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CHAPTER 6
CREATIVE STRATEGY DECISIONS
Chapter Overview
This chapter is devoted to the area of creative strategy in advertising. It focuses on the planning and
development of the creative strategy. We will examine the concept of creativity and the process that
guides the creation of the advertising campaign as well as various types of research and information that
can provide input and insight into the creative process of advertising. We discuss the concept of copy
platforms that are used to guide the development of advertising campaigns. Attention is also given to
various approaches used for determining the creative theme/idea that forms the basis of an advertising
campaign. We will examine message appeals and then look at source characteristics. We discuss in depth
the use of celebrities in advertising. Finally, the concept of source power is looked at.
Learning Objectives
1. To discuss the importance and definition of advertising creativity.
2. To examine the creative strategy planning process.
3. To identify three key decisions that comprise a creative strategy: creative theme/idea, message
appeal, and message source.
4. To explore various approaches used for determining the creative theme/idea that forms the basis of
an advertising campaign.
5. To summarize the different types of message appeals that advertisers use to persuade their target
audience.
6. To highlight the source or communicator options a marketer has for a promotional message.
Chapter and Lecture Outline
I.
INTRODUCTION
One of the most important components of an integrated marketing communications program is the
advertising message. It will be obvious to students that there are a myriad of ways to convey an
advertising message. However, underlying all of these messages is a creative strategy that involves
determining what the advertising message will say or communicate and creative tactics dealing with how
the message strategy will be implemented or executed. The focus of this chapter is on the development of
creative strategy while tactical issues are covered in Chapter 7
II.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CREATIVITY IN ADVERTISING
The creative side of advertising is one of its most interesting aspects. The creative strategy used to
communicate an advertising message is an integral part of the promotional process and is often critical to
the success or failure of the campaign. Numerous examples or cases can be cited of how a good creative
strategy was an important factor in determining the success of a product or service or reversing the
fortunes of a struggling brand. Of course there are also many situations where companies struggle to find
a creative formula that works effectively. Figure 6-1 shows the various campaign themes Burger King has
used over the past 25 years in to try and give the chain a strong identity in the fast food market. Attention
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67
must also be given to the issue of creative versus effective advertising as many ads may be critically
acclaimed from a creative perspective but fail to help the sales of the brand.
III.
ADVERTISING CREATIVITY
It is important to examine the concept of creativity, how it applies to advertising, and the challenge firms
face in developing creative and effective advertising.
A.
What Is Creativity?—Creativity is one of the most commonly used terms in advertising as those
who develop advertising messages are often referred to as “creative types” and agencies develop
reputations for their creativity. So much attention is focused on the concept of creativity because
the major challenge given to those who develop advertising messages is to be creative. Creativity
has been defined as “a quality possessed by persons that enables them to generate novel
approaches in situations, generally reflected in new and improved solutions to problems.”
B. Different Perspectives of Advertising Creativity—perspectives of what constitutes creativity in
advertising vary. At one extreme are the “suits” or “rationalists” who argue that advertising is
creative only if it sells the product or service. At the other end of the continuum are the “poets”
who judge creativity in terms of its artistic or aesthetic value and argue that creative advertising
must be novel, original and unique. The answer as to what constitutes creative in advertising is
probably somewhere between these two extreme positions.
We are concerned with advertising creativity, which refers to “the ability to generate fresh,
unique and appropriate ideas that can be used as solutions to communications problems.” This
perspective recognizes that creative advertising ideas are those that are novel, original and
appropriate. To be appropriate a creative idea must be relevant or have some importance to the
target audience.
IV.
PLANNING CREATIVE STRATEGY
Those who work on the creative side of advertising often face a major challenge. They must take all the
research, creative briefs, strategy statements, communication objectives and other inputs and transform
them into an advertising message. Their job is to write copy, design layouts and illustrations and produce
commercials that communicate effectively. Marketers usually hire advertising agencies to develop and
implement their advertising campaigns because they are specialists in the creative function of advertising.
However, it is important to point out that the development of creative strategy also involves
representatives from the client side and other people in the agency as well as the creative staff.
A.
The Creative Challenge—Those individuals who work on the creative side of advertising have
the responsibility of developing an effective way of communicating the marketer’s message to
their customers. The creative person or team is often provided with a great deal of input and
background information on the target audience, such as their demographics, needs and motives,
and communication objectives. However, every marketing situation is different and requires a
unique approach.
B.
Taking Creative Risks—Many creative people in agencies argue that they often follow proven
approaches or formulas when creating ads because thy are safe and less likely to fail. They note
that their clients are very often risk averse and feel uncomfortable with advertising that is too
different. It is important to note that companies who have very creative advertising are more
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willing to assume some risk. However, many managers are more comfortable with advertising
that is straightforward in communicating with customers and gives them a reason to buy.
B.
Creative Personnel—It is a fairly common perception that those individuals who work on the
creative side of advertising tend to be somewhat unique and different from those working on the
managerial or business side. It is worthwhile to discuss some of the characteristics of creative
personnel in advertising and the need to create an environment that fosters, and is conducive to,
the development of creative advertising.
V.
THE CREATIVE PROCESS
1. A number of advertising people have argued that creativity in advertising is best viewed as a
process and that creative success is most likely when some organized approach is followed. While
most advertising people reject and/or resist attempts to standardize creativity or develop rules or
guidelines to follow, most creative people do follow some type of process when approaching the
task of developing an advertisement. There are several models or approaches to the creative
process including those of James Webb Young, a former creative vice president at the J. Walter
Thompson agency, which is similar to the approach of English sociologist Graham Wallas.
Wallas suggests that creative thought evolves in four stages:
1. Preparation
2. Incubation
3. Illumination
4. Verification
A.
Inputs to the Creative Process: Preparation/Incubation/Illumination—These models of the
creative process offer an organized way of approaching an advertising problem. Both models
stress the need for preparation or gathering of background information that is relevant to the
problem as the first step in the creative process. Various types of research and information can
provide input to the creative process of advertising at each stage. There are numerous ways the
creative specialist can acquire background information that is relevant to the advertising problem.
Some of those discussed in the text include:
1. Background research—informal fact-finding techniques and general preplanning input.
Various ways of gathering background information might be discussed.
2. Product/service specific research—this involves different types of studies such as attitude,
market structure and positioning, perceptual mapping and psychographic studies.
3. Qualitative research input—techniques such as in-depth interview or focus groups with
customers or ethnographic studies. Focus groups are a research method whereby consumers
(usually 10 to 12 people) from the target audience are led through a discussion regarding a
particular topic.
B.
Verification/Revision—The purpose of the verification/revision stage of the creative process is to
evaluate ideas that come from the illumination stage, reject any that may be inappropriate, and
refine those that remain and help give them final expression. Some of the techniques used at this
stage include:
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



Directed focus groups
Message communication studies
Portfolio tests
Pretesting of ads in storyboard or animatic form
C.
Copy Platform—A copy platform provides a plan or checklist that is useful in guiding the
development of an advertising message or campaign. This document is prepared by the agency
team or group assigned to the account and may include creative personnel as well as the account
coordinator and representatives from media and research. The advertising manager and/or the
marketing and product manager from the client side will also be involved in the process and must
approve the copy platform. An example of a copy platform outline is shown in Figure 6-3 of the
text.
D.
Creative Theme/Idea—Most advertisements are part of a series of messages that make up an
advertising campaign, which consists of multiple messages, often in a variety of media that
center on a single theme or idea. The determination of the central theme, idea, position, or image
is a critical part of the creative process as it sets the tone or direction for the development of the
individual ads that make up the campaign. A campaign theme should be a strong idea, as it is the
central message that will be communicated in all the advertising and other promotional activities.
E.
The Big Idea—An important part of creative strategy development is determining the central
theme that will become the big idea for the ad campaign. There are several different approaches
that can be used for developing the big idea and as the basis of creative strategy. Some of the best
known and most discussed approaches include:
1. The unique selling proposition—this concept is described in Rosser Reeve’s Reality in
Advertising. It’s three characteristics include:



each advertisement must make a proposition to the consumer
the proposition must be one that the competition either cannot or does not offer
the proposition must be strong enough to pull over new customers to your brand
2. Creating a brand image—some competing brands are so similar it is difficult to find or create
a unique attribute or benefit so the creative strategy is based on the development of a strong,
memorable identity for the brand through image advertising.
3. Finding the inherent drama—Leo Burnett believed advertising should be based on a
foundation of consumer benefits with an emphasis on the dramatic element in expressing
these benefits.
4. Positioning—the basic idea is that advertising is used to establish or “position” the product or
service in a particular place in the consumer’s mind. Positioning is often the basis of a firm’s
creative strategy when it has multiple brands competing in the same market.
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These approaches to determining the major selling ideas discussed above are very popular
and are often used as the basis of the creative strategy for advertising campaigns. These
creative approaches represent specific “creative styles” that have become associated with
some of the most successful advertising creative minds and their agencies. However, it should
be pointed out that many other creative approaches and styles are available and are often used
in advertising. Some of the creative styles associated with more contemporary advertising
visionaries such as Lee Clow of TBWA/Chiat/Day and Rich Silverstein of Goodby
Silverstein & Partners are worth noting. The challenge to the creative team is to find a major
selling idea and use it as a guide to the development of an effective creative strategy.
VI.
APPEALS AND EXECUTION STYLES
Once the major selling idea has been agreed upon, the creative team then turns its attention to determining
the specific type of appeal and execution style that will be used to carry out the creative concept.
A.
Advertising Appeals—The advertising appeal refers to the basis or approach used in the
advertisement to elicit some consumer response or to influence their feelings toward the product,
service, or cause. At the broadest level, these approaches can be broken down into two categories
or classes which are informational/rational appeals and emotional appeals.
1. Rational appeals—these types of appeals focus on the consumer's practical, functional or
utilitarian need for the product or service and/or specific reasons for owning a particular
brand. Exhibit 6-9 provides an example of a rational appeal. Examples of a number of
product- or service-related appeals that would fall under the category of rational appeals are
discussed including:

Feature appeals

Comparative appeals

Favorable price appeals

News appeals

Product/service popularity appeals

Reminder appeal
B.
Emotional appeals—these types of appeals relate to consumers' social and/or psychological needs
for purchasing a product or service. Emotional appeals have become very popular in advertising
as marketers recognize that many purchase decisions are made on the basis of feelings and
emotions since rational, functional-based differentiation is often very difficult. Examples of
psychological states or feelings that can serve as a basis for emotional appeals are shown in
Figure 9-1 of the text and can be reviewed.
C.
Fear appeals—are used to create anxiety in the audience and arouse individuals to take action.
Fear can stress negative consequences that may occur if behavior is not altered such as ads that
warn people not to smoke or drink and drive. Fear can also be used through the threat of social
disapproval or rejection that an individual might suffer if s/he does not use a particular product or
service (such as deodorant, mouthwash or dandruff shampoo).
Fear appeals can have facilitating effects by attracting attention and interest to a message and
motivating the receiver to act to resolve the problem presented in the ad. However, high levels of
fear can have inhibiting effects whereby the receiver may emotionally block out the message by
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tuning it out, selectively perceiving it or counterarguing against it. The nonmonotonic relationship
between fear and persuasion is shown in Figure 6-6 and should be discussed. Attention is also
given to an alternative approach to the curvilinear explanation of fear—the protection motivation
model.
D.
Humour appeals—are among the most popular and best remembered of all advertising messages.
Advertisers use humour for a number of reasons including attracting and holding consumers
attention, putting them in a favorable mood, creating affect that may transfer to the product or
service being advertised, and reduce counterarguing by serving as a distractor. Problems with
humourous appeals include the possibility of drawing attention to the ad but at the expense of
message content. Effective humour is also difficult to create and execute. Many advertisers prefer
to use hard-sell rational appeals rather than spending their ad budgets to entertain consumers.
Top advertising executives’ opinions of the pros and cons of humour are summarized on pages
154-155 of the text and should be discussed.
E.
Combining rational and emotional appeals—many purchase decisions are made on the basis of
both rational and emotional motives. Thus rational and emotional appeals may be combined in
the advertisement to attempt to influence both types of purchase motives.
F.
Another type of appeal is teaser advertising, which is designed to build curiosity, interest, and/or
excitement about a product or brand by talking about it but not actually showing it.
VII.
SOURCE FACTORS
The source of a marketing communication can be viewed as a multifaceted concept since many types of
sources can be included in a promotional situation. We will use the term source to mean the person who
is involved in the communication of a promotional message in either a direct or indirect manner. A direct
source is a spokesperson who delivers a promotional message, demonstrates a product or service, and/or
endorses a product or service. Spokespeople used in advertisements or a company’s sales representatives
are examples of direct sources. An indirect source does not actually deliver a message but rather is used to
draw attention to or enhance the appearance of a promotional message. Decorative models are a good
example of an indirect source. Most of the theory and research associated with the study of source factors
deal with the characteristics of individuals as communicators of a persuasive message and how they
influence communication effectiveness. This is the approach we use to examine source characteristics.
The characteristics of the source often have a significant impact on the effect of their sales and advertising
message. A useful framework for examining source characteristics is the classification scheme developed
by Herbert Kelman, which is shown in Figure 6-8. This scheme recognizes three basic categories of
source attributes with each involving a different process by which the source influences attitudinal or
behavioural change in the message recipient.
A.
Source Credibility—refers to the extent to which the source is perceived as having knowledge,
skill or experience relevant to the communication topic and can be trusted to give an unbiased
opinion or present objective information on the issue. Information from a credible source can
influence beliefs, opinions, attitudes, and/or behaviour through a process known as
internalization whereby the receiver desires to have an objectively correct or “right” position on
an issue.
1. There are two important dimensions to credibility—expertise and trustworthiness. Examples
are provided regarding the application of expertise and trustworthiness to promotional
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situations. Global Perspective 6-1 discusses how some celebrities do not endorse products or
appear in commercials in the US so they can protect their credibility. However, many of
them do endorse companies and brands in foreign countries
.
2. Using corporate leaders as spokespeople—Many companies believe the use of their president
or CEO is the ultimate expression of the company’s commitment to quality and customer
service.
3. Limitations of credible sources—Marketers generally seek to use credible sources to deliver
their promotional messages. However, in some situations a high-credibility source may be
less effective than a moderate- or low-credibility source such as when the receiver has a
favorable initial attitude or opinion. In this situation the use of a highly credible source may
lead the receiver to attribute his or her opinion to the source rather than the message being
communicated. However when a moderate- or low-credibility source is used, the receiver
cannot really attribute his or her attitude or opinion to the source. The sleeper effect
phenomenon is another reason why a low-credibility source may be just as effective as a
source high in credibility.
B.
Source Attractiveness—a commonly used source characteristic in advertising and personal selling
is that of attractiveness. Attractiveness also has several sub-components including similarity,
familiarity and likability. The process through which attractiveness leads to persuasion is
identification whereby the receiver seeks some type of relationship with the source by adopting a
similar position. Examples are provided of the application of source attractiveness in the selection
of sales representatives as well as in advertising through the use of celebrities and decorative
models.
1. Applying similarity—marketers recognize that people are more likely to be influenced by a
message coming from someone with whom they feel a sense of similarity. Similarity is used
in various way in marketing communications: selecting salespeople, using former athletes to
promote beer, and in slice-of-life commercials.
2. Issues in using celebrities—advertisers have long recognized the value of using celebrities
such as television and movie stars, athletes, musicians or other popular figures to endorse
their products and services. Celebrities are used because they have “stopping power” and
draw attention to advertising messages. Another reason is the expectation that the respect,
popularity, and/or admiration the celebrity enjoys will influence consumers’ feelings and, of
course, their purchase behaviour toward the brand the celebrity is endorsing. However, a
number of factors must be considered in using celebrities as a spokesperson or endorser such
as:
a. Overshadowing the product—while a celebrity may draw attention to an ad, consumers
may focus on the celebrity rather than the product or service and the advertising message.
b. Overexposure—consumers generally recognize that celebrities endorse a product or
service because they are paid to do so. When a celebrity endorses a number of products
s/he may become over exposed and lose credibility.
c. Target audiences—attention must be given to the target audience and whether the
celebrity is appropriate for the consumers in this market. For example, younger
consumers may be more impressed by celebrities than older people.
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3. Understanding the meaning of celebrity endorsers—advertisers should use celebrities who are
connected in some way to the product or services they are endorsing. This means that
marketers must understand the image and meaning celebrities project to consumers.
A very insightful perspective on celebrity endorsement based on meaning transfer has been
developed by McCracken. His model, which is shown in Figure 6-9 of the text, suggests that
a celebrity’s effectiveness as an endorser depends on the culturally acquired meaning he or
she brings to the endorsement process. Celebrities draw these meanings from the roles they
assume in their entertainment or athletic careers. The model suggests that celebrity endorsers
bring their meanings into the advertisement and transfer them to the products they are
endorsing. These meanings are then in turn transferred to the consumer when they purchase a
product or service. The implications of the meaning transfer model should be discussed.
Current examples of celebrities whose image is capitalized on by marketers who use them in
their ads should be noted. For example, actress Jane Seymour is a spokesperson for Gerber,
which makes baby food and other baby products. She is a very effective endorser because of
the wholesome image she has from her role in the family TV show Dr. Quinn Medicine
Woman that was popular for many years. She also has young twins which enhances her
credibility as a mother and spokesperson for a company such as Gerber.
4. Decorative and physically attractive models—a common technique used by advertisers to
draw attention to an ad and enhance its effectiveness is the use of a physically attractive
model. Often these models are used in a passive or “decorative” manner rather than as active
communicators. A number of factors must be considered in using decorative models such as
whether they are appropriate or relevant to the product or service being advertised and
whether they will draw attention to the ad but not the product or advertising message.
C.
Source Power—A source has power when he or she can actually administer rewards and
punishment to the receiver. Perceived power depends on several factors such as perceived control,
concern and scrutiny. Power influences persuasion through the compliance process whereby the receiver
accepts the persuasive influence of the source and yields to the advocated position to obtain favourable
reactions or avoid punishment. It is important to point out that persuasion induced through the use of a
communicator who relies on power may be superficial and last only as long as the receiver perceives that
the source can administer rewards or punishment. The use of source power is difficult to apply in a
nonpersonal influence situation such as that found in advertising.
Teaching Suggestions
For many students the most interesting aspect of advertising and promotion is the creative side. Most
students really do not have an appreciation for what is involved in the development of an advertising
campaign. They may think that the development of a campaign and individual messages involves only the
agency creative department. It is important to stress the fact that the development of a campaign involves
numerous individuals from both the other departments of the agency as well as on the client side. Many
students will not end up being directly involved in the design and creation of advertisements. However,
creative strategy is often critical to the success of the firm’s integrated marketing communications efforts.
Thus, it is important that everyone involved with the marketing and promotional program have some
understanding of the creative process that underlies the development of advertising messages, as well as
the creative options available to the advertiser.
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Some interesting discussion can be generated over the issues of what constitutes creative advertising.
Students might be asked to debate the different perspectives of advertising creativity. One side can take
the “its only creative if it sells” position versus the “aesthetic, novelty/uniqueness” perspective. Some
interesting discussions can also be generated over the issue of creative risk taking and just how much
latitude the client should give the agency when it comes to creating the advertising message. For a very
interesting discussion on the debate over different perspectives on creativity we suggest that you read the
article on “Creative Differences” by Anthony Vagnoni which appeared in Advertising Age on November
17, 1997.
It is also important to discuss how research is used as an input to the creative process of advertising.
Some time might be spent discussing the value of both qualitative and quantitative research techniques
and how they can be used to provide the creative department information that gives them more insight
into the consumer.. It is also interesting to spend some time discussing advertising campaign themes
currently being used by various advertisers. This discussion can focus on the creative strategy being used
by the advertiser, the image or position they are trying to establish for the company or brand and what
type of analysis or background research might have been used in developing the campaign It is important
to stress that advertising campaigns are often the result of extensive planning and research that is provided
to the creative team by marketing planners and researchers on both the clients and/or agency side.
Answers to Discussion Questions
1. How important was creativity for the Telus (previously Clearnet) campaign?
Clearnet successfully launched it services in the 1990s with an innovative creative campaign that
featured various scenes from nature including animals. With the takeover of Clearnet by Telus, the
latter wanted to continue its campaigns using animals. Telus used Clearnet’s “Disco Duck” for a
national ad campaign in January 2001. Recently, the theme has been continued with the cute monkeys
that are seen in their ads.
2. What are the differences between creative strategy and creative tactics? Why is it important to make a
distinction between these two concepts?
Creative strategy determines what an advertising campaign and messages will say or communicate. It
is best viewed as a process that is designed for determining what the advertising should communicate
about the product or service and the big idea that will be used as the central theme of the advertising
campaign. Creative tactics focus on how the advertising campaign and messages will be
communicated with regard to areas such as various appeals and execution styles as well as the tactical
issues involved in the design and production of advertising. It is important to make a distinction
between the two concepts because the creative strategy must be established before the customer
tactics are developed.
3. Review the various advertising campaign themes used by Burger King that are shown in Figure 6-1.
Why do you think Burger King has had such a difficult time finding an effective campaign theme?
As shown in Figure 8-1, Burger King has changed its advertising theme 19 times in the past 25 years
and changed agencies seven times. Part of the reason for the frequent changes is that Burger King’s
franchisees are very powerful and exert considerable pressure on the company when they do not like
the advertising campaigns. For a number of years Burger King had been losing market share and
falling further behind McDonalds which prompted the franchisees to demand an advertising strategy
that would help bring back the customers. The fast food business has matured and it has become very
difficult to gain market share. Moreover, the market has become very price oriented and “value meals
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and menu” have become very prevalent. Another reason for the changes is that many of the
campaigns Burger King used over the past two decades have simply not been very good.
The problem created by the frequent changes in campaign these was that Burger King could not
develop a strong image and position in the fast-food market. Consumers were confused as to what
Burger King serves (other than Whoppers) and the advertising flip-flops do little to remedy this
situation. One of the longer running campaigns the one using the “Get your burger’s worth” slogan
which ran from 1994 to 1998. This campaign was successful because it focused on Burger King’s
product and was effective in targeting McDonald’s customers. A franchisee who is the chairman of
Burger King’s marketing and advertising explained the fast food chain has experienced strong growth
because “we are executing our strategy of focusing on burgers, burgers, burgers.”.
In August of 1999 Burger King began “Go the distance” campaign as part of a continuing effort to
transform its brand image. The strategy underlying this new campaign was to support the company’s
historically rooted positioning of “Have it your way”, but extending the message beyond the simple
customization of toppings and into the customer service dimension. The basic premise of the
campaign is that Burger King is always seeking new ways to help customers have it their way, by
doing whatever it takes (i.e., “Going the distance”). This campaign was short-lived, however, as
Burger King changed themes once again in April 2000. The latest campaign theme being used is
“Got the urge?” and is designed to focus on the restaurant’s food and drive the message that Burger
King offers great tasting menu items that appeal to a variety of tastes. The TV commercials feature
the sexy voice of actress Kathleen Turner speaking in double entendres as she describes Burger King
menu items. It will be interesting to see how long Burger King keeps this campaign theme. Given
BK’s track record, it is likely that the theme will have changed by the time you read this.
4. What is your opinion of advertising awards, such as the Cannes Lions, that are based solely on
creativity? If you were a marketer looking for an agency, would you take these creative awards into
consideration in your agency evaluation process?
There are numerous arguments that can be made both for and against advertising awards that are
based primarily on creativity. In defense of awards based on creativity, it should be noted that a major
challenge given to the artists, copywriters, and creative directors is basically to be creative. They are
given the charge of turning advertising and communication objectives, product/services attributes and
benefits, and selling premises into a creative concept that will bring the message to life and capture
the attention of consumers. Another argument in favour of the value of creative based awards is that
they function as “report cards” from the other creatives who judge them and help the advertising
industry set high standards for itself. It has also been argued that creative awards are very motivating
to creative people, who often are driven by more than financial compensation, and are a catalyst for
creative excellence.
There are also problems with creative awards such as the classic argument that an award-winning ad
is of little value unless it results in sales of the product. Critics of awards have also noted that many
agency personnel have become too obsessed with winning creative awards and too much time, energy
and money are devoted to entering advertising award competitions. There is also concern that the
creative personnel may be more concerned with the award winning potential of an ad than its ability
to sell the client’s product. Critics of awards have also noted that there are simply too many of them
and they have lost their value and meaning. In fact even the Clio awards have lost much of their
credibility and distinction as the “Oscars of advertising”. A few years ago the company that organizes
the Clios competition and the award ceremony went bankrupt and failed to show up at the awards
ceremony. Although the advertising industry is trying to revive the Clios, they may never regain the
respect they once had as advertising’s premier award. This distinction seems to have been taken over
by the Cannes Lions awards.
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It is reasonable for agencies as well as individuals to pride themselves on their creative awards. First
of all many awards recognize that the creative specialists are doing their job very well. Moreover,
creative awards can be very important to an agency (and individuals) in terms of recognition,
visibility and ultimately more business and income.
Certainly a marketer should take into consideration creative awards in the evaluation process, but
more importantly, it’s imperative to establish whether the award-sinning ads have met the advertising
objectives.
5. Find an example of a print ad that you think is very creative and ad you feel is dull and boring.
Evaluate each ad from a creative perspective. What makes one ad creative and the other ad bland.
Students should be asked to find examples of print ads that they find particularly creative as well as
dull and explain why they judge them so. Their analysis should focus on specific aspects of these ads
that make them exciting or interesting versus dull and boring. It is likely that they will find more
creative and exciting ads in publications that are targeted to their age group such as Rolling Stone or
various fashion magazines. Less exciting ads may be found in general interest publications such as
Reader’s Digest, and Time and or various business publications.
6. Assume that you have been assigned to work on the development of an advertising campaign for a
new brand of soft drink. Discuss the various types of general and product-specific preplanning input
you might provide for the creative team.
General preplanning input includes overall information on trends, developments and conditions in the
marketplace that would be relevant to the marketing of the product. In the case of a soft drink, the
advertiser would want to know about a number of trends and developments affecting the beverage
market such as the increasing popularity of new age drinks. Information on the changing lifestyles of
consumers and how this might affect their beverage consumption would also be relevant as would
specific information on the soft drink segment of the beverage market.
Product-specific preplanning input includes information that is directly relevant to the product or
service. Usage and attitude studies regarding soft drink users and nonusers in particular, could be
performed as well as psychographic studies. Problem detection studies could be performed to
determine what changes or improvements consumers would like to see in soft drinks (e.g., taste, more
caffeine). The outcome of a problem detection study may provide input for product improvements,
reformulations, or new brands. It would also be important to have information on the type of
advertising being used by various competitors such as Coke and Pepsi in the cola segment and 7 Up,
Sprite, and others in the non-cola segment of the soft drink market.
7. Canadian Tire maintained similar creative themes for many years. Why do you think they did this for
so long? Canadian Tire started a new theme in 2002. Can you describe it? Why did they change it?
One of the best remembered themes was “There is more to Canadian Tire than tires”. This theme was
successful in getting consumers to consider the many products other than automotive parts that
Canadian Tire carried. Recently, Canadian Tire changed its theme to “Let’s get started”. Perhaps
management felt that a new theme would get consumers’ attention in thinking about Canadian Tire in
a fresh new way. The theme was designed to show consumers that many household projects require
products that are available at Canadian Tire.
8. Find an example of an ad or campaign that you think reflects one of the approaches used to develop a
creative theme/idea such as unique selling proposition, brand image, inherent drama, or positioning.
Discuss how the creative theme/idea is used in this ad or campaign.
There are four approaches discussed in the text for developing creative theme/ideas that can serve as
the basis of the creative strategy. These include the unique selling proposition, creation of a brand
image, the use of inherent drama and positioning. Students should bring in examples of ads that they
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feel are examples of each approach to developing a creative theme/idea and describe the logic of their
selection.
9. Discuss the pros and cons of using a comparative advertising appeal for the following products: beer,
cell phones, furniture, airlines.
There are several advantages to using a comparative advertising message. A comparative ad may be a
way of gaining attention, particularly when a new or lesser-known brand compares itself to a wellknown brand or market leader. Comparative ads also allow a company to directly communicate the
features, attributes, benefits, and advantages of its product or service relative to those of its
competitor(s). For a new brand, comparative advertising provides a way of positioning the product in
the evoked set of brands the consumer might consider. Potential problems with comparative
advertising are that consumers may see these ads as less believable and more offensive than
noncomparative messages. Users of the attacked brand may be particularly skeptical about the
credibility of comparative claims. There is also the possibility that the use of a comparative message
may focus more attention on the competitor’s brand and benefit them more than the sponsoring brand.
Answers may vary on the pros and cons for the above products and services. One variable to take into
consideration is the amount of differentiation among competing brands. A brand with a strong pointof-difference can benefit from comparative advertising.
10. Assume that you have been asked to consult for a government agency that wants to use a fear appeal
message to encourage college students not to drink and drive. Explain how fear appeals might affect
persuasion and what factors should be taken into consideration in developing the ads.
Fear can affect persuasion in both a positive and negative manner. An anti-drinking and driving
message with a low level of fear can have facilitating effects if it attracts the attention and interest of
college students and motivates them to consider how they might try to resolve the threat. This
suggests that a mild fear appeal may be effective in changing attitudes and behaviour of college
students as it may get them to think about the negative consequences involved and think about how
they might avoid them. Fear appeals can also have a negative or inhibiting effect and a message that
uses too much fear may cause students to tune it out, perceive it selectively, counter-argue against it
or discount the likelihood of the negative consequences happening to them. One potential problem
with anti-drinking and driving messages targeted at college students is that young people tend to
perceive themselves as invulnerable and thus they may discount any negative outcomes shown in the
message as unlikely to occur to them.
A number of factors should be taken into consideration in developing a fear appeal message for the
college audience. As noted above, college students are a market segment that may require special
consideration when using a fear appeal message. This audience may be likely to discount fear appeal
messages that are too strong or seen as too unrealistic. The credibility of the source used in the
message may be very important and consideration might be given to using a source with whom this
group identifies and might not easily derogate. Research on fear appeals has shown that they are more
effective among non-users of a product than users. Thus it may be more effective to target fear
appeals at those students who are not heavy drinkers and encourage them to take responsibility for
those students who do drink and drive. The designated driver program and responsible drinking
campaigns of liquor and beer companies often do this.
11. It has been observed that Canadian advertisers use fewer celebrity endorsers compared to American
advertisers. Do you agree with this? If it is true, what is the explanation?
It is possible that Canadian advertisers use fewer celebrity endorsers than American advertisers. One
reason may be that American celebrities may be more well-known to Canadian consumers than
homegrown ones. Secondly, some American commercials with celebrity are used in Canada. This
eliminates production costs to develop a Canadian commercial.
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12. Find a celebrity who is currently appearing in ads for a particular company or brand and use
McCracken’s meaning transfer model (shown in Figure 6-9) to analyze the use of the celebrity as a
spokesperson.
McCracken’s meaning transfer model provides a very interesting perspective on celebrity
endorsements. According to this model, a celebrity’s effectiveness as an endorser depends on the
culturally acquired meaning s/he brings to the endorsement process. Celebrities acquire these
meanings from the roles they assume in their careers as entertainers, athletes, politicians and other
areas. They then bring these meanings into the advertisements in which they appear and transfer
them to the product or service they are endorsing. Students should be asked to find a celebrity who is
currently endorsing a product, service or company and analyze his or her endorsement effectiveness
in terms of McCracken’s model. They should discuss how the celebrity acquired his or her meaning
and whether it transfers well to the company or brand they are endorsing.
Additional Discussion Questions (not in text)
13. Discuss the meaning of advertising creativity. Choose a print advertisement and a television or radio
commercial you like and analyze them in terms of creativity.
Advertising creativity refers to the ability to generate fresh, unique, and appropriate ideas that can be
used as solutions to communications problems. Creative specialists have the responsibility of
developing advertising messages that capture the attention of, and hopefully, persuade, the target
audience. Students should be asked to evaluate the print ad or commercial they have chosen in terms
of its uniqueness, appropriateness, and its ability to communicate with the intended target audience.
14. What are the various stages of the creative process? Do you agree with the notion that advertising
creativity can or should follow a definitive process?
The various stages of the creative process of advertising include: preparation  incubation 
illumination  verification/revision. The notion that there is some definitive process to advertising
creativity is logical although it should not be expected that every creative specialist will follow this
procedure in developing an advertisement. Models of stages of the creative process are valuable as
they offer an organized way of approaching an advertising problem. Virtually all creative specialists
will want to prepare themselves by gathering background information that is relevant to the
advertising problem or by examining research or engaging in fact finding that will help them generate
creative ideas or solutions. It is also important to subject creative ideas to verification so as to reject
any inappropriate ones and refine and polish those that remain in order to give them optimal final
expression.
15. What is meant by a media-driven creative strategy? What are the advantages of taking this approach
to creative strategy development?
A media-driven creative strategy refers to the idea of creating advertising messages that are designed
to work well in a specific media vehicle. For example, Absolut vodka often tailors its print ads to the
specific magazine in which they will appear. While the same basic campaign theme is used, the
creative execution takes into account the nature and characteristics of the medium in which the ad is
being run. The advantages of this approach are that it creates a synergy between the creative and
media process. Rather than having a broadly focused creative strategy and using a general message
for various media, a media-driven creative strategy makes it possible for the advertiser to adapt the
message to the style, mood and character of the medium.
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16. What is meant by a unique selling proposition (USP)? Find an example of an ad your feel uses a
unique selling proposition as its major selling idea. Evaluate this ad against the three characteristics of
USP’s discussed in this chapter.
The concept of the unique selling proposition (USP) was developed by the famous advertising
copywriter Rosser Reeves. The concept of a USP is that it offers the consumer a specific feature or
benefit that is important to them and unique to this particular brand. The three characteristics of a
USP are that each ad must make a proposition to the consumer that tells them the benefit they will get
by buying the brand; the proposition must be one that the competition either cannot or does not offer;
and the proposition must have motivating power and thus be able to convince consumers to buy the
brand. Students should be encouraged to find an example of an advertisement that they feel uses a
USP as its major selling proposition. The ad should be evaluated against the three characteristics of
USPs discussed here and in the chapter.
17. Discuss some of the various motives that can be used as the basis of rational advertising appeals. Find
examples of ads that use some of these rational motives as the basis for their advertising appeal.
Rational appeals focus on the consumer's practical, functional, or utilitarian needs or motives for
purchasing a product or service and emphasize specific features and/or benefits or reasons for owning
or using a particular brand. Informational/rational appeals are most appropriate for highly involving
or complex consumer products such as appliances, electronic products, pharmaceuticals, automobiles,
or financial products and services as well as for many industrial or business-to-business products and
services. These types of appeals are commonly used when consumers have a high need for
information and are likely to engage in evaluation and comparison of alternative brands. Specific
motives that can be used as the basis for rational appeal include quality, performance, efficacy,
durability, reliability, dependability and efficiency. Students should have no trouble finding ads that
use rational motives as the basis for their advertising appeal.
18. Discuss some of the various social and psychological states or needs that might be used as the basis
for emotional advertising appeals. Find examples of ads that use social and psychological needs as the
basis for their advertising appeal.
Emotional appeals relate to the consumer's social and/or psychological needs for purchasing a product
or service. Emotional appeals are most appropriate for products and services where social and/or
psychological needs and feelings are important or where consumers need to be reached on an
emotional level. Many consumer products are difficult to differentiate on a functional/utilitarian basis
and advertisers often turn to appeals to emotions to create feelings, images and beliefs that can be
activated when the consumer uses the product. Moreover, marketers recognize that commercials must
be meaningful to consumers, as well as entertaining, and emotional appeals are often the best way to
touch the consumer and hold their interest. Emotional appeals are not, however, limited to consumer
products that are difficult to differentiate. Appeals to emotions are also used for major purchases such
as automobiles, financial investments, and many other purchases. Figure 6-5 lists various personal
psychological states (safety, security, fear, joy, nostalgia, pride) as well as social-based feelings or
needs (recognition, status, respect, approval) that can be used as the basis for emotional advertising
appeals. Students should be encouraged to find examples of ads that appeal to specific psychological
and/or social needs or motives.
19. Most marketers choose message sources with high credibility. Discuss some reasons why it may be
unnecessary or even detrimental to use a source who is high in credibility.
There are some situations where high source credibility may not be necessary and may even be a
liability. A high credibility source is likely to be most effective when message recipients are opposed
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to the position advocated in the message as the credible communicator will inhibit counterarguing and
source derogation. However, a high-credibility source may not be needed when the audience has a
neutral position and may even be less effective than a moderately credible source when the receiver’s
initial attitude is favourable. The reason for this is that when a low credibility source is used the
message recipients are encouraged to review personal thoughts that are supportive of their favourable
position rather than attributing their feelings to the highly credible communicator. Studies have also
shown that high and low-credibility sources are equally effective when they are arguing for a position
opposing their own best interest.
Another reason why a low-credibility source may be as effective as a high-credibility source is
because of the sleeper-effect phenomenon. While the immediate impact of a persuasive message may
be inhibited because of its association with a low-credibility source, the association of the message
with the source diminishes over time and the receiver’s attention focuses on the information in the
message. Thus the positive effects of using a high-credibility source will diminish over time as will
the initial negative impact of using a low-credibility source.
20. Companies sometimes use athletes with a negative reputation or image as a spokesperson in their
advertisements. Why do you think these companies use controversial athletes such as Dennis Rodman
as spokespersons? What risks are they taking?
Companies might use a controversial figure such as Dennis Rodman as a pitchman for a number of
reasons. First of all he cuts through the clutter and attracts attention to the advertising message,
whether it is in a magazine or on television. Some companies also feel he strikes a responsive chord
with younger consumers and is an effective spokesperson for Generation Xers who identify with his
cynical, authority-hating and rebellious attitude. They also feel while his behaviour can be
embarrassing at times, it is not really that bad. A public relations manager at Nike, which used
Rodman for several years, noted: “Dennis may be a little odd, but he’s committed no crimes.”
Some companies are willing to accept and deal with the controversy that comes with the use of
spokespersons with a negative reputation and/or image. However there does come a point where their
behaviour creates too many problems and can reflect negatively on the company that uses them. For
example, most endorsement contracts have escape clauses that allow companies to drop a
spokesperson at the first hint of drug use, sexual scandal or criminal charges. Marketers must also
consider the audience they are targeting with their advertisements. While younger audiences and
Generation X-ers may be willing to tolerate the antics of someone such as Dennis Rodman, older
consumers are much less likely to respond to spokespersons who are too controversial.
21. Evaluate the argument that humourous messages may wear out faster than other types of advertising
appeals. Do you agree or disagree with this position?
Commercial wearout refers to the tendency of a message to lose its effectiveness when it is seen
repeatedly. While wearout is a potential problem for any type of commercial, some advertising
experts argue that humourous ads may wear out faster because once the consumer sees a funny spot a
few times and gets the joke, the ad becomes boring. Wearout can occur because of inattention or
annoyance at seeing an ad so many times. Critics argue that humourous commercials wearout faster
because consumers stop paying attention to them and may become annoyed at seeing the ad over and
over. Arguments can be made, however, as to why humourous ads will not wearout any faster than
other types of commercials and may even wearout more slowly. Many humourous spots are very
entertaining and TV viewers enjoy watching them over and over (the basic “I love that commercial”
idea). It is probably incorrect to argue that humourous ads wearout any faster than other types of
commercials. The rate of wearout probably depends on the individual commercial and consumers’
reactions to it.
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IMC Exercise
Find an example of three current advertising campaigns that are using at least one of the following source
or message factors:

a celebrity spokesperson

a corporate leader such as the president, founder or CEO as an advertising spokesperson

a fear appeal message

a humourous appeal message
Analyze the advertisers’ use of this particular source or message factor. Why do you think they chose to
use this particular source or type of message? Are the spokespersons and/or messages appropriate or
inappropriate for this particular brand of product or service? How might the use of this type of source or
message impact the way consumers in the target audience respond to the advertising campaign?
IMC Comprehensive Project
Students should be prepared to begin focusing attention on the advertising component of their IMC plan.
They should be able to use the information in this chapter to begin developing the creative approach and
campaign theme for their plan. The specific assignment is as follows:
IMC Project Assignment for Chapter 6
You should be ready to begin developing the advertising component of the IMC plan for your product or
service. Develop a copy platform that contains the basic creative strategy for your advertising campaign.
You can use the copy platform outline shown in Figure 6-3 as a guideline. What is the advertising
campaign theme you have chosen for your product or service? Are you using any of the approaches
discussed in the chapter such as unique selling proposition, brand image, inherent drama or positioning as
the basis for your major selling idea?
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