How to View an Advertisement Effectively: 6 Steps

How to View an Advertisement Effectively: 6 Steps

Have you ever seen an advertisement written so well that it virtually makes your heart pound? An informercial that gets your attention so effectively you actually feel that you can't live without that set of paper knives? It is not an exaggeration to say that there are people who have that personality and charisma that can capture a person's attention and sell ice to Frosty. How do you see through their verbiage? What are they really saying? You'd be surprised how simple it is.



Steps


1. Read or Listen to the sales pitch. Take a moment to experience how it makes you feel. Is your heart racing? Does the Pitchman have your attention? Are you one the edge of your seat? That's the distraction.

2. Don't just hear -Listen. Don't just see -Read. Look and listen for the words the Pitchman is using. When you are reading an advertisement, let your peripheral vision ride over the pictures. You'd be surprised how many subliminal pictures there are.

3. Look and Listen for adjectives that embellish the actual description. In Latin phraseology the construction of the description of a round, red, ball would be ball round red. English is not so easy.

4. Look and Listen for words such as sharp, strong, durable that actually describe the item being pitched. They normally belong there, and would describe the item in normal conversation.

5. Watch for words and phrases such as professionally acclaimed, world renowned, guaranteed for life, fabulous, often copied, never duplicated, one of a kind technology, satin finished steel, finest balanced style and never needs maintenance while describing whatever it is that is being pitched. Ask yourself if the adjectives are appropriate to normal conversation. Especially when watching commercials or videos. Is the comparison realistic? Is it appropriate? Eliminate the adjectives. How does it sound? Is it still captivating and reasonable?

6. Look for the price. Is the price realistic to the item? Is it appropriate to the pitch? There's a big difference. Is the Pitchman trying to convince you that you can't live without the newest Widget at the low, low price of $99.95? Is he offering it for $59.95, and then proceeds to knock off one payment? Does he double the deal, and then add bonus items again and again? Can he really sell a $99.95 item, while throwing all those items in free?



Tips

• The tone of the Pitchman's voice and the cadence of his speech is intended to be hypnotic. It is possible to hypnotize someone without them knowing it.
• The speed of the Pitchman's speech is intended to make it hard to think rationally. Loud, fast speech is actually an interrogation technique that can make some people actually confess to capital crimes within 10 hours because of this kind of pressure. When it comes to a sales pitch, many people will give in within 30 minutes.

Warnings

• Don't impulse buy. If it's good enough to buy on impulse, it's good enough to put on your shopping list.
• The old adage "If it sounds too good to be true, it isn't true." is true, more often than not.
• It's a great clearance deal because it didn't sell. There's something wrong.