Response to "Specific Media Tools for analysis"

Bandwagon is a widely used and effective technique of advertising. It appeals to the human nature of wanting to be included. The audience does not want to miss out on something that everyone seems to be doing, it wants to be with the crowd and not left behind. Besides, they believe that if everyone is doing it, it must be right/good for them, therefore they follow suit.
This is presicely how fads are started – “everybody’s doing it”. Thus by using the bandwagon technique, you can be sure that people will follow what the advertisers are marketing. An example is the recent Nike advert where you see people from all sporting activities wearing nike products. The message put across is something like “All sports people wear Nike so you have to, too.” Thus you will be coerced into wanting to buy the product.
Another effective technique would be the Testimonial method. The testimonial method is used to try and influence a prospective customer to buy the product when it has been praised by another impartial consumer, a professional or even a known and famous person whom the customer idolizes and may wish to emulate. After hearing the testimonials of these people, the customer tends to feel more secure and convinced that the product is suitable and useful to buy as the testimonials help to take away fear and uncertainty for the product. Testimonial method is often used for health products and it continues to remain the most effective method used for advertising health products. An example would be the Sensodyne toothpaste advertisement on television where a dentist will start talking about sensitive teeth and how Sensodyne toothpaste is the “#1 dentist recommended toothpaste for sensitive teeth”.
Repitition is also an effective tool. When an advert is repetitive, it somehow sticks to our mind. Repeating a certain symbol or brandname over a long period of time can leave an impression in our subconscious memories. The intensity of the repetition would determine how long the imprints last in our subconscious. Adverts that constantly exerts its meaning over us, in different ways, can leave a deeper impression on us that is not easily removed.
Also, when a certain advert is played again to us, memories of previous encounters with its brandname and symbols would almost instantly be recalled to our minds. Each time this happens, the brandname gets stronger. We might begin to link household products, lifestyles, cultures and behaviors to the product’s brandname. It will influence our perception of things.
One good example is Nike’s “Just do it”, which is advertised on every nike merchandise. The tick has become synonymous with the slogan “Just do it”, and has also become the symbol of trends, of being sporty, and of being with the flow. Anybody sporting a prominent tick, whether it originates from Nike or not, would be labeled as “sporty” or “trendy” in our subconscious, whether we realize it or accept it.
A uniquely Singaporean way of advertising would be the use of Singlish in advertisements. This helps to bring a sense of familiarity among Singaporeans. One example would be the product DoDo fishballs advertisement on television with the catchy phase “ Dodo fishballs! Shiok shiok!”.
There is another Singaporean strategy of marketing. Singaporeans respond to the words “SALE” and “discount” because of our notorious “kiasu” attitude, in that we are all rational consumers who like to make the best use of our limited resources in order to maximize satisfaction. :)
fangting, minjia, kim, bryan cai 09S03K