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Sex
Sex appeals capture attention, but seldom promote product
consumption. Effective sex appeal ads convey a specific message to the
target demographic group. Beer advertisers often use sex appeal to
promote their product to men. The typical scene involves several young,
average-looking men in a bar. The men purchase the beer and gain the
attention of an attractive young woman. Fragrance products use sex
appeal to convey romance to women by indicating the use of the
product will help her find the man of her dreams. Generally done by
showing the woman spraying the fragrance and then capturing the
attention of an attractive male who passes her on the street. Overly
overt images subtract from the overall message the advertiser wants to
convey.
Bandwagon
A bandwagon appeal makes consumers believe they are missing out by
addressing the consumers need to belong. Food and drink ads show hip
young adults enjoying a product and ignoring the individual who
chooses the less popular product. Medical products show consensus by
indicating the number of medical professionals who support the
product. For example, a cold medicine ad may say, "Eight out of 10
doctors recommend this product" to show product effectiveness.
Automobile dealers and cellphone providers give sales and user
statistics to indicate why their product is the more preferred. This type
of message says buy this product because everyone does. If done
correctly, the consumer will purchase the product. Bandwagon appeals
can backfire in that the consumers desire to fit in can conflict with the
ability to make a rational decision.
References (6)
About the Author
Residing in Clarksville, Tenn., Patrice D. Wimbush has been writing
since 2002, with her work appearing on various websites. Her areas of
writing expertise are contract and criminal law. She holds a Master of
Public Administration from Murray State University and a Master of
Arts in communication from Austin Peay State University.