COMM 432

Media in Film

Advertising: Age of Persuasion

Elaboration Likelihood Model

(Richard E. Petty / John T. Cacioppo)

Central Route

  • “Persuasion may result from a diligent consideration of issue-relevant arguments.”
  • Central route emphasizes such factors as:
    • Comprehension, learning, retention of message arguments, or even self-generation of arguments.

Printable Version of the Slides

Readings:

Stuart Ewen’s Captains of Consciousness

Peripheral Route

  • “Using the peripheral route, we may shape attitudes or allow a person to decide what attitudinal position to adopt without the need for engaging in any extensive issue-relevant thinking.”
  • “In an overcommunicated world, we need to become “cognitive misers.”
  • Relevant for persuasion goals is this case the use of:
    • positive or negative emotional cues,
    • the credibility , attractiveness or power of the message source,
    • heuristics.

The Over-Communicated Society

“Communication Overload”

  • New York Times (Sunday Edition) contains about 500,000 words. To read the whole newspaper, you will need almost 100 hours.
  • 96% of all TV households can receive 4 or more TV stations.
  • The average American Family watches Television more than 7 hours a day (51 hours a week).
  • The Business of Persuasion
    • The US consumes 57% of world advertising (5% of world population)
    • Over $ 165 billion a year on advertising
    • Over $ 115 billion a year on product promotion (coupons, free samples, rebates, …)
    • 2.2% of US gross national product.
    • General Motors spends every year more than $ 178 millions to promote Chevrolet (that is $ 487,000 a day, $ 20,000 an hour).

The Over-Simplified Mind

  • The defense of the individual against the communication overload is an oversimplified mind.
  • Sensory Overload:
    • Beyond a certain point, our brain goes blank.
    • The individual has to filter the information that comes to him.
  • Al Ries:
    • “We are publishing more than ever,  but we are reading less than ever.”

The Over-Simplified Message

  • In modern communication, less is more.
  • Simplification is a selection process. You will have to select the material that has the best chance to get through and to reach your audience.
  • You don’t have to look for the selection criteria in the characteristics of the product.
  • You have to look for the solution into the prospect mind. That means you concentrate your message on the perception of the prospect.

Creating Values

 

 

Irritation

  • When the message may break the unspoken laws of public opinion or offend the sensibility of the more concrete public that represents your target audience.
  • Boomerang Effect

Benetton Controversial Campaign

 

Click here to see some examples of irritating commercials.