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I have been given the task to advertise a product that is potentially sensitive/insulting to the viewer. Out of the list we were given to create adverts for I chose to advertise condoms. This is because they are one of the more sensitive and serious subjects out of the list.

The first thing I did was research popular brands of condoms and I came across Durex. This company has been running for a long time now and have came up with very good adverts. They have used humour as a tool to get customers to buy their products. 

Some adverts were actually banned because of the controversial content used in them, whereas other adverts were well made here is an example:

http://nextround.net/2009/08/15-durex-ads-so-clever-they-almost-make-you-want-to-buy-condoms

 Both of these adverts can be found at the link above. 

Image found at http://www.hookedonads.com/durex-cheaper/

These adverts may appeal to women as well as men.This makes these adverts a lot more effective because opening your product up to more than one audience will increase more people interests and therefore increase sales.

CBBC

Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14. To appeal to children, the logo was very important and the designers at BBC knew this. They have used a vivid green colour and a lively typeface with thick outlines. THis will appeal greatly to children and is a lot more interesting to look at compared to the standard BBC logo which is clearly made to suit adults.

The logo has not remained the same throughout the years however. The designed has changed many times, the intention behind this is to keep CBBC fresh and new for the young viewers. Children get bored easily and seeing a new logo every now and then will keep them interested. 

I had a look at some CBBC adverts on youtube to see which techniques they use. I came across two quite powerful adverts:

 

They are both recorded using a technique similar to autocue (filming through the TV screen) the films captured the children's faces front-on, looking directly down the lens, as they watched and reacted to the Children's BBC programs.

The sequences used are completely natural and unedited, showing genuine moments of engagement and enjoyment. These adverts seem to be aimed at adults and project the message that your kids will have similar reacitions and will enjoy CBBC just as much. The simplicity of the adverts allows the viewer to concentrate more.

Advertising for Children

After analysing advertising for women, I was given a task to research advertising aimed at the children’s market. I had to chose two products that have been available for at least 15 years.

I decided to research BBC, The British Broadcasting Corporation. It is the most successful broadcaster in the world with over 23,000 staff, it is also the largest broadcaster in the world. They broadcast two main services that are aimed at children of different ages. 

Originally, children's TV shows were quite rare or even none existent. Over the years BBC realised there would be an even greater audience if they appealed to younger people. Because of this they started broadcasting children's shows and eventually created a new show: CBBC (Children's BBC).

Introduction to advertising

In today's session we were introduced to persuasion in advertising. We had to watch a documentary showcasing adverts aimed at persuading women to buy a product. After watching the whole documentary, I began to notice patterns in techniques used in these adverts to convince women to buy these products.

The main tool that they used was to play on women's emotions in some way or another. For example cleaning products would show imagery of germs, viruses and dirt that could harm your family. This creates a fear and therefore makes the viewer want to buy the product to protect her children.

Another emotion was guilt, fear of being compared to other parents/housewives. Women back in those days were worried about how they were viewed in society. Advertisers recognised this and incorporated it into their adverts. Also romance/love was used to persuade viewers as well as humour.

Link to first video of documentary

Welcome!

Hello, I'm Liam Fitzgerald and welcome to my blog!

This blog is going to be a Journal for my Graphic Design Theory and Practice module. I will be updating it regularly with my thoughts from each session in the module. I will show my work on this blog as well as thought processes and ideas leading up to finished projects. I will use a range of media to express my thoughts and hope my thoughts are well communicated.