ADVERTISING UNCUT

PROGRAMME 1: ADVERTISING – WHAT'S THE POINT?

PROGRAMME OUTLINE

00:00 – 01:05

A general overview of what advertising is all about.

01:06 – 02:34

As we are exposed to adverts all the time, the reasons for advertising are given: to increase sales and profits, to create customer loyalty and to deliver important messages.

02:35 – 05:24
Target audience

We see an ad that is based on research and the need to engage with young people. For example, the Department of Transport had £2 million to spend on a powerful advert to prevent young people getting knocked over. The chosen advertising agency explains their rationale. We hear young people's comments on the advert.

05:25 – 09:08

We learn about the use of market research to profile the target audience. The youth market is an extremely important one as they want to make us loyal from a young age. We hear young people's comments on this. The OXY advertising campaign is used to give an example of market research.

09:09 – 13:12
Splash the cash: new product

The launch of new products is highlighted and the example shown is Sony Ericsson's new mobile phone. There was a huge budget for its launch but 26.5 million new phones were sold as a result. Young people and professionals comment on this.

13:13 – 14:59

These next sequences deal with building the brand. The qualities of a brand are compared to those of a friend: charming, witty, smart and clever. The professionals say that advertising at its best is like this. Young people are asked what their top brands are.

15:00 – 19:45

We see a famous Coca-Cola advert from 1971 that wanted to create a good feeling about the brand. It is placed in its political context, and it is suggested that it may have contributed to a mood swing in America. A brand is described as a symbol of confidence in a very uncertain world. There's a feeling that if you buy that brand it will keep its promise. We hear young people's comments. There is further discussion about brands. We see a recent Diet Coca-Cola ad and learn how it came about. Public opinion is important and people sometimes need to be reminded about a product or to have their minds changed about it.

19:46 – 23:25
Changing our minds

The McCain oven chip advert is discussed: why it was made and what the main message was. We hear young people's comments. They used a catchy tune to repeat the main message and sales rose by 8%. It seems that they made the right advert at the right time.

The programme ends with an overview of advertising.