Chapter 2

ADVERTISING: THEORIES, CONCEPTS AND FRAMEWORKS

Presented by:
Group2
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• examine ideas about the role of information processing and emotion in

advertising
•To review the nature and role of awareness and perception in
advertising To appraise the principal sequential frameworks by which
advertising is thought to influence individuals
• To review the eclectic models of advertising
• To appraise the strong and weak theories of advertising
• To consider ways in which advertising can be used strategically
• To examine ideas concerning the use of advertising to engage
audiences to describe the different ways advertising might work
 The use of information and emotion in advertising, the underlying concepts
and theories associated with advertising, and the models and frameworks
developed to explain how advertising works. In the modern era, the
primary goal of advertising has been to communicate a product’s unique
selling proposition (USP), which is based on product features and attributes
that differentiate it from competitors. Example of USP, Claims include
Persil’s “Washes whiter”, Flash’s “Clean faster” and Duracell’s “lasts
longer.”

 The passage explains how the reign of the unique selling proposition (USP)
was short-lived due to advancements in technology. The emergence of me-
too and own label brands enable quick market entry and intense
competition, leading to shorter product life cycles. As a result the power of
the USP diminished, undermining the basis of the product differentiation.
This also challenge the role of advertising in distinguishing brands. The
passage highlights that many brands today mistakenly claim to have a
USP, as what they label as unique is actually just a distinctive element
Pain relief, a
universal USP!

What emerged are emotional selling propositions or ESPs.

Advertising’s role therefore became more focused on
developing brand values that were based on emotion and
imagery.

This approach to communication builds brand awareness,

desire and aspirational involvement. Emotional claims and
responses are far more difficult to copy, and represent a more
authoritative, and indeed customer-oriented, basis on which to
base advertising appeals.
 THE USE IF INFORMATION AND EMOTION IN ADVERTISING

Early views of advertising suggested that advertising

only works by people responding to advertising in a
logical, rational and cognitive manner. They also
suggested that people only take out the utilitarian or
functional aspects of advertising messages (cleans
better, smells fresher). This cognitive issue was
considered in Chapter 2. This is obviously not true and
there is plenty of evidence to show that ads that have
substantial emotional content are more effective than
informational ads (Cox et al. 2011) and lead to stronger
levels of engagement.

Most advertised brands are not normally new to

consumers as they have some experience of the brand,
 AWARENESS
 The article discusses the importance of awareness in the advertising
and marketing process. It states that before consumers can process
and make purchases based on information about a product or
organization, they must first be aware of its existence and availability.
The article also emphasizes the challenge of getting the attention of
the target audience amidst the vast number of competing messages
in the marketplace.

 The article highlights the relationship between awareness and

engagement, stating that awareness precedes engagement and
needs to be created, developed, refined, or sustained depending on
the characteristics of the market and the organization's situation. In
situations where the audience is already fully aware and highly
involved with a product, efforts should be focused on sustaining
awareness and utilizing other communication tools such as sales
Awareness
PERCEPTION
 Perception is concerned with how individuals see and make sense of their
view of the world. It is about how people select, organize and interpret
stimuli so that they can understand the world. In our case the way
individuals perceive advertising stimuli shapes the meaning they
attribute to the message. Of course, it also shapes the way advertising
materials are created, designed and presented.

 Each day, individuals are exposed to a tremendous number of stimuli. De

Chernatony (1993) suggests
that each consumer is exposed to over 550 advertisements per day while
Lasn (1999) estimated that this should be 3,000 advertisements per day
(cited by Dahl et al. 2003). In addition, there are thousands of other non-
commercial stimuli that each individual encounters.

 To cope with this bombardment, our sensory organs select those stimuli
to which attention is given. These selected stimuli are organized in order
PERCEPTUAL SELECTION

Attention is an important factor in determining the

outcome of this interaction: ‘Attention occurs when the
stimulus activates one or more sensory receptor nerves
and the resulting sensations go to the brain for
processing’(Hawkinsetal.1989). The nature of the stimuli,
or external factors, such as the intensity and size, position,
contrast, novelty, repetition and movement, are features
that have been developed and refined by advertisers to
attract attention.
PERCEPTUAL ORGANISATION

For perception to be effective and meaningful, the vast array of

selected stimuli needs to be organized.
The four main ways in which sensory stimuli can be organized are
figure–ground, grouping, closure and contour. These are explained in
Table 3.1.

These methods are used by individuals in an attempt to organize

stimuli and simplify their meanings. They combine in an attempt to
determine a pattern to the stimuli, so that they are perceived as part
of a whole or larger unit. This is referred to as gestalt psychology.
PERCEPTUAL INTERPRETATION

 Interpretation is the process by which individuals give meaning

to the stimuli once they have been organized. As Cohenand
Basu(1987)state, by using existing categories, meanings can be
given to stimuli.

 These categories are determined from the individual’s past

experiences and they shape what the individual expects to see.
These expectations, when combined with the strength and
clarity of the stimulus and the motives at the time perception
occurs, mold the pattern of the perceived stimuli
ADVERTISING AND PERCEPTION

The way in which individuals perceive, organize and

interpret stimuli
is a reflection of their past experiences and the
classifications used to understand the different
situations each individual frames every day. Individuals
seek to frame or provide a context within which their
role becomes clearer.
Shoppers expect to find products in particular
situations, such as rows, shelves or display bins of
similar goods. They also develop meanings and
associations with some grocery products because of
the utility and trust/emotional satisfaction certain pack
ADVERTISINGMODELSANDCONCEPTS

For a message to be communicated successfully, it has to

be meaningful to the recipient. Messages need to be
targeted at the right audience, be capable of gaining
attention, be understandable, relevant and acceptable. For
effective communication to occur, messages should be
designed that not only fit the cognitive capability of the
target audience but also engage them emotionally and
follow the ‘model’ of how advertising works .
 Sequential models -Various models have been developed to assist our
understanding of how these activities are segregated and organized effectively.

 AIDA -Developed by Strong (1925), the AIDA model was designed to represent
the stages that a salesperson
must take a prospect through in the personal-selling process.

 Hierarchy of effects models -Developed most notably by Lavidge and Steiner

(1961), the hierarchy of effects models represent the process by which
advertising was thought to work and assume that there is a series of tests.
 THE INFORMATION-PROCESSING MODEL
This cognitive perspective becomes subsumed as the stages presented reflect
similarities with the other hierarchical models, except that McGuire includes a
retention stage. This refers to the ability of the receiver to retain and understand
information that is valid and relevant.

 Issues with the sequential approach - The model is based on the logical
sequential movement of consumers towards a purchase via specified stages.
The major criticism is that it assumes that the consumer moves through the stages
in a logical, rational manner: learn, then feel and then do. This is obviously not the
case, as there any number of purchases where a feeling and emotion drive a
purchase : fashion, for example. There has been a lot of research that attempts to
offer an empirical validation for some of the hierarchy propositions, the results of
which are inconclusive and at times ambiguous (Barry and Howard 1990).
 Eclectic models of advertising - The term eclectic is used (Fill 2011)
because these models are essentially an assortment of diverse ideas but have central cohesion about
modelling advertising practice. The first to be considered here are four main advertising frameworks
developed by O’Malley (1991) and Hall.

 THE PERSUASION/GO TO MODEL

 Analogue – This framework assumes advertising works rationally, and that a ‘brand works harder for
you’.
This is based on messages that are persuasive, because they offer a rational difference, grounded in the
old idea of unique selling propositions (USPs). Persuasion is affected by gradually moving buyers
through a number of sequential steps, as depicted through hierarchy of effects models such as
AIDA.

 Digital – Digitization enables persuasion to be extended into opportunities for exploration, as individuals
can
now be encouraged to search, find out more, and ‘go to’. Willie points out that this is still persuasion, but
it is
occurs through guided exploration, rather than just telling.
 The involvement/play mode
 Analogue
 Digital
___________________________________________________________
 The salience/talked-about model
 Analogue

______________________________________________________________
The sales promotion/do model
 Analogue
 Digital
 THE STRONG AND WEAK THEORIES
OF ADVERTISING

 THE STRONGTHEORYOF
ADVERTISING
USING ADVERTISING
STRATEGICALLY
 THE WEAK THEORY OF ADVERTISING
THE FCB GRID