MarketDisc6

What were they thinking when they made that ad?

During the course of a day, you’ll be exposed to thousands of ads using a dizzying array of messages and image strategies, each of which appeals to different consumers in different ways. Are you a “slice of life” buyer that prefers to see products in the way you would use them at home? Or maybe humorous ads are more your style; the product that makes you grin is the one you’ll grab walking down the grocery aisle. It’s a good bet that the ads that make you want to buy a product are different than those that influence other shoppers. Advertisers study consumer trends and behaviors to match their ads to their target audience.

For this discussion we’re going to focus on print ads, which are generally created for magazines, newspapers, and web pages. Find an ad (many are available online) that you think is interesting, copy and paste it into your discussion post, and describe the message and image strategy. Why is it effective or ineffective? What type of consumer is the ad targeting? If you were creating an ad for this product, what type of message and image strategy would you use and why?