Module 3 Influencing strategies – Principles of persuasion in ads, week 3

This week´s assignment:
Blog: Identify a set (two or three) advertisement to analyze, which are NOT from your organization. Apply the principals you have encountered during the course. Which principal(s) are used, how likely is it to work, and for what target group, based on information in the advertisement.


I start with an advertisement for Liedl.

“Now 12:- MORE EXPENSIVE! Valid for 6-pack Gelatelli icecream and only  and only upon presentation of this ad”

If you read further down in the ad it says “Unique offer to you 93%* that need an enticing high price to believe in the quality”. It also says in even smaller print further down: “*Source Brandz 2012. Percentage of non-clients who think that Liedl is “to cheap” for them to shop there.”

I think that this is a quite innovative ad, it really attract the eyes because first you think that it´s a mistake, a misprint… What? More expensive?...

The add is based on the fundamental thought that people tend to think that less expensive products equals less quality. With this innovative ad they hope to attract even customers with that belief.


I think that the basic thought here is to make people try out the products at Liedl and then, due to that they have low expectations from the beginning, this will probably lead to a positive disconfirmation, according to Oliver´s Expectancy Disconfirmation Model of Satisfaction. The performance will most probably be higher than on beforehand expected.
Even if they maybe are not “clear as sausage soup” as we say in Sweden J, I can think of three of the Cialdini principles:

-          There has been done an investigation by a company that found out that there were 93% not shopping at Liedl. This can be connected to the Cialdini´s 3^rd principle “Authority”.

-          By using this 93% figure, even if it´s not in Liedl´s favour, it means that I´m not alone with this thought, there are actually many more people that are thinking like me! Therefore, I think that Cialdini´s principle no 6 “Consensus” can be applied here in some extent.

-          I also think that Cialdini´s no.4 “Consistency” in some extent that can apply on Liedl.
If they get people to try out the products and if the quality of the products are higher than expected, this will create consistency and commitment – customers will come back.

One theory I have is that there´s actually 93% of the people that doesn´t shop at Liedl due to that they think it´s too cheap. I think this can create a curiosity and a challenge – do I dare try?...


  


Next add “Loreal” is using the 6^th principle of consensus. (Sorry for the really bad quality of the picture)  It says “We asked 15.000 women to give us 8 weeks on their deep-set wrinkles – The result speak for themselves”

The target group for this ad is probably women in the forties/fifties.
Also, by using the face of Andy MacDowell, we can also connect to principle no 5 - “Liking”. Many women in the fifties would like to look like her.


After having listened to Tobias Otterbring´s studies regarding physical appearance and sex specific purchase preferences, we also learn that women tend to take quite high risks when it comes to looks and health, therefore I think that by using  “The result speak for themselves”  creates a feeling that you maybe have to try even if you don´t believe in it…. Because, what if it works?…  Do you dare to take the chance to not to try?...