdValue twenty ways advertising works for business. Oxford: Butterworth- Heinemann, 2003. Print. Kim, Jun-Whai. "A Study of Advertisement Businessmens Perceptions of Advertisement Education in College." The Journal of the Korea Contents Association 7.11 (2007): 193- 204. Print. Lescano, Julián N.. "Description of the advertisement and distress call ofand comments on the advertisement call of(Anura: Ceratophryidae)." Journal of Natural History 45.47-48 (2011): 2929-2938. Print. McFall, Elizabeth Rose. Advertising a cultural economy. London: SAGE, 2004. Print. Sharma, Rangam. "Fraudulent Advertisement: A Skirmish between the Manufacturers and the Consumers." IOSR Journal of Business and Management 2.3 (2012): 27-30. Print. Read More