Bandwagon advertisements suggest that owning an item, watching a television show, seeing a movie or listening to a song is the "popular" thing for kids to do. These ads suggest that many other kids are engaging in the products and enjoying them. Instruct kids to look for ads with many kids around their age using a product, or to look for advertising slogans that suggest that lots of kids are using the product.
Testimonial promises use quoted slogans, praising a product and often making impossible statements regarding the product’s abilities. These testimonials use figures who represent an image familiar to kids, such as a celebrity or a kid who is the same age as the target audience. Instruct kids to look for ads that make direct claims regarding a product’s ability to meet a need in their lives.
Transitional advertisements use celebrities, but unlike testimonials, transitional advertisements only suggest that a celebrity uses the product. These ads often depict celebrities playing sports or walking down the red carpet, but avoid asking the celebrity to actually comment on the product. Often a separate spokesperson may comment on the product while the ad continues to show images of the celebrity.
Repetitive ads use selected words and phrases repeated multiple times for emphasis. Often, this includes the product name or a catchy slogan. Repetitive presentations help customers remember the name of a product while keeping the product fresh in the consumer’s mind. Instruct kids to look for ads that display a word or phrase multiple times or a television ad that repeats a product label numerous times.
Emotional words and phrases describe the way companies want consumers to feel about a product, suggesting emotional reactions to purchases. This includes broad terms, like “best,” “fun” or “exciting,” but this can also include more specific phrases, such as “responsible,” “sophisticated” or “alluring.” Instruct students to look for advertisements that make emotional suggestions or use phases in an emotional context.