The language of advertising and its psychological impact on the consumer.

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Advertising is the nonpersonal communication of information usually paid for and usually persuasive in nature about products, services or ideas by identified sponsors through the various media. ( the Definition Committee of American Marketing Association ) Advertising: what is it?

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The advertising language: why is it so important Usually, advertising communicates information in three types: audio, visual, and language. Although music and pictures can provide some hints, or create a kind of atmosphere, the information about the product is limited. Thus, we may say that language in a way provides more exact, detailed and dependable information. Advertising language, playing a role of communication and persuasion, has developed its own features. !

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Vocabulary:the lexical level In order to make the information accessible to audience effectively, the choice of words in advertising is very cautious and skillful. Both linguistic and psychological aspects are taken into consideration in the choice of words.

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Vocabulary:few verbs are used G. N. Leech, English linguist, lists 20 most used verbs in his English In Advertising: Linguistic study of Advertising In Great Britain. They are: make, get, give, have, see, buy, come, go, know, keep, look, need, love, use, feel, like, choose, take, start, taste .

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Some examples “ I’m Loving It” “ Just What I Needed.” “ Buy it. Sell it. Love it.”

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Psychological impact of these verbs All these frequently used verbs are monosyllabic and most of them have Anglo-Saxon origin that is the common core of English vocabulary. Linguistic study shows English native speakers tend to use words of Anglo-Saxon origin, because native words have comparably stable meaning. In advertising, these simple words can win the consumers by their exact, effective expression and a kind of closeness. Etymological studies show that the 20 verbs listed before, except use and taste which are from ancient French, all are Anglo-Saxon origin. All you need is a taste for adventure. (Millstone Coffee)

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Vocabulary: use of emotive words A close scrutiny of recent advertisements suggests that the soft-sell technique is now popular. By soft-sell technique we mean the one that favors a more emotive and less directive approach to promote a product, mainly focusing on the building of brand image. As a result, emotive words, most of which are pleasant adjectives, are greatly encouraged to use. Data from the corpus shows that the most frequently used adjectives are as follows: new, good/better/best, fresh, free, delicious, sure, full, clean, wonderful, special, crisp, real, fine, great, safe and rich.

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Some examples “ We bring good things to life.” “ Good to the last drop.”

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Psychological impact of use of emotive words These adjectives help to build a pleasant picture in readers ЎЇ minds and manage to create a belief in the potential consumer: If I buy this product or if I choose this service, I will lead a better life. In addition, comparatives and superlatives occur to highlight the advantage of a certain product or service. Nothing comes closer to home. (Vegetable and Chicken Pasta Bake) Think Lysol is the best disinfecting spray. (Disinfecting Spray) The Compaq Armada family is lighter , with new rounded edges for easier packing. (Compaq)

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Vocabulary: make pun and alliteration Pun is an amusing use of a word or phrase that has two meanings which is called Polysemy or of words with the same sound but different meanings which is called Homonymy. Pun, the game of words, will leave a deep impression on readers by its readability, wit, and humor. Here we present several classic pun- used advertisements. By using pun, advertisements will be easily remembered by the readers. In addition, filled with wit and humor, puns help the advertised product win favor from readers.

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Some examples Give your hair a touch of spring . Ask for more . (More is a famous brand of cigarette) Give your business the sharp edge. (Sharp Corporation)

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Vocabulary: a lliteration Alliteration is the use of words that begin with the same sound in order to make a special communicative effect. Usually they are pleasing to ears because of the clever choice of the word by the advertiser. In addition, the repetition of the beginning sound emphasizes the meaning the advertisement wants to express. The following are examples picked from the corpus.

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Some examples ... everything you need for that b ig b argain b asement special. ...vitamin E to leave s kin s oft and s mooth. Treat your weary g hosts and g oblins to a warm bowl of chill ...

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Vocabulary: use of weasel words A weasel word is defined as “a word used in order to evade or retreat from a direct or forthright statement or position” according to Webster Dictionary (Philip Babcock Gove, 1976). The use of weasel words has become a device in advertising. Weasel words make people hear things that aren’t being said, accept as truth that have only been implied, and believe things that have only been implied and suggested. Let’s take a look under a strong light at several frequently used words.

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Weasel word: help 23% advertisements of all samples use the word help . These help s can be omitted because they have lost their original meaning: aid, assist. Yet, help in advertising English is never redundant. It has magic power in advertisers’ eyes. Help is the great qualifier; once the advertiser says it, he can say anything after it. Help qualifies everything. It helps control the bacteria in this system. A breakthrough way to help stop wear-out Help finance the video equipment.

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Some examples “ You Can Do It. We Can Help.”

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Weasel word: like Like is also a qualifier, and is used in much the same way as help . But like is also a comparative element, with a very specific purpose; advertisers use like to get the audience to stop thinking about something that is bigger than or better or different from the product which are being sold. In other words, they can make the audience believe that the product is more than it is by likening it to something else. Like help , like doesn ЎЇ t catch much attention. However by using it, almost anything can be said and promised afterwards. It’s like getting on bar free. Cleans like a white tornado. It’s like taking a trip to Portugal.

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Some examples “ Like a good neighbor, state farm is there”

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Comparison of frequently-used adjectives in daily consumer goods adjectives and technical equipment adjectives Descriptive adjectives Evaluative adjectives Daily Consumer Goods Adjectives radiant, shiny, dazzling, gold soft, smooth fresh creamy, crispy clean easy, convenient rich, effective, crucial healthy, fast valuable, flew essential good/better/best magic Technical Equipment Adjectives audible, visible high-volume, full-colour, high-speed magnetic, sharp invisible, multiple flexible, versatile

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Use of pronouns Though pronouns of the first and second person are popular in advertisements, there are some differences in the use of these pronouns in the three kinds of advertisements. The first person we almost never occurs in daily consumer goods ads and technical equipment ads, whereas we is used in almost 80% the service ads in the corpus. The following are some examples. What can we do for you? So come on and join us as we celebrate MillenniaMania Singapore.

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Psychological impact There are two factors to explain the phenomenon. First, in daily consumer goods ads and technical equipment ads, a product is the focus of information. When the product needs to be mentioned, Ў °it Ў ± is used, and in most cases, the brand name is used, even repeated to impress the readers. However, in service ads, service is actually the product. Since service is intangible, we can be regarded as the replacement of the service. Second, it is more necessary for service ads to create a friend-like atmosphere, because winning trust is the first thing service ads want to do. “ We bring good things to life.”

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Syntactical features First, length of a sentence in advertising is usually short. A sentence in daily consumer goods ads has 10.3 words on average; in technical equipment ads, 11.8 words; in service ads, 12.3 words. Second, as to sentence structure , simple sentences and elliptical sentences are often used in advertisements. Compared with complex sentences, simple sentences are more understandable and forceful. Compare: a. Baked. Drenched. Tested to the extreme. A Motorola cellular phone. b. The Motorola cellular phone are baked and drenched to extreme.

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Syntactical features Third, as to sentence patterns , interrogative sentences and imperative sentences are heavily used in English advertisements. Imperative sentences are short, encouraging and forceful. They are used to arouse audiences ЎЇ wants or encourage them to buy something. For instance:

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Some examples Enter something magical. (Oldsmobile) Feel the clean all day. (ALMAY) Bye one. (Honda motor)

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The advertising language: destructive or not? T he influence of mass media cannot be stated too strongly. In this age of communication, we hear and read every kind of language from the Queen's English to the slang and even worse of the streets. But all language is a form of communication, and who is to decide what is right and what is wrong? !

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It is a b illboard in Lund, Sweden, saying "One Night Stand?" To the horror of the purists (people who think that the advertising language destructs English) , some copywriters say that it is permissible to forget about some of the generally accepted rules of writing, if the copy attracts the attention of the reader. Readership-not grammar-is the heart of the situation. What do you think is written here?

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Columnist Rex Stout made one of the strongest comments. "Changes made by the genius and wit of the people are often desirable and useful. Those imposed by ignorant clowns such as advertising copywriters and broadcasters are abominable and should be condemned by all lovers of language."

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And, on the other hand, many of the leading lights in advertising and other forms of the mass media believe that changes in the language breathe new life and freshness into language and communication.

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It’s just an advertisment.Nothing more.