Advertising message assignment

This means that the greater the enjoyment, the greater the exposure to the message and the lower the probability that the message will be perceptually zapped. Bible (1990) found that changes in product preferences were considerably improved when receivers had liked the commercial a lot’. This compares with those who were less enthusiastic or neutral towards the advertisement. Haley (1990) reported that advertisements that create a belief that the product is excellent and where messages that are liked are commercially more successful.

In other words, a usage that is well liked will sell more product than a message that fails to generate interest and liking. This begs the question, ‘ what makes a message liked? Obviously, the receiver must be stimulated to become interested in the message. Having become emotionally engaged, interest can only be sustained if the credibility of the advertisement can also be maintained. The style of the message should be continued, in order that the context of the message does not require the target audience to readjust their perception.

Political parties can be observed to use this strategy immediately before an election. 4. The level o f involvement High involvement usually means that receivers prefer to make up their own minds and may reject or resent any attempt to have the conclusion drawn for them (Roar, 1985). One- and two-sided messages This concerns whether the cases for and against an issue or just that in favor are presented to an audience. Messages that present just one argument, in favor of the product or issue, are referred to as one-sided.

Research indicates that one-sided messages are more effective when receivers favor the opinion offered in the message and when the receivers are less educated. Two-sided messages, where the good and bad points of an issue are presented, are more effective when the receiver’s initial opinion is opposite to that presented in the message and when they are highly educated. Credibility is improved and two-sided messages tend to produce more positive perceptions of a source than one-sided messages (Poison, 1961). Order of Presentation Further questions regarding the development of message strategy concern the order in which important points are presented. Messages which present the strongest points at the beginning use what is referred to as the primacy effect. The decision to place the main points at the beginning depends on whether the audience has a low or high level of involvement. A low level may require an attention-getting message component at the beginning. Similarly, if the target has an opinion opposite to that contained in the message, a weak point may lead to a high level of counter-argument.